Grand Canyon Window Cleaners Sky Walk

Cleaning above the Grand Canyon. Formerly AZ Clearview, Abseilon USA is a SPRAT certified, professional Rope Access company.

Extreme Skywalk cleaning tests Grand Canyon workers:  Spring cleaning has been taken to an extreme level. Workers dangling from ropes 4,000 feet above the Grand Canyon are cleaning under the glass walkway today at the Skywalk. The horseshoe-shaped bridge, which has a steel frame and a glass floor, extends 70 feet from the rim of the canyon, giving visitors a breathtaking view of the landscape.

SPRAT Certified Level III Technician Rick Dillman hangs around.

Kenneth Piposar, vice president of Phoenix-based Abseilon USA,  the high-rise window cleaning company that has taken on the daring task, called the job a “great photo opportunity.” “It is the thrill of a lifetime to look down and see a person suspended by two ropes at that height with the Grand Canyon just below them,” he said in a statement. The Skywalk is located about 250 miles from Phoenix.

About the Grand Canyon Skywalk:

• The Grand Canyon Skywalk is active and open to the public year-round, hosting approximately 2 million visitors since it opened in March 2007.
• The Skywalk is a horseshoe-shaped, glass-bottom structure that allows visitors to walk 70 feet past the edge of the Grand Canyon wall and stand 4,000 feet above the Colorado River.
• The phenomenal views are enhanced by glass walls and floor panels so visitors get unobstructed views of the Grand Canyon. Each of these glass panels is custom built to the highest standards for safety and clarity.
• The Skywalk is an engineering masterpiece that took four years and $30 million to complete.
• Structure Facts
• The Skywalk foundation is strong enough to support about 71 million pounds – the equivalent of 71 fully loaded 747 airplanes.
• It consists of more than 1 million pounds of steel and 83,000 pounds of glass.
• In total, it weighs 1.2 million pounds.
• The glass walls are approximately five to seven feet high, extending four to six feet above the glass floor – safer than code, yet low enough that guests do not feel confined.
• The Skywalk is 10 feet wide.
• It is located 4,000 feet above the Colorado River.
• Engineering Facts
• In 1996, businessman David Jin, from Las Vegas, NV, approached the Hualapai Tribe with the idea of a glass walkway over the Grand Canyon. He won approval from the Tribe in 2003.
• The Grand Canyon Skywalk was designed and engineered by Lochsa Engineering & MRJ Architects and built by Executive Construction Management, all based out of Las Vegas, NV.
• Engineers conducted tests on the geologic stability of the site and researched the foundation by testing the compressive strength of the rock.
• Engineers also conducted extensive testing during the planning and design phase to ensure the Grand Canyon Skywalk could easily withstand the high winds that have been known to blow through the Grand Canyon.