Emergency evacuation chair
Invented by David Egen in USA, the Evac+Chair is manufactured in Birmingham under licence by Evac+Chair International Ltd. "The Evac+Chair is a truly universal product and is a solution for emergency evacuation procedures from buildings for stairway users with mobility problems", says Barry Scholes, Managing Director of the Company.
The Evac+Chair is a lightweight, foldable type of wheelchair which requires one operator. The secret of how it works is the endless friction belting system which rotates around two ski type undercarriages, creating the continuous braking system required to slow the descent of the chair. The heavier the patient the greater the force on the "brakes", thus slowing the chair in proportion to the weight of the passenger. The Evac+Chair is designed to work on straight stairs between 28o and 39o gradient. It is CE compliant under the Medical Devices Directive and also independently tested by TUV.