In Livingston with nothing to do on a Sunday, this looked worth a go – I had a good look about, went off to Bangour for a potter while thinking about it, then came back and got in.
The EDS print centre in Livingston was a privatised facility for printing government giro cheques – there was a near-riot when it closed due to the huge disparity in the payments offered to EDS employees and former government employees.
Due to the nature of the work done here, security was tight – a high and strong steel fence, only one gate, lots of CCTV and RFID-based ID cards for access to different areas.
The main print halls were pitch-black, and someone had been lifting the elevated flooring to get at the cables:
One of the big fireproof tape stores:
With ceiling tiles removed, wiring was hanging everywhere:
Lots of paperwork was still lying about:
The local kiddies had been breaking windows, though none seemed to have got over the fence.
Towards the front on the building, there was a lot more light.
The state of alert was “Black Special”, apparently.
The main atrium was a little fire-damaged, but someone had used the hose:
The office areas were very ’70s space-age:
Still lots of equipment left in the kitchens:
The front desk was abandoned in a hurry (security cleared the building at the end to protect management):
Service technicians kept themselves busy:
Making my unconventional way out, a couple of neds passed with fishing poles. “Are you a security guard?”. “Yes,” I replied, “I’ve just lost my keys”…