Spring St Flagpole
Background
61 Spring St originally constructed in 1877 as a private residence. The site sits opposite the Old Treasury building at the junction of Spring and
Collins St in Melbourne’s CBD. After federation, it served as the Office
of the Prime Minister of Australia from 1901 to 1912. The building’s slate
roof is topped by a substantial Oregon flagpole.
Challenge
Access was the greatest challenge on this job. Due to the fragile slate
roof accessing the flagpole was a difficult job. The passage of time
combined with difficult access had contributed to significant deterioration in the flagpole condition. The flagpole sheave had seized and the halyard had jammed. The finial was missing from the top of the pole and
the exposure to the elements had led to substantial rot in the upper section. The resultant delicate nature of the structure meant it was unable to
directly support the weight of a repair technician.
Process
To access the flagpole Spire’s technicians abseiled off the two adjacent buildings in tandem. This allowed the team to bypass the fragile slate roof and avoid using the flagpole for any work positioning. The rotted section was trimmed down, remaining timber sanded and treated with wood hardener then repainted. The wrought iron stays stabilising the lower third had their corrosion removed and were painted in two-part epoxy finishes. The halyard sheave was freed and lubricated, and a new double-braid
halyard spliced into place. Finally, a new finial was fabricated from
stainless steel sheet, painted in the same two-part epoxy products and mounted on the top of the pole. Stainless steel cleats and a new flag
completed the job. All elements of the work, from rope splicing to sheet metal fabrication were handled in house at Spire.