The Express Lift Tower: A LEGO® creation by R H : MOCpages.com

The Express Lift Tower

Rate it

Add a comment

Zoom in

The 417ft lift testing tower in Northampton, England

About this creation

The Express Lift Tower is a lift testing tower built by the Express Lift Company off the Weedon Road in Northampton, England. The structure was commissioned in 1978 with construction commencing in 1980, and was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 12 November 1982.

Designed by architect Maurice Walton of Stimpson and Walton, the tower is 127.45 metres (418.1 feet) tall, 14.6 m (47.9 ft) in diameter but tapers to 8.5 m (27.9 ft) at the top. The only lift testing tower in Britain, it was granted Grade II listed building status on 30 October 1997, at the time making it the youngest listed building in the UK.

It gained the nickname "The Northampton Lighthouse" from broadcaster Terry Wogan on his BBC Radio 2 programme. The building has never been open to the general public. Recent discussions chaired by local designer Nigel Clarke have proposed the tower be used as a haunting reminder of the demise of the local shoe industry. One playful suggestion put forward by renegade architects NotWright was that two spherical monuments be built either side and a garden grown above. This suggestion was later vetoed by Sally Keeble MP, who felt it was inappropriate given the advertisers' base, Peterborough.

In January 1997, the tower fell out of use after Express Lifts was taken over by Otis and subsequently closed. In 1999, the tower and surrounding land was sold to Wilcon Homes for development. The building has been threatened with demolition after being found to have so-called "concrete cancer". This was later revealed to be a fabrication to try and pull the listed building down to use the land for development. The plan faced strong opposition from local people, and as of 2008 the tower's future is uncertain although demolition may be difficult due to the proximity of the new housing development.

The building was inspected by abseilers in November 2006, to help the owners formulate a maintenance strategy and evaluate possible future uses of the tower. Suggestions so far have included luxury apartments, a research centre for lift engineering students at the University of Northampton and a climbing and abseiling centre.

It is the only such tower in the UK, and one of only two in Europe.

Planning was approved in December 2008 for toilets and kitchens to be built inside the tower as a forerunner to the tower being restored to its original purpose.

On the 15 September 2009 it was announced the tower had been renamed to The National Lift Tower as the owners are preparing to reopen the tower, after developer Peter Sullivan spent Ł1 million on restoring the tower. The tower is due to open at the end of September and will feature a new building at the base of the tower which will hold the reception area for visitors, a coffee shop and conference suite. The lift engineering classes are to start at the end of September, when the lift tower is reopened, it will include lift shafts which allow engineers to test lifts at speeds of up to 22 mph.

Comments

Add a comment

I made it

R H

October 12, 2009

Quoting david drake Nice write-up for such a building. The slenderness of it makes it look even taller than it actually is. How many bricks tall is the MOC?

Because I used bricks and plates to finish the building I'm not sure exactly how bricks tall it is but I would guess around 60-65.

I like it

david drake

October 11, 2009

Nice write-up for such a building. The slenderness of it makes it look even taller than it actually is. How many bricks tall is the MOC?

By R H

Add to my favorite builders

people like this. See who.

1,409 visitors
2 comments
Added October 11, 2009

Miscellaneous (27)

The Glass Tower (Ficitional skyscraper from the 'Towering Inferno')