View Buckingham Palace From The Footman’s Point Of View [Video]
The royal family posted an intriguing video of how far a footman has to walk from the kitchens to the Chinese Drawing Room in the event of a function. The royal family says that the new lifts that are being installed at Buckingham Palace will make the route quicker and easier.
According to Daily Mail, the footage released by the British royals shows corridors and provides insight as to why upgrades to the palace are needed. The staff must navigate through a myriad of long corridors just to reach the famous Chinese Drawing Room, a popular venue for many functions.
The new lifts will provide easier access to those parts of the palace which are more remote. In particular, this route has staff walking through the main corridors and past state rooms. Tony Barnard, who is the architectural lead on this project, believes that the route could be improved if staff could ascend from the basement instead. Another benefit of the new lift system would be that the palace would become more wheelchair-friendly.
Buckingham Palace has been undergoing a huge revamp since April 2017. The project will cost £369 million footed by the Sovereign Grant, an annual fee the U.K. government pays to its monarchy. In layman’s terms, taxpayers are coughing up for this renovation. However, the public’s interest in the renovations has been high, with the royals periodically posting about its progress.
Point Cloud technology uses lasers to scan and measure rooms. The collected data is then turned into 3D computer images, which can be used to help architects to effectively plan and design alterations to a building.
Read more: https://t.co/E8rvLUHM3w pic.twitter.com/dU0tChiJ9V
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) July 23, 2018
“… Palace’s electrical cabling, plumbing and heating have not been updated since the 1950s. The building’s infrastructure is in urgent need of a complete overhaul to prevent long-term damage to the building and its contents.”
The royals explain that the renovations will take over a decade to complete, but that all residents would still be living in the building while they were taking place. It seems as if this would be the most cost-effective way to ensure that the palace remains in good repair.
This new film shows how 'Point Cloud' surveys are being used to help design changes to Buckingham Palace for the Reservicing Programme. The technology is being used to design lifts to make the Palace more accessible & more efficient: https://t.co/nZ5MD63DgZ pic.twitter.com/neqAl8Gjtn
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) July 23, 2018
“The most cost-effective way to replace these essential services, and to ensure that The Palace is fit for purpose for the next 50 years, is to undertake a phased program of works over ten years.”
“The program will realize a series of long term financial and environmental benefits, as well as improvements to visitor access. The Palace will remain occupied and fully operational for the duration.”
It seems as if the goal of the renovation project is to ensure that the palace will still be functioning in good condition for the next 50 years. And with 775 rooms, 1,514 doors, and 760 windows, this is sure to be a mammoth task.
Many of the lifts at the Palace are old and impractical – here's how staff currently navigate from the kitchens to the Palace's Chinese Drawing Room for functions. The route will be more practical & efficient when new lifts are installed: https://t.co/P6aLLSrpTI pic.twitter.com/l8E3Kydiya
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) July 23, 2018
