The red one, a Stanley Handling SC620, is the go to machine. It weighs 46kg itself, carries 310kg up and down stairs, moves at nine steps a minute and will do around 300 steps on a full battery charge, which is enough for most office jobs without a swap. The blue one is a PowerMate M-1, 152cm tall and 74kg, built from heavy duty steel with a drop down frame so it can also move loads across a flat floor. On stairs it takes 454kg with two operators, or 204kg with one. On the flat, two operators can move 682kg.
Server racks, UPS units, multifunction printers, safes, boardroom tables, vending machines and large displays are the usual list, and the 300kg 47u rack we walked to a tenth floor is about the top of what is sensible in a normal office staircase. Beyond that we would rather talk about a crane or a different route than pretend. Weight is only half of it. Centre of gravity, the depth of the treads, whether the half landings let a long item turn, and whether the handrail is fixed to something solid all matter as much as the number on the spec sheet, and that is why we ask for photographs and dimensions before quoting.
Office staircases vary more than people expect: narrow treads, tight half landings, fire doors that have to stay shut, and a building manager who wants the whole thing in writing. We produce risk assessments and method statements (RAMS) for approval, book the bay and any lift we are allowed to use, brief reception and security, and schedule the work for an evening or a weekend so nobody is queuing behind us. Operators are DBS checked and security vetted, which tends to shorten the conversation at the security desk. Public liability cover is no less than £2 million. If the lift fails on the day of a wider move, the climbers are already on the van, which has saved more than one project.
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