The Wagtail Squeegee

The guys at window cleaning resource have released a couple of informative videos on the wagtail squeegee. The popularity of these squeegees seems to have taken a new turn of late & more window cleaners seem to be turning to them. Don't get put off by the appearance - most seem to think they look like a toy, but look at the operative from window cleaning resource after using the wagtail for just one week! Alex Lambrinides shows us a close up of the wagtail & in action "nose to glass." You can get your Wagtails here, in all shapes & sizes!

Wagtail Cleaning Tools is an innovative Australian company specialising in designing award winning fast and easy to use window and floor cleaning tools.Wagtail Cleaning Tools was established in 1993 by inventor and window cleaner Mr Willie 'Wagtail' Erken (pictured).Wagtail Cleaning Tools is dedicated to designing innovative cleaning equipment for professionals and household use.Wagtail has been trading online for over 5 years.Willie Erken Willie Erken is the Managing Director of Wagtail Cleaning Tools. Willie was a professional cleaner for more than 20 years in shopfront, domestic and highrise window cleaning. As he and his employees developed muscle strain and carpal tunnel syndrome due to the weight and design of window cleaning tools, he recognised the need for lighter, faster and more ergonomically designed tools. Wagtail tools were invented and developed to meet these needs. Willie says " I personally guarantee greater productivity and less arm strain for you and your employees."

Wagtail Awards: The Wagtail 'Combi' was shortlisted for the Australian Design Awards in 2001.The Wagtail 'Combi' won the Best Australian Innovation Award in October 1996. As a result of this the Combi was showcased at Australia's contemporary museum: The Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, Australia.In 1998 -1999 the Wagtail 'Combi' won the Gold and Silver Medals at the International Inventions Exhibition in Geneva, Switzerland. Wagtail tools have been granted worldwide patents. Heres Willie in action showing the versatility of the wagtail. More videos here.

Montreal Heroe

After yesterdays video (last one), more news comes to light:

Office workers rescue window washers during storm. MONTREAL - As torrential rain and fierce winds lashed Montreal Tuesday afternoon, Alain Lapointe sat in his plush office on the 30th floor of a downtown office building oblivious to the chaos the sudden storm was causing just outside his window. But just before 2:30 p.m., that would all change. Lapointe heard a loud noise outside the building, just a few feet from his desk. He walked over to the window and was sickened by what he saw. Just below him, two terrified window washers had become trapped on their platform outside the Place Montreal Trust building on McGill College Ave. Swirling winds swung the platform back and forth, causing it to repeatedly slam into the building. One strong gust turned the platform 180 degrees in mid-air, terrifying office workers who were watching the drama unfold in other skyscrapers nearby. "One guy was crouched down trying to protect himself from the wind and rain and another was trying to cling to the window ledge," Lapointe recalled yesterday. "It was terrifying to watch. I thought they were going to die." Fearing the cables that suspended the platform to the roof would snap, plunging the men to an almost certain death, Lapointe told his administrative assistant, Magdalena Berthet, to call security.
Within seconds, security supervisor Sébastien Molaire, had joined Lapointe in his office on the 30th floor to assess the situation. "I saw two guys who looked very scared - I saw fear," Molaire said yesterday. At the security desk on the main floor, Berthet and security guard, Marco Labelle, were having trouble getting through to 911, because the emergency service was innundated with calls about other storm-related damage.Although they called 911 using three different phones, they say their calls went unanswered for about seven minutes. Molaire kept called Labelle on his walkie-talkie, telling him they needed the firefighters urgently. Frustrated at waiting so long for a 911 dispatcher to answer his call, Labelle eventually hung up and phoned the fire department directly. Back on the 30th floor, Lapointe and Molaire decided they could no longer wait for firefighters. With the winds continuing to gust, and the situation becoming desperate, they took matters into their own hands. Lapointe, a senior vice-president of a wealth management firm, told Molaire they needed to break the window and try to rescue the men themselves. He found a strong glass ball on a shelf in an adjacent office and handed it to Molaire, a strong 30-year-old who is planning to become a police officer. Using all his strength, Molaire pounded the glass ball against the thick window until there was a large hole in the two panes of glass, wide enough to pull the window washers to safety. As Molaire grabbed one of the men, Lapointe held the man's head so he wouldn't cut it on the broken glass as he slid through the window. Once both were safely inside, Lapointe slapped one of the shaken men on the shoulder and reassured him his terrible ordeal was over. "They were in shock and they were soaked," he said. "They said very little. I told one of them: 'Hey, you are inside. It is finished." Before the thunderstorm struck downtown, the window washers had been working on the 26th floor of the building. Their employers, Entretein McGill Inc., didn't return calls from The Gazette yesterday. Lapointe and Molaire said they didn't know why they men were still on the platform when the storm hit. However, someone with knowledge of the situation said the workers were caught off guard and waited too long before trying to make it back up to the roof. A spokesperson for the 911 service said its monitoring system showed that the longest wait time on Tuesday was about 4.3 minutes, not seven minutes, as Labelle and Berthet contend. "We received 1,353 calls between 2:30 and 3 p.m. (on Tuesday) said Richard Boyer. "There was a lot of wind and trees that were down, so everyone was calling. People waiting on the line for 911 often feel that the wait is longer than it is." Although the whole ordeal took about 15 minutes, Lapointe said it felt like an eternity. "If was frightening to watch them stuck there," he said. "We could see them though the window, but because the glass is tinted, they couldn't see us." During the daring rescue, Molaire cut his thumb and was taken to hospital for several stitches. His boss has given him a couple of days off to recuperate. The affable security guard downplayed his role in the rescue saying he was only doing his job. "I am happy that I helped save lives," he said. "My job is to do the best I can to help others and that's what I did." When asked whether he would consider including details of his heroic efforts on his curriculum vitae when applying to the police force, he chuckled. "We will see," he said. "I just might."

A piece of plywood covers a 30th floor window of Place Montreal Trust that security supervisor Sbastien Molaire smashed with a glass ball yesterday during the severe storm to get 2 window washers to safety. They were on a scaffold that was being tossed about by the strong winds. The covered window is two floors below and to the right of the bottom of the bottom of the sign on the building.

Alcides Moreno

Window Washer Lives to Tell About Fall From 47 Floors Up. New Video here.

The "miracle" window washer who survived a 47-story fall from a New York City skyscraper said today in an exclusive interview on "Good Morning America" that he's grateful to be alive and that the Big Apple is his home. "This is home forever' Alcides "Miguel" Moreno, an Ecuadorean immigrant, told Diane Sawyer. It was a moving coda to an extraordinary story of survival, one that continues as the unimaginably lucky Moreno grows stronger each day. Moreno and his brother plummeted from the city skyline in December after their scaffolding snapped. His brother died. Through tears -- and a little laughter -- Moreno talked about how good it was to be alive, lovingly referring to his devoted wife and family. "I'm thinking, talking about my life," he said, "I have children." The hospital originally described Moreno's condition as a "complete disaster," that included several broken limbs and severe internal injuries. Doctors were unsure if Moreno would ever walk again, and when he could return home. But Moreno, 37, continues to surprise doctors, performing a miraculous recovery, returning home and even walking again. On a cold morning, Moreno and his younger brother, Edgar, woke up at 4 a.m. to go to work together, washing windows as they had done for the previous 12 years. But on that Dec. 7, 2007, the cables holding their scaffolding snapped and dropped the brothers, at up to 125 mph, to the city's concrete more than 550 feet below. Edgar, 30, died instantly. Moreno managed to hold on, riding the scaffolding like a surfboard to the ground. Astonished rescue workers found Moreno alive. He was even sitting up, holding his hands to his chest. "No one actually believed he's alive, falling from this height," paramedic Michael Kremenizer said.
Doctors called it a miracle. "I don't know what adjective you'd care to use, unprecedented, extraordinary," said Philip Barrie, a doctor at New York Presbyterian Hospital. "If you are a believer in miracles, this would be one." Moreno suffered a broken arm, two broken legs and severe injuries to his chest, abdomen and spine. A small army of doctors drilled a hole in his brain to reduce swelling, pumping 24 units of blood into his battered body before eventually inducing him into a coma. It came to be known by the local media as "the legend of the fall." Not only did Moreno survive, but he eventually woke up. On Christmas Day, Moreno emerged from the coma, reaching for his wife. At a news conference, his stunned wife, Rosario "Rosie" Moreno, did not know what to say. "I don't know what to tell you. I'm still at awe," she said last year. "I'm still in shock." Only four months after the accident, Moreno checked out of Kessler Rehab Center in New Jersey. And, miraculously, he left walking on his own two feet. Gesturing to the right side of his body, Moreno said, "I land[ed] on this part, you know, all this part." And even though he still has pain, he says it is "much better." As his body heals, Moreno has continued to regain more of his memory. "That means a lot to me, when I start to remember my neighbors. Once I remember my house and the city where I live," Moreno said. While Moreno has fond memories of his younger brother, he also now has memories of his brother falling. "Yesterday, I remembered my brother and I was crying a little bit," he said. "That was the only thing since this happened that I remember." Although Moreno was a U.S. citizen before the accident, his brother, Edgar, was not. The paperwork arrived after his death. Continuing to defy conventional wisdom, Moreno is making significant progress. Now, only six months after that terrifying morning, he is walking completely on his own. His recovery is one that he says he could not have done without wife Rosie, who kept constant vigil on a tiny couch next to his hospital bed. "This is home forever," Moreno said. "I mean, look, I have me a Puerto Rican girl." She may be Puerto Rican to his Ecuadorian, but Moreno declared proudly that their home is the life they have built together, with their three children: Michael, 14; Mariah, 8; and Andrew, 6. Now, he cheers at Mariah's soccer games, enjoys family barbecues as the summer melts away and spends Sunday mornings at church, where friends welcomed him back from a miracle that no one could have imagined.

Another reason for keeping clear of cradles!

Related News: "Gusting winds left a pair of window washers stranded 35 storeys in the air at Place Montreal Trust. Their work platform started swinging so hard from side to side that "at one point, it was perpendicular to the building and was blowing in the wind," said Jeff Smith, an office worker in the downtown building. Smith and his co-workers watched on the edge of their seats with a "front row view" as the cleaners clung to the platform for nearly a half hour, Smith told CBC Radio. They eventually gained access to the building on another floor through a broken window, he said."

Attack on Window Cleaner UK

Teenage attackers have sentence reduced.
FOUR teenagers who were jailed for a total of more than 11 years for attacking an innocent window cleaner will each serve only a year behind bars after appealing against their sentence. The gang of teenagers, all from Blackburn, admitted robbing Ian Dewhurst as he emerged from an off-licence in the town's Granville Road on November 13, 2006. Mr Dewhurst's teeth were kicked out in the attack and he had several ribs broken. All four pleaded guilty at Preston Crown Court and were sentenced to terms ranging from 30 months to 38 months of youth custody in January of this year. Three of the youths cannot be named due to their young age, but Yasin Ali Khan, 18, from Preston New Road, Blackburn, who received 30 months, can be identified. The four young men appealed against the length of their terms at the Court of Appeal in London and each had their sentences reduced to two years, of which they will serve half behind bars. Lord Justice Thomas, who sat with Mr Justice Forbes and Mr Justice Roderick Evans, said their previous good character, remorse and progress behind bars justified the reductions. He told how Mr Dewhurst, 47, was left lying injured in the street after the attack by the four youths, one of whom was aged just 14 at the time of the robbery. They got away with just £10 in cash, but were snared by police because the whole incident was recorded by nearby CCTV cameras. After the original sentence Mr Dewhurst said: "The sentence the judge passed is justice in some ways. "They have been shown this behaviour cannot carry on. "This was the second time I was attacked in two weeks - who is to say there isn't someone who will act in the same way as them? "They have affected me in a psychological way but I am pleased with the sentence."

Window Cleaner Sleeps in Tokyo

It is not often you get to see a woman sleep in a bed stuck on the side of a building, but this happened for workers in the Ginza district of Tokyo. The lunch crowds saw a woman abseiling from the roof of a hotel, and into a bed suspended from the fourth floor. Professional window cleaner Aya Nakamura took part in the stunt as part of an advertisement for a hotel chain. "I was yawning and I actually almost fell asleep because it's such beautiful weather. It's so warm and it feels so good," Ms Nakamura said after the stunt. The hotel was trying to highlight the benefits of a good night sleep, but its PR manager said the stunt did more than hit home its message. "This ad is unique because this never happens. All this in a busy street like Ginza. That is our point: to surprise our guests and consumers in Japan," said Takako Ushio.

Video here. More photo's here.
Also see footballers at height here.

Walking Miracle

AFTER THE FALL - 47-STORY GUY WALKING TALL.

He's a walking miracle. Pictured above: Alcides Moreno, who fell 47 stories after his window-washing rigging broke, walks his puppy, Bruno. Window washer Alcides Moreno, who amazed doctors by surviving a 47-story plunge from an Upper East Side high-rise in December, is now astounding his neighbors, as he looks like any other guy out walking his dog in his New Jersey neighborhood. A limp and a long scar and gash on his left calf are the only signs of the horrific fall that killed his brother, also a window washer. "Thanks to God," he said as he left his Linden home with his wife, Rosario, and their 2-month-old pug, Bruno, on their way to a post office.

"It feels good to have him home," said his wife, who kept a vigil at his bedside. But Moreno's stunning recovery has been overshadowed by grief for his brother. "It's no celebration," he said.
Moreno, 37, and his brother, Edgar, 30, were scrubbing glass at the top of an apartment building at 265 E. 66th St. on Dec. 7 when cables connecting their 16-foot-long aluminum scaffold to the roof failed. The brothers fell 500 feet to the ground - more than enough to kill them. Doctors say falls from three or four stories are fatal half the time. But Alcides Moreno survived - his plunge slowed by the flat scaffold platform's wind resistance and the possibility that it slammed into the ground corner first. With serious injuries to his brain, chest and abdomen, several fractured ribs, a broken arm and both legs smashed, Moreno was rushed to New York Hospital, where quick work by doctors and nurses saved his life. During his three weeks in the hospital, Moreno underwent 16 operations and numerous blood transfusions. On Christmas Day, he shocked doctors by speaking for the first time since the accident. "I did what?" the father of three asked as he came out of a medically induced coma and heard his wife gently chiding him for stroking a nurse's face. Moreno spent six weeks in the hospital before being moved to a rehab center in January. He went home a few weeks ago, though he still goes to rehab three times a week.

The Ecuador native is suing the building owner and management company and the scaffolding firm, which, he says, "acted with gross negligence" when it built the platform he and his brother were working on. "I still feel it's impossible," his friend and neighbor Walt Melnyk said of Moreno's recovery. "I did not expect to see him walking. He's a tough guy."

Buildering, Parkour & Free Climbing

Stunt climbers use buildings for their own causes: Renzo Piano, the Italian architect who designed the New York Times tower on 8th Avenue at 40th Street in Manhattan, made a point of keeping the building transparent at ground level. His goal, he said before the building opened last summer, was to avoid the forbidding, fortress-like appearance that marks other post-9/11 towers in Manhattan. He wanted the final product to look inviting.He may have succeeded too well. Two climbers -- the first an experienced stuntman from France who has scaled architectural landmarks all over the world, the second a copycat from Brooklyn -- gained quick access to the skyscraper on Thursday and reached the top with relative ease. The Frenchman, Alain Robert, known to his fans as Spiderman, barely seemed to break a sweat.Both men took advantage of the horizontal ceramic rods that wrap much of the tower's exterior. Though they were designed to reflect sunlight and shade the interior, they also do a pretty good impersonation of a 52-story ladder. As one post on the design website Archinect put it: "Dude, I could climb the New York Times building." The pair of incidents also introduced a new word to the pop-culture lexicon: "buildering," which means to scale a piece of architecture without any equipment. (It's adapted from the rock-climbing term "bouldering.") There is, not surprisingly, a whole series of websites devoted to the obscure hobby, including buildering.net, on which by Thursday night the message boards were buzzing with news of Robert's latest conquest. Like Robert himself, the site may be French, the tag line no more than a charming malapropism. But the phrase is a fascinating one, raising a range of questions about how people react to a piece of architecture once it's completed, and how using a building in a way that the architect or the client never intended can actually animate it in the public imagination.The best example from recent architectural history is undoubtedly the late World Trade Center. When the twin towers, designed by the Japanese architect Minoru Yamasaki, were completed in 1974, many New Yorkers found them aloof and intimidating, hulking skyscrapers built on a concrete "superblock" and detached from the life of the city around them.But even before they were completely occupied, a daredevil named Philippe Petit -- also French! -- got up on the roof and set up a high wire between the towers, 1,360 feet above the pavement. He walked back and forth eight times without any harnesses, even pausing to lie down in the middle of the wire and gaze up at the sky. (The incident is recalled in a new documentary on Petit, "Man on Wire.") Three years later, a climber named George Willig scaled the south tower using clamps he'd custom-made to fit inside the building's window-washing tracks. The stunts helped thaw the icy attitude New Yorkers had developed toward Yamasaki's design. In misinterpreting his architecture, Petit and Willig humanized it.Even politicians understood this. Then-Mayor Abe Beame, sensing that coverage of the climb might help promote the towers and distract a city in the grip of 1970s malaise, decided to fine Willig just $1.10 -- a penny for every floor.