Hydraulic

Hydraulic Elevators

Hydraulic elevators are commonly used for low rise applications up to six stories.
In this system, a hydraulic cylinder and piston assembly is installed into the ground. Hydraulic oil is pumped by the pump unit through a feedline to the cylinder assembly. This causes the elevator car to rise upwards. Due to the design, hydraulic elevators are low speed (typically 100 to 150 foot per minute) and are inherently lower in cost than traction elevators.

Holess-Hydraulic

Holeless Hydraulic elevators do not use a conventional piston/casing arrangement. They use a pair of above ground cylinders, which makes it practical for environmentally or cost sensitive buildings with 2, 3, or 4 floors.

Roped-Hydraulic

Roped Hydraulic elevators use both above ground cylinders and a rope system, which combines the versatility of inground hydraulic with the reliability of holeless hydraulic, even though they can serve up to 8-10 floors.

traction elevator

Traction

Traction Elevators

Traction elevators are commonly used for mid and high rise applications six stories and above. In this system, there is typically a large motor above the elevator hoistway which turns a large drive sheave. Multiple steel wire ropes are attached to the top of the elevator car frame. These hoist ropes then route vertically up the hoistway and over the drive sheave grooves. As the motor turns the drive sheave, the traction between the drive sheave and the hoist ropes causes the elevator to go up and down.

Traction elevators are more complex due to the higher speeds of travel (typically 250 to 2000 foot per minute) and the necessary addition of safety equipment to ensure safe operation. As a result, they are higher in cost than hydraulic elevators.

Machine-Room-Less (MRL) Elevators

Machine-Room-Less elevators are just that, elevators that don't require a machine room unlike the traditional designs of overhead traction and hydraulic elevator that do.

The new lift design presents a departure from the traditional, looped over-the-top traction rope routing of traction elevators. The ends of the cables are fixed to the supporting structure, and the length of the cable are connected to the car and counterweight by means of a force-multiplying, energy saving compound pulley system. Machine Room-less elevators have become a welcome alternative to the older hydraulic elevator for low to medium rise buildings.

The MRL elevator utilizes a gearless traction type machine, which results in superior performance and ride quality compared with hydraulic elevators. MRL’s can also operate at faster speeds thus increasing the perception of quality over a conventional hydraulic and require less space to do so.

Benifites Of MRL Elevators

The use of the MRL elevator will save a significant amount of energy (estimated at 70-80%) as compared to hydraulic elevators, as well as space. The power feeders for the MRL are significantly reduced due to the more efficient design and the counter-balancing provided with traction equipment.

The MRL elevator eliminates the cost and environmental concerns associated with a buried hydraulic cylinder filled with hydraulic oil and so MRL’s have been labeled as “eco-friendly”. Over the years hydraulic elevators have come under greater scrutiny relative to environmental concerns due to the buried hydraulic cylinder. Because the MRL elevator is a traction elevator with all its components above ground, this is not a concern for this equipment.

Escalators

Escalators are powered by constant-speed alternating current motors. Modern escalators have single piece aluminum or steel steps that move on a system of tracks in a continuous loop.

Escalators are required to have moving handrails that keep pace with the movement of the steps. The direction of movement (up or down) can be permanently the same, or be controlled by personnel according to the time of day.

Escalators have three typical configuration options:

Parallel -up and down escalators "side by side or separated by a distance", seen often in multilevel motion picture theatres.

Crisscross minimizes structural space requirements by "stacking" escalators that go in one direction, frequently used in department stores or shopping centers.

Multiple parallel two or more escalators together that travel in one direction next to one or two escalators in the same bank that travel in the other direction.

Cart Conveyors

Inclined cart conveyors are designed for the transporting of shopping carts between an upper floor and a lower floor. The inclined conveyor includes a continuous conveyor assembly having a conveyor belt including a plurality of spaced drive lugs that engage a shopping cart. The moving conveyor belt transports the shopping cart between the upper and lower floors of shopping centers.