Vacuum lifters help protect homes with new glass flood wall

The glass lifters were used to construct the glass flood wall at the village of Paull, East Yorkshire, to protect it from high tides along the Humber River.

Building contractors selected a P11104 vacuum lifter and an MRT4 vacuum lifter from the extensive range of machines in Hird’s glass lifting hire range to help install the panels.

Hird Managing Director Phil Hird said: “We’re delighted that our vacuum lifting equipment has been used for such a worthy project.

“It’s good to think that our glass lifting hire service has helped protect thousands of homes from flooding in the winter ahead and, hopefully, for many years to come.

“The glass flood wall is simple, yet clever, technology. It shows what’s achievable with ever stronger types of structural glass.

“Innovations in glass production are allowing more and more structures to be built from glass, in ever larger sizes and different shapes.

“We’re determined to keep up with this trend, so we will always offer glass lifting solutions that allow structural glass to be used to its fullest potential.”



The 520 metre-long (1,700ft) barrier has cost £835,000 and will protect 14,000 homes in the Holderness area.

As it is made of glass, it is designed to allow people in homes and businesses facing the estuary, and people out walking along the river front to still enjoy the views.

The glass panels feature a “special grid” of dots designed to deter birds flying into the wall.

Glass vacuum lifters represented the ideal technology to lift the panels into place quickly, safely and cost-effectively.

The contractor used the vacuum lifters in conjunction with a telehandler, allowing the reinforced glass panels to be quickly carried to the right location and lowered into the aluminium frames.

The Wood’s Powr-Grip P11104 vacuum lifter is one of Hird’s most popular glass vacuum lifters. It has four in-line vacuum cups and can lift an impressive 320kg.

It can be quickly manually-tilted from horizontal to vertical, and has a low vacuum alert.

The Woods Powr-Grip MRT4 vacuum lifter is also always in demand, thanks to its versatility, ease of use and excellent safety features.

The machine can be set in a wide range of configurations for many different load sizes. It also has a 320kg maximum lifter capacity.

The German-made glass flood wall, which took three months to build, has been funded via government grants.

Hundreds of properties were flooded in 2013 after a combination of high tides and strong winds caused a tidal surge, that breached flood defences along the east coast on 5 December.

Hird’s glass vacuum lifter hire service is complemented by a mini crane hire fleet, providing pick and carry cranes and spider cranes for use with all glass lifting equipment.

Hird also has the most modern and capable range of glazing robots in the UK. All glass lifting equipment is available across the UK via three operational centres.

Northern 01482 227333

Central 01302 341659

Southern 0203 174 0658

Email: info@hird.co.uk