On historic sandstone buildings and brickwork on newer builds across Scotland, a buildings pointing, with is shorter lifespan than the surrounding stonework needs semi regular repairs and maintenance as part of a wider building maintenance plan.

But what happens when the pointing that needs to be repaired is high up beyond the reach of ladders? Scaffolding is one option but this can be a very expensive and time consuming process. There is another way.

Rope Access Pointing, Sealing and Mastic work

At Balmore Specialist Contracts, we have an in-house Rope Access team who can provide a complete difficult access solution alternative to scaffolding that is faster, safer and offers REAL cost savings.

What is Rope Access?

Rope Access is a safe method of working at height using rope systems (the same as mountaineers use) and related equipment. The uses for Rope Access are near limitless and it has become one of our stand out services for customers who require cleaning, repairs and inspection services.

What is pointing?

Pointing is the ‘finish’ that you find between the bricks and stonework of buildings across Scotland. With different generations of building construction and materials comes different ways of pointing but mortar used to lay stone and brickwork will be made from either lime or in modern times, cement.

Mortar acts as the bedding between stones in a building but is not a glue that holds the building together. Mortar must fend off the rain yet be breathable to allow the stonework to breathe. It must be flexible to allow movement of a building structure yet be weaker than the surrounding stonework.

This is all important because building stonework needs to breathe and if the wrong pointing masonry is used, then the wall will quickly deteriorate.

Repointing using Rope Access

A buildings pointing is important and because it is weaker than the stonework around it, needs more maintenance. Repointing is the name given to this and while repointing stonework on a ground floor wall is easy enough; repointing a building that is 8 stories high is something altogether different. This is where Rope Access work comes in. Our Rope Access Team are all fully trained, qualified and certified to work at height on anything from specialist welding to protective coatings, inspections and repair & maintenance. With over 35 years of real experience in building maintenance, we can work on historic building restorations and modern building morter repairs, sealant replacement and more.

As a multi-service construction company in Glasgow, we have experience in commercial, industrial and private contracts. We have worked on many prestigious and high profile projects from cathedral restoration to power station chimneys up to 750ft high, the restoration of a major historic building and more recently, an iconic Newcastle city centre store.

As part of a wider range of roofing and building maintenance services, we can provide a complete repair, maintenance and replacement service for:

– Re-roofing, slating, guttering, chimneys and lead work
– Stone cleaning, restoration and repair
– Pointing and stone replacement
– Painting
– Scaffolding, difficult access, abseiling
– Roof edge protection
– Inspection video and photography
– Demolition of unsafe building and structures
– Waterproofing and preventative treatments
– Renewal and repair of timber, iron and lead work
– Stone wall repairs
– Steeple repair
– Plastering and tiling
– Roughcasting
– Water ingress and damp-proof solutions

Find out more

If you would like to know more about Balmore, our building maintenance contracts and our range of Rope Access Services, please contact our Glasgow Head Office by calling 0141 944 6100 or by emailing sales@balmore-ltd.co.uk. Or if you are on the East Coast, you can call our Edinburgh office on 0131 314 2896