Elevator World

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SCHINDLER CELEBRATES 25 YEARS AT N.C. ESCALATOR PLANT

On October 7, Schindler’s escalator manufacturing plant in Clinton, North Carolina (N.C.), marked 25 years in business with an employee celebration. The plant has approximately 150 employees, and has received national awards and undergone numerous expansions over the years, including the addition of a 5,000-sq.-ft. test tower in 2000. The plant manufactures escalators, escalator steps and moving-walk components for distribution throughout the Americas.

CHINESE EDITORIAL USES STATISTICS TO ILLUSTRATE ISSUES

An editorial in NewsChina uses government and association statistics to illustrate safety issues in the vertical-transportation industry in China. Intense competition and fast growth have led to manufacturing shortcuts and a shortage of maintenance technicians – factors that contribute to equipment malfunctions. Nearly 30 equipment-related fatalities were reported in 2015. The China Elevator Association noted that 16% of accidents are caused by manufacturing issues, 24% by improper installation and 60% by inadequate maintenance or usage.

KPF-DESIGNED SUPERTALL MAKING HEADWAY IN NYC

Plans for One Vanderbilt, a 1,500-ft.-tall, 63-story office building designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) adjacent to Grand Central Station in New York City (NYC), are moving forward with the demolition of onsite structures, New York YIMBY reports. Scheduled for completion in 2020, the tower is expected to redefine the Midtown East skyline, standing taller than the Chrysler building and having a higher roof than One World Trade Center. An underground connection to Grand Central Station and bank within the retail podium are among the plans. SL Green is the developer.

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MANY PROJECT OF THE YEAR ENTRIES

ELEVATOR WORLD is happy to announce it has received 28 entries for its 2016 Project of the Year Awards in all nine categories. Project locations include the U.S., Portugal, Turkey, the U.A.E., Brazil, France, China and Canada. Entries are currently undergoing the judging process, and those that win in each category will be featured in the January 2016 issue of EW.

INDIAN RAIL HUB GETTING LIFTS, ESCALATORS

Train travelers in India coming from Nagpur, Khandwa and Mumbai should soon find it easier to traverse the eight platforms at Bhusawal Station thanks to two escalators and two elevators, the Times of India reports. An existing foot overbridge (FOB) at the platforms' center is set to have escalators, while another FOB under construction is set to have lifts. No timeframe was given for the project.

CHILD IN CHINA SUCCUMBS TO ESCALATOR INJURIES

A young boy succumbed to injuries he sustained in an escalator accident on October 8 in a Chongqing, China, metro station, the Hong Kong Free Press reports. The child, who appeared to be with his mother and another child, became wedged between the floor and the bottom of a handrail at one of the unit’s ends. Station staff stopped the escalator and rescued the boy. He was transported to a local hospital, where he passed away a few hours later.

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HUDSON YARDS’ COACH TOWER TOPS OUT IN NYC

Coach Tower, also known as 10 Hudson Yards, has topped out at 52 stories and 895 ft. in the Hudson Yards development in New York City (NYC), CoStar Group reports. It is expected to be ready for occupancy in early 2016. Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox, it is the first skyscraper in the 28-acre development, one of five towers that are planned. A topping-out ceremony held by developers on October 7 coincided with the announcement that social-media marketing firm VaynerMedia had signed a lease for 88,000 sq. ft., bringing occupancy in the 1.7-million-sq.-ft. building to 85%.

BEIJING COMPLETES SAFETY CHECKS

Inspections of Beijing's 188,000 elevators and escalators by city officials revealed 26.1%, or approximately 49,000, are at least 10 years old and prone to malfunction, Shanghai Daily reports. Of those, 2,000, including 1,200 in subway stations, were deemed especially prone to malfunction and will undergo additional checks. Beijing has the second-highest number of elevators and escalators in the world, and spent approximately US$17.3 million in the first eight months of 2014 fixing units that had undetermined ownership. Thanks to new equipment coming online -- approximately 20% annually -- the number of accidents has actually decreased.

TOP NAESA STAFF POSITION VACATED

NAESA International has announced that Dotty Stanlaske, executive director of the organization since 2004, left NAESA to pursue other opportunities. The association appreciates Stanlaske’s 11-year stewardship of NAESA’s operations and extends its good wishes to her in her future endeavors. Douglas Warne, president of NAESA, is the interim contact person.

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KONE BOOKS 27-UNIT ORDER IN CHINA

KONE has been hired to supply 27 elevators to Nanjing Qing Ao Center Tower 2 in the Hexi New Town part of Nanjing, China. The contract includes the PolarisTM destination-control and E-LinkTM remote monitoring systems and three years of maintenance. Thirteen MiniSpaceTM, six MonoSpace® and eight MiniSpaceTM double-deck elevators are expected to be installed by December 2016. Nanjing Qing Ao Center Tower 2 houses a hotel and offices and is being developed by Nanjing Hexi Engineering Project Management Co. Ltd.

THYSSENKRUPP PRESENTS ACCEL AT INTER AIRPORT EUROPE

ThyssenKrupp is showcasing its ACCEL people mover through October 9 at inter airport Europe in Munich, Germany. Utilizing maglev technology, ACCEL is designed to move passengers more quickly than a traditional moving walk, cutting transit times between airport gates, for example, by two-thirds, according to ThyssenKrupp. The OEM touts its cost effectiveness for clients such as airports and metro systems, since it eliminates the need for buses, automated people movers or sky trains for distances up to 1.5 km.

MUMBAI STATION FIRST TO GET ESCALATOR/STAIR SYSTEM

By March 2016, Mumbai Railway Vikas Corp. and Western Railway aim to open an escalator/stair system at Borivali station that promises to enhance traffic flow, The Times of India reports. The first of its kind in India's rail network, the system will consist of a staircase built above an escalator. The two cannot be built side by side due to inadequate platform width. If the project is successful, rail officials hope to replicate it at other stations.

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LONDON CITY LEADERS OK 45-STORY TOWER

City leaders in London approved a proposal from Appold Broadgate Owners to build a 45-story, 156-m-tall office/hotel building next to Broadgate at 13-14 Appold Street, Architects' Journal reports. Pending the plan receiving all needed approvals, Appold Broadgate Owners hopes to break ground in November and finish the project in 2019. Kohn Pedersen Fox is responsible for the slender design, which features a glass and metal fin façade. Nearly 400 hotel rooms and 10,855 m2 of office space are included.

CARVED TOWER WOULD HELP DISTINGUISH VANCOUVER

Westbank Projects Corp., the developer behind such notable Vancouver projects as Shangri-La Vancouver and Telus Garden, is proposing to build a 40-story residential tower in downtown Vancouver with an interesting carved design by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, Vancity Buzz reports. Located at 1550 Alberni Street in the West End neighborhood, the building would have approximately 190 residences, ground-level retail and a public, Japanese moss garden. If it is approved, the structure promises to help Vancouver change its reputation as a city with boring architecture.

MAN DIES IN BROOKLYN ELEVATOR ACCIDENT

A 37-year-old Israeli man was killed in a luxury apartment building in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, on October 2. According to The New York Times, “the elevator plunged to the basement” with its doors open, and the man attempted to step out when the floor and cab were “almost level.” The elevator then “shot back up toward the lobby,” crushing his body between the cabin and basement ceiling and hoistway. NY Daily News later reported that the small elevator was overloaded with approximately 14 people and quotes an elevator inspector as saying it was “nowhere near level with the floor.” The unit has been involved with four violations since 2013, but all had been resolved.

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THYSSENKRUPP PLANS FIRST INDIA ELEVATOR PLANT

ThyssenKrupp plans to break ground on October 13 in Chakan, India, on what will be its first elevator plant in India, The Economic Times reports. Upon completion, the US$49.2-million plant is expected to have a capacity of 6,000 elevators per year. ThyssenKrupp cited India's robust and growing elevator market as the reason for the move, adding the plant could also become a point of export to countries in Southeast Asia and Africa.

ALIMAK LANDS US$1.17-MILLION ORDER IN U.S.

Alimak Group has booked a US$1.17-million order in the U.S. for construction hoists for various projects. The single- and twin-cage hoists are to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2015 and first quarter of 2016. Primarily based on a modular design, Alimak's hoists have flexible size and capacity for use in a variety of applications such as new-building construction and refurbishment of high-rise buildings, bridges, chimneys and façades.

PAIR OF MIXED-USE SKYSCRAPERS FOR TOKYO’S SHIBUYA

A 37-story, 180-m-tall and 32-story, 150-m-tall skyscraper are on the drawing board in the neighborhood emerging around Tokyo's Shibuya Station, Real Estate Japan reports. The buildings are set to contain offices, commercial space, residences, medical facilities and childcare facilities, all aimed at attracting expatriates. Working with the Tokyo government, Tokyu Corp. is the developer. It aims to break ground in 2017 and finish the project in 2020.

PARIS CITY HALL GREENLIGHTS TOURS DUO

Paris City Hall has granted construction permits to Ivanhoe Cambridge Inc. to build Tours Duo, consisting of 27- and 39-story office towers along with a hotel, restaurant and public areas along the Seine River, Bloomberg News reports. The complex will cover approximately 1.16 million sq. ft. and is designed by Jean Nouvel. Ivanhoe Cambridge, which has done similar projects in Chicago and Toronto, plans to start construction when at least 50% of the space is pre-leased.

JACKIE MORTMAN RECEIVES HIGHEST NAEC HONOR

Jackie A. Mortman, vice president of JM Associates/Burnham + Co., a division of HUB International, received the William C. Sturgeon Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of Elevator Contractors (NAEC) on October 1 at the 66th Annual NAEC Convention and Exposition in Boston. Launched in 1981, the award is NAEC's most prestigious honor. Serving NAEC for more than 20 years, Mortman was instrumental in building the National Elevator Insurance Program. She served on the NAEC board for three years and has been a member of the Elevator Conference of New York since its inception in 1993, serving as its president for two years and vice president for nine.

SAVARIA BUYS TWO MORE SILVER CROSS STORES

Savaria Corp. has purchased the assets of two Silver Cross stores in St. Catharines and Toronto, Canada, following its purchase of Silver Cross in Ottawa earlier this year. Savaria President and CEO Marcel Bourassa noted Ontario is home to nearly five million senior citizens, many of whom need mobility products, so it is a good market in which to expand.

MESA PLANNING OCTOBER 13 MEETING

Massachusetts Elevator Safety Association (MESA) plans to host a meeting on October 13 at Phillips Old Colony in Dorchester, Massachusetts, at 12:30 p.m. Brian Hilfrank of Palmer Pads is set to give a presentation. October 13 is also the resubmission deadline to appeal Department of Public Safety (DPS) fines. In advance of this deadline, the DPS Elevator Task Group is meeting on October 8 at the Milford State Office at 50 Maple Street, Milford, Massachusetts. Those planning to attend should RSVP to [email protected].

THYSSENKRUPP LAYOFFS IN TORONTO DUE TO CONSOLIDATION

ThyssenKrupp plans to close its Toronto manufacturing facility by summer 2016 and will consolidate manufacturing activities in Middleton, Tennessee, resulting in the loss of approximately 165 jobs. ThyssenKrupp Elevator will continue to employ more than 1,600 in Canada. Rich Hussey, president and CEO of ThyssenKrupp Elevator Americas, said while the decision was not easy, the move will allow the company to “more efficiently provide high-quality products and customer service while expanding our engineering focus.”

US$1.8 MILLION ORDER FOR ALIMAK IN AUSTRALIA

Alimak Group has landed a US$1.8 million order for construction hoists for various projects in Australia. The single- and twin-cage hoists are to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2015 and first quarter of 2016. Primarily based on a modular design, Alimak's hoists have flexible size and capacity for use in a variety of applications such as new-building construction and refurbishment of high-rise buildings, bridges, chimneys and façades.

SWISS FIRM EYES MANAMA FOR PAIR OF 49-STORY TOWERS

Wiel Arets Architects of Zurich, Switzerland, has proposed a pair of 49-story, mixed-use towers in the emerging district of Bahrain Bay in Manama, Bahrain, designboom reports. Residences in the towers would have covered terraces to help alleviate heat from the sun, as well as floor-to-ceiling windows with adjustable louvers. Ground level retail, public space and resident amenities are also part of the plan. No construction timeframe was given.

Listen to the October 2015 Editor's Overview.

Industry News for September 25, 2015 by Elevator World