Stannah Lift Services upgraded and refurbished the existing 6 person hydraulic passenger lift, serving 4 floors, in time for the re-opening of the historic Regent Hotel in Leamington Spa.

Unusually the lift contained a ‘library’ and Travelodge were keen to retain this unique feature to reflect the original style of The Regency Hotel interior.

Designed by CS Smith of Warwick, The Regent first opened in 1819 as one of the largest hotels in Europe, remaining within the ownership of the Cridlan family until its closure in 1998.

The splendid staircases, beautiful stained glass windows outlining the story of the hotel and its visitors and the stunning architectural features can all be enjoyed by today’s visitors from all around the world.

Stannah's Birmingham Branch provided all the refurbishment work and continue to maintain the lift at the Regent Hotel.

Famous past visitors to The Regent Hotel include;
Queen Elizabeth II, Winston Churchill, Charles Dickens, The Duke of Wellington, John Ruskin, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Ulysses Simpson Grant, William Gladstone, Douglas Fairbanks and Sarah Bernhardt.

Refurbished to a very high standard, the Regent Hotel Travelodge, has long been a key contributor to the style and elegance of Leamington Spa centre and is one of over 250 lodges in the UK.

REFURBISHMENT TO MEET EN81-80

‘rules for the improvement of safety of existing passenger and goods/passenger lifts’.

Stannah Lift Services set about updating the passenger lift to meet all the requirements of the latest lift standard EN81-80.

In the lift machine room work included the installation of a microprocessor control panel, including an audio visual hand winding floor indicator, an emergency stop switch adjacent to the pump unit and various preventative safety features to protect working engineers. The lift shaft was surveyed and modernisation included renewing existing wiring, improving pit safety and installing full height lift shaft fascias to reduce the distance between the car frontage and shaft wall. Landing equipment was updated to include new surface push button stations with digital indicators on all floors. The lift needed to be brought up-to-date with all the latest features and fittings in order to secure the safety of all the passengers and the efficient and smooth travel of the lift.

In-car ambience

In addition, the refurbishment of the car itself included the addition of brass operating push buttons, lighting and handrails, a bronze effect half height mirror, half-height dark oak walls and the careful re-installation of the book-shelf type side walls complete with real books.

Taking on board DDA requirements

In order to meet all the requirements of the Disabled Discrimination Act the controls, both inside the car and on all landings, had to be tactile and a voice synthesiser was provided to continually advise of the lift’s position while in transit.