The European Patent Office's (EPO) "New Main"; beware the 'loose bits'



Summary: The Hague branch of the EPO reports yet another potentially deadly Nouvel incident; the EPO's workplace safety is appalling even if one survives the endemic depression and chronic Upper Limb Disorder (ULD)

PREMATURELY 'inaugurated' by Battistelli (to avoid António Campinos taking any credit) was a faulty building -- or rather a construction site -- which was rumoured to be the source of funding for Battistelli's 'suite' in Munich (quite a scandal in its own right).

"Mind the lift" is the title of a new internal publication, which follows many others about safety risks -- e.g. fires [1, 2, 3, 4] -- which became a hallmark of the Nouvel building (whose construction team too was reportedly harmed physically -- by falls -- and builder made huge losses).

Nouvel has repeatedly proven to be an overhyped piece of glass and a massive waste of EPO money. As a reader of ours put it, "300 Mio Euros of Applicants' Money really well spent?

"Let's hope that the colleagues trapped into the lift will catch up their production since the targets are here to be met!"

Remember the above video of the building? It's only a matter of time until EPO workers -- or stakeholders -- die in it. The prior building too had issues; the windows were in fact bolted down after a colleague had jumped out the window. Picture that. It's like a prison to them. Here's the latest episode of this "Russian Roulette":

STAFF UNION OF THE EUROPEAN PATENT OFFICE

Local section The Hague Section locale La Haye

29 January 2020 su20003hp

New Main: Mind the Lift

Dear SUEPO Members, dear Colleagues,

Recently, we have been made aware of several incidents caused by a malfunctioning of the lifts of the New Main building in The Hague. This will be no surprise to most – if not all – of you, since the unsatisfactory functioning of the lifts has been a recurrent topic in staff's conversations since the inauguration of the building.

However, one of the most recent incidents took a more serious twist, as it involved 14 people, who remained trapped in a lift for one hour before getting freed. Some of the affected colleagues reported symptoms of nausea due to a shortage of oxygen, and a tense atmosphere inside the lift shortly after it got stuck. It was also reported that the response team was not well prepared to deal with this type of emergencies.

The incidents seem to occur regularly since the move into New Main. This raises the question of whether they pose a serious threat to staff’s safety.

We therefore urge management to promptly react, e.g. with a sound maintenance or repair plan, in order to guarantee the safety of all the users of the lifts.

It should not be an issue to solve this problem quickly. The Office has all the necessary (financial) means it needs. In any event we will follow up the matter and keep you posted.

Your SUEPO Committee The Hague

EPO is a high-financed "Russian Roulette"; who will survive the journey? ⬆