A Window Washer 3x Quicker - Makes Debut In NZ

Jimmy Haugen, JT Property Wash's business partner, was very happy with how the demo of a robotic window washer went.

Lower Hutt company demonstrates robotic window washer in Wellington: A Lower Hutt company's robotic window washer has been demonstrated in Wellington. The idea by JT Property Wash was to create a machine that could clean the entire facade of appropriate buildings including mullions, seals, facade and windows about three times quicker than traditional abseilers.

The SkyPro Building Wash machine with its automated cleaning technology meant the machines could be remotely controlled and operated safely from the roof and the ground. The machine's brush and spray system did not need chemicals and used water which had been stripped of ions, leaving windows streak free. 

Business partner Jimmy Haugen said that to go up and down a 22-storey building would take 18 minutes. "The main advantages we know this SkyPro machine will deliver are a total building clean done in less time, with more privacy and less intrusion for tenants, giving a much better overall result with increased ease, efficiency, and most importantly safety by reducing the need for abseiling."

The robot, which was imported from America, was weather dependent.  A planned earlier demonstration had to be cancelled because of high winds. The company, which worked all around the country, would use the robot around Wellington.

JT Property Wash account manager Robin Kennedy-Moffat said giving a figure on how much the machine cost was commercially sensitive. "It is a long term investment and partnership with VIU Global that we are very confident will provide many benefits to our customers and our business," Kennedy-Moffat said. 

The machine was very portable and setting up and running the machine could be completed by a team of two people. "We set up a suitable rigging system on the top of the building and at the bottom, if required for added stability, utilising existing features on the building." The rigging system is generally portable unless a building owner invests in a rig that can then stay on the roof of that building. 

Set up time could vary depending on the features present on the roof and the variables we need to work with. "As a general rule the whole rigging system and getting the machine ready to start washing takes less than half a day to set up. If we have the appropriate rigging infrastructure on the roof it can take less than an hour to set up."

JT Property Wash started in 1985 as a division of J.Tomlinson & Co. Ltd, which was a painting company. The washing company had ten gangs as they had had to take on more workers to operate the robot.

Turning Ordinary Glass In To Video Glass

As an explosion of skyscrapers continues to alter the skylines of the world’s largest cities, a Hong Kong developer forecasts that their facades will too.

Video Glass Set to Revolutionize Skyscraper Advertising: EDOOH has developed a new Video Glass technology which can transform ordinary glass panes into projection screens, offering a new digital platform for advertising. The energy efficient design of Video Glass would replace existing LED advertising platforms on the facades of skyscrapers with the potential to transform the entire building into a projection screen. EDOOH chief information officer Crystal Fok detailed the technology to CCTV.

“LED light is quite concentrated, and if you were to look directly at it you would feel uncomfortable,” she explained. “But in the glass the light is diffused, so even if you are standing in front of the screen, you are able to watch it directly.” “Video Glass is more environmentally-friendly as light intensity can be fine-tuned to reduce light pollution, and it is also more cost effective.” Developed in South Korea, the glass features a plastic polymer film. An electrical current then runs through the pane, frosting the glass and enabling it to display images from a projector mounted approximately one metre away. Beyond its vertical advertising attributes; there is also an opportunity for retailers to use Video Glass in their shop windows. The technology is currently being tested on a ground-level shop window in Hong Kong’s Times Square – Causeway Bay – with the shop front’s window clear by day and illuminated at night.

The Video Glass has also been applied to a mobile truck parked in Sha Tin which the developers will use as a selling point for a new building project. The innovation has already been rolled out in hotel bathrooms, where glass shower doors can become frosted via sensor or on switch demand. According to Fok, other advancements in the pipeline include the possible installation of motion sensors to make the interface interactive. There is also an opportunity to allow shoppers to scan their body, create a 3D virtual model of themselves and even purchase items via the Video Glass screen using QR codes and a smartphone. Along with its light projecting aesthetic, Video Glass provides an economic benefit to retailers. Passersby can admire, shop and be on their way quickly even when a shop is closed.

The Hong Kong government is supportive of the technology being rolled out across Hong Kong’s urban buildings, which could bring in funding of approximately HK$12 Million (AU$1.7 Million). In terms of a price comparison, Fok reveals that where a 100-inch TV would hold a HK$100,000 price tag, Video Glass screens measuring twice the size would cost a mere third of the price. Utilising building facades as an advertising medium is certainly not new, with Times Square in New York City the most renowned example. The first electronic advertisement in Times Square is credited to The New York Times, which implemented an electronic news ticker known as the Motograph News Bulletin (or the zipper). The ticker wrapped around the base of the Times’ headquarters through the use of 14,8000 light bulbs.

Today the zipper has since been replaced by LED technology and the square still remains an advertising mecca. Last year, Jan Edler of collective realities united told Emporis she believes Mediatecture (media in architecture) and dynamic facades provided through innovations such as Video Glass will be a dynamic trend. “Interest in ‘media facades’ appears to be on the increase,” he said. “We view media surfaces as forerunners of buildings that can actively change and adapt themselves. In this respect, the future potential of such developments is not to be underestimated.” With technology like Video Glass and its associated costing, skyscraper facades could be a very considerable instrument for advertisers.