The roof rails at Roofing House, headquarters of the National Federation of Roofing Contractors, may be needed this week to protect telecommunication engineers as they restore the organisation’s telephone lines.
A statement by the NFRC on July 24th revealed that their landline numbers were not working, adding: “We are currently experiencing a fault with our phone lines and are subsequently unable to receive or make calls; this is likely to be the case for the remainder of today.”
It is unclear whether rooftop access might be needed in order to restore the lines to working order; however, if engineers need to access the upper exterior of 31 Worship Street, you might expect them to be in safe hands.
And a glance at the five-storey building suggests that this is the case, with roof rails acting as demarcation systems between Roofing House and neighbouring buildings whose upper floors reach a different elevation.
This is a useful reminder of the value of guardrails as demarcation systems, as they can protect against falls between different elevations, as well as being used as edge protection to prevent falls to ground level.