Evac+Chair International launches its first battery-operated evacuation escape chair
Evacuation chair specialist Evac+Chair International has launched its first powered evacuation chair to enable mobility impaired individuals to evacuate up or down 150 flights of stairs in one charge.
The new 900H Power evacuation chair is operated with a 24V lithium-ion battery and features a powered belt track system, reducing the need for manual handling.
The move towards powered technology is a key step in Evac+Chair’s growth journey, with the company rolling out the 900H Power evacuation chair to sectors including social care, education, leisure and retail, alongside residential homes and commercial workplaces.
Ges Wallace, managing director at Evac+Chair International, said: “Everyone has the right to a quick and safe means of escape from a building. Whether mobility impaired or able-bodied, we could all experience circumstances when it might be more difficult to exit a building in an emergency.
“For over 35-years, we have been the global leader in supplying evacuation escape chairs. Our latest powered chair provides people with a safe and rapid method of upward or downward evacuation.
“It has been designed for one person evacuation and has enough power to transport a person up to 150 flights of stairs in one use.
“This latest innovation is a key milestone for Evac+Chair. It demonstrates the power of our research and development capabilities, as well as our commitment to the future of the evacuation and fire safety industry.”
The Solihull based firm, which has over 35 years’ experience in manufacturing and product design, is a globally recognised leader in creating stairway evacuation escape chairs which are used to help those with mobility impairments to evacuate buildings.
Since beginning its operations in Birmingham, the business has created manual evacuation chairs, supplying customers in over 50 countries including global businesses such as BP, Deloitte and Fujitsu.
The Evac+Chair was invented with the aim of helping to save the lives of those with mobility impairments in an emergency – earning a place in the 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York for its use.
The concept of the chair was invented by David Egen in the United States in 1982 and is now licensed, developed and manufactured by Evac+Chair in the UK.
