Tidbits, history, and statistics about elevators

Despite the fact that we use elevators every day, we seldom think about the sheer amount of work they do or how we ended up with this technology. Let’s take a look at their history and some interesting facts about this vital form of transportation.

First, some statistics on elevator usage:

• There are about 900,000 elevators operating today
• The average user takes 4 trips in an elevator daily
• There are about 325 million elevator rides every day (escalators average 245 rides per day)
• Each elevator carries 20,000 people per year
• All elevators put together carry the equivalent of the Earth’s population every 3 days
• Elevators in the US travel 7.2 trillion feet or 1.36 billion miles per year

Here are some historical facts according to ElevatorHistory:

• There were 24 elevators used in the Roman Coliseum, which were manually operated by over 200 slaves
• The first public building elevator was installed in a nine-story building in New York City
• Elevator music first appeared in the 1920s to calm fearful passengers who were using elevators for the first time

Famous elevators around the world:

• The St. Louis Gateway Arch
• The Lacerda Elevator in Brazil, the busiest elevator in the world, transports 900,000 people every month (in 30-second trips no less)
• The Umeda Hankyu Building in Osaka, Japan – Each of the 5 elevators hold up to 80 passengers
• The Hammetschwand Lift in Lake Lucerne, Switzerland is the largest outdoor elevator in Europe
• The AquaDom in Berlin, Germany runs through the largest cylindrical seawater aquarium in the world
• The Bailong elevator in Hunan, China is the world’s tallest glass elevator
• The Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas, features a 29-degree incline up the pyramid

The history of elevators

The first elevators may have appeared in ancient Greece. They were invented by the mathematician Archimedes around 235 BC and used a system of pulleys and winches. Some believe elevators may have been around even longer than that, as archeologists have found shafts that might have been used for elevators by several ancient civilizations. Elevators were definitely present in the Roman Coliseum, and small basket elevators were used to transport people and goods up to mountain monasteries during the Middle Ages.

The inventions of hydraulics and electricity brought about the first modern elevators. In 1852, American inventor Elisha Graves Otis created the first safety device that prevented the cabin from falling if the main cable broke. The device was demonstrated in New York’s Crystal Palace in 1854. The first passenger elevator was installed in 1857, but it wasn’t until the 1870s that elevators began showing up in office buildings. German inventor Werner von Seimer built the first electric elevator in 1880.

The early days of elevators

According to Fast Co. Design, elevators were once called movable rooms. “They featured chandeliers and elaborate furniture and carpeting. Passengers sat down and got comfortable before being catapulted onto another floor.”

It was once thought that vertical travel could make you sick. There was actually a condition called “elevator sickness” which was thought to be caused by the sudden movement of internal organs when the elevator stopped.

A couple more things to think about …

No elevators … no penthouse

Before elevators, the upper floors of a house or hotel were reserved for servants or low-rent tenants, who were stuck having to walk up flights of stairs. The advent of elevators meant the rich could easily travel to upper floors. They realized the view from the top was amazing, which led to the concept of the penthouse.

No elevators … no mega cities

Without elevators, we wouldn’t have the famous skylines of places like New York, Chicago, and other cities around the world with immense skyscrapers. Every building would be no more than 5 or 6 stories tall. Elevators have truly transformed our modern world.

Connection Elevator is committed to keeping elevators in South Florida up to code and running at peak performance. If your elevator is in need of repairs or it’s time for some modern upgrades, give us a call at 954-792-1234 or just fill out our online contact form

Elevators drive massive commercial real estate growth and commerce in major metropolitan areas around the world

Some of us may have briefly imagined (or remembered) a life without automobiles or the Internet, but elevators are likely not something that you often think of being without. They are simply there, and it’s usually a given that they will efficiently take us from point A to point B. Nevertheless, this form of transportation has revolutionized and continues to change the way we build communities. The elevators in South Florida and cities worldwide are a vital piece of infrastructure that keeps businesses running while making vastly more efficient forms of construction possible.

When were elevators actually invented?

Elevators, or lifts as they are/were also commonly referred to, have been in existence for quite some time – and the earliest examples possibly date back to more than 2,000 years ago. But they were not widely accepted as safe until Elisha Graves Otis demonstrated an elevator safety brake to wowed crowds at the New York World’s Fair in 1854. This unique showing of Otis’ invention immediately catapulted his company, Union Elevator, later renamed Otis Brothers and Company, to success.

Elevators were originally steam-powered, with the first going into service in 1857 in the E V Haughwout Building on Broadway in New York. This first modern passenger elevator carried occupants up and down a modest five-stories.

Elevators spurred the rise of tall buildings and ultimately skyscrapers

Once elevators were largely viewed as safe and became mainstream, buildings were quickly designed around them. Structures began to grow in height, massively influencing the skyline, economy, and population density of every city in the developed world.

Without elevators and their continuing technological and safety advancements, cities would not have been able to build these tall buildings, which would have created the need for much more construction, raw land, and ultimately urban sprawl. Imagine the limitations – economic and otherwise – of downtown New York or Miami if the highest building only stood a few stories.

Buildings continue to grow taller and taller, largely due to the reliability of commercial elevators

Currently, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai is the tallest building in the world at 163 floors. It was built in 2010, and shows just how vital elevators have become in these massive structures. Willis Tower, formerly known as the Sears Tower, was the tallest building in the world for many years, until a rash of skyscraper construction in the United Arab Emirates, China, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and Taiwan that began in the late 1990s. While elevators are still a convenience in some buildings, they’re simply a necessity in these massive skyscrapers.

As you can imagine, these towering structures not only require elevators – they require extremely fast ones that can go from the ground floor to the penthouse in record time. The Burj Khalifa in UAE, for instance, has the third-fastest elevator in the world, traveling at a speed of 36 km/h or 600 m/min.

Rely on Connections Elevator for all your elevator maintenance and repairs

Whether your building is a skyscraper with record-setting elevators or a more modest multi-story condo, your elevators need to work consistently and safely. At Connections Elevator, we are South Florida’s elevator experts, with decades of experience servicing and installing elevators across the region. If you have any questions about elevator maintenance or if you are looking for a service provider, reach out to our team at 954-792-1234 or fill out our contact form and we’ll follow up as soon as possible.

There’s no time like the present

When it comes to hurricanes, South Florida is in a unique position. Although the region doesn’t face the same risk from storm surge as other metropolitan areas, such as New Orleans and Tampa, it does have a higher chance of facing a direct hit from a category 5 hurricane.

In addition, the dense population and higher property values along the coast, combined with the ramifications of climate change, such as the potential for more extreme weather and higher tides, easily places South Florida in the eye of the storm. (more…)