Cleaning up in the air at Tokyo Skytree

24th of October 2016
Cleaning up in the air at Tokyo Skytree
Cleaning up in the air at Tokyo Skytree

Cleaning – a job that doesn’t come with excitement and adrenaline? Well, think again, because the cleaners of Tokyo Skytree start their first day at work full of adrenaline. They are tasked with cleaning the windows of the second highest building in the world. Bobbie van der List met two of their cleaners to find out what drives them, and what it takes to do the job.

In the east part of Tokyo you will find one of Tokyo’s biggest tourist attractions: Tokyo Skytree. At a staggering 634 metres Skytree is the second highest tower worldwide, nearly 200 metres ‘shorter’ than Dubai’s Burj Khalifa. According to Skytree it was the plan from the beginning to make sure Skytree would be “the world’s tallest freestanding broadcasting tower”. After the construction of Skytree was finished in 2011, the Guinness World Records Company registered Skytree as the tallest freestanding broadcasting tower.

Although Skytree primarily functions as a television tower, the observation deck has been a huge tourist attraction over the past four years. From there visitors get to experience a 360 degrees view of the world’s largest metropolitan area, with an estimated population of 37 million people. In order to give visitors this breathtaking view it is essential for Skytree to keep the windows, through which visitors see the city, perfectly clean. As such, the Skytree cleaning team is of vital importance to keeping visitors satisfied.

Mochizuki Hideki is head of the cleaning team, and sits down on the 14th floor of Skytree to talk to ECJ. He explains: “I have always wanted to do this kind of work, I decided to do this job because of the heights”, he explains. The cleaning company he works for is specialised in cleaning the windows of high buildings and high constructions. He turns around – behind him a spectacular view of Tokyo: “I’m responsible for cleaning a few very famous high buildings here in Tokyo, unfortunately I can’t tell you which, because that is confidential.”

Getting used to heights

Most people shy away from the idea of having to be on the other side of the window at such height, let alone having to do a demanding task such as cleaning extremely large windows. For Hideki it all started nearly three decades ago. “When I told my friends that I was going to clean high buildings they were all surprised. This was even more so when I started to clean the windows of Skytree four years ago. Up to this day people ask me: ‘Aren’t you scared?’ In all honesty I do remember the first day up there”, he recalls, while holding his finger up the air. “I was so scared, it felt like I was dying. Especially when you first look down, it’s frightening, but after a while you get used to it”, says Hideki.

At the beginning of each month Hideki and his co-workers clean the windows of Skytree. Usually it takes about a week to get the job done. Luckily for Hideki and his team Tokyo Skytree created a special rail alongside the windows, which goes sideways but can also move vertically. It enables them to reach all the windows, without having to get out of the wagon that is attached to the rail. “Usually we work in teams consisting of three persons. One person does the cleaning, while the other two cleaners are controlling the wagon and the surroundings of the wagon”, he explains.

Fear brings caution

According to Hideki awareness of what is happening around the wagon is extremely important, because there are always looming threats when the cleaners are in their wagon. “The biggest risk of working in the wagon is that it might bounce against the windows, so we have to be very careful not to collide. This is also why we never go outside if there is heavy wind or rain”, Hideki emphasises. For safety reasons all the cleaners wear a harness, which is attached to the
wagon. “In the unlikely event that someone falls out, it would be like a bungee-jump, since we are safely attached to the wagon.” He starts laughing thinking of the idea of actually bungee-jumping from Tokyo Skytree.

His team is equipped with as few cleaning products as possible, to prevent the risk of equipment falling down. The cleaners are only geared with squeegees and soft-bristle brushes, to reduce the number of items that could potentially tumble down.

Ironically fear is what he describes as one of the crucial characteristics a cleaner should posses in order to clean the windows of a high building in a safe manner. Hideki explains: “Thinking about the height, or being scared of the height is important. If a cleaner is too comfortable with the height it can cause him or her to not consider the dangers, they can become reckless. Being scared makes you cautious of your environment.”

A view like no other

Next to Hideki sits 23-year-old Uesake Chisato. She sits quietly and listens how the experienced Hideki explains what it takes to clean high buildings. She might come across as shy, but looks can deceive: in reality the young Chisato has nerves of steel. As opposed to many of her co-workers, she wasn’t scared when she stood inside the wagon to clean the windows on her first day at work. On the contrary: “I like the high position, the scenery from Tokyo Skytree is unlike any other, totally different, it’s the highest building in Tokyo.”

Her friends admire Chisato for her courage, whereas some others might have told her she is crazy to go up there and clean the windows. “At times my family is worried too, but like Hideki said, the wagon we are in is really safe”, Chisato says reassuringly.

Hideki, who is the more talkative of the two, takes over, when asked about the dirt they usually find. “It depends on the season. Usually it’s dust and dirt caused by the rain. But in the spring there is a lot of flower powder, it comes up here with the wind, and also a lot of yellow sand. In the summer there are many dead insects. You know the noisy insects cicada, we find a lot of them on the top. Their bodies are all over the place.”

And have you ever seen something you were surprised by? “Not here at Tokyo Skytree, but on skyscrapers generally I’m surprised by what I see. Some people throw an entire lunch or soft drinks out of their window, making the windows very sticky.”

Besides the strange things they might come across on the windows, it is mostly the contact with the visitors that makes the work pleasant, both Chisato and Hideki agree. Perhaps it’s the single most social job there is: having to clean the very object people can see right through: a window. “I don’t find it distracting if people wave to us from the other side of the glass, we wave back at them and they actually take selfies with us.” In a way one could argue that the actual cleaning of Skytree is a little show and performance in itself.

No need to look down

According to Skytree no one has ever quit the job because they couldn’t handle their nerves. However, there is always a threat that people who are looking for excitement and adrenaline want to work there. It is mostly thanks to a very strict hiring and selection procedure that the Japanese company is able to avoid employing risk-seekers, or people looking for some adventure outside of the tower. On top of that, every cleaner has to go through strict safety training before they are even allowed to enter the wagon.

Having said that, in reality not that many people even dare to look down from the wagon, to the ground, nearly 600 metres down. For Hideki it is surprising how few cleaners actually dare to look down. “Although you are high up in the air, not all of them look down, it’s not a necessity to do a good job.” Then he turns to Uesaka, who doesn’t seem to have any problem looking down. Some people were made to work on high altitude and clean at the same time.

For Hideki it is clear that Chisato is a talented cleaner, who will replace him when the time comes. Hideki explains: “I headhunted her for this position. She has a great sense for her surroundings, which is important for this job, especially when it comes to safety. But she also has a good sense for cleaning, she catches every spot,” he concludes – referring to the essential part of their job: keeping the windows clean so visitors can see the beautiful skyline of Tokyo.

 

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