Stage One

From its internal frame to its gearbox arrangement to the design of its scroll drive, this project was unique.

The nylon scroll drive was a bespoke development, turned in our machine shop. The first time we had produced this design, once manufactured the scroll was bench tested to ensure its safety and stability.

For the test build, the steel structure was first load tested and then put into accelerated live testing where we ran the system for a month to assess the mechanics.

Finished in a brushed, bespoke exhibition grade stainless-steel, the cladding was particularly unforgiving, yet this hadn’t been the case during test build. It deformed ever so slightly during the brush-finish processing due to the heat generated. It required manual manipulation when cladding the frame on site, making it difficult to achieve a tight seam when trying to line up the panels. We added banding sections to the structure to cover the seams, these not only aided the design aesthetic but helped to simplify the install when working in constrained space.

Because this moving sculpture was installed into a venue where there was risk of the public interacting with this scheme, safety considerations always remained at the top of the agenda. A pressure pad was installed around the base of the piece so that anyone getting too close to the system would trigger a safety stop. Another interesting feature in this regard were the magnetic connection of the shelves attached to the paternoster. The strength of these magnets was specified to deal with the anticipated payload of the display objects, but weak enough to detach if they were interfered with by visitors to the store. This is a fine example of designing for a use-case scenario that is not intended but may occur in exceptional conditions.