As energy prices rose in the last half-century, energy efficiency became more and more important to commercial building developers, owners, and managers. Now, it is rare to find a building that doesn’t have some sort of energy-efficient upgrades. The return on investment in the implementation of energy-saving measures can be substantial, to say nothing of the environmental benefits and the prestige that comes with sustainable certifications. Of the plethora of building features that can be upgraded or converted to provide greater energy efficiency, there is one common building component that sometimes goes overlooked: vertical transportation equipment. Office buildings, multifamily towers, and multi-level retail properties all rely on vertical transportation in the form of elevators and escalators. While elevators and escalators may not be among the first places that building owners look at for energy savings, the options for conserving and even generating energy in vertical transportation systems are on the upswing.
Building systems like HVAC rightfully get the most attention when it comes to energy efficiency upgrades, but elevators and escalators can consume as much as 15 percent of a property’s power. Some energy-saving features are obvious, such as the LED lighting that has replaced incandescent lighting in most elevator cabins. Others happen behind the scenes. One of the most common methods of decreasing elevators’ and escalators’ energy consumption is the use of the standby mode. An elevator’s power can be automatically transitioned to a state of reserve through intelligent control systems and occupancy sensors when a period of low usage is detected. The standby mode can turn off electricity-using elevator features such as lights, music, video screens, and even ventilation when a cab is not in use. Aluminum Step
The elevator’s mechanical systems are undergoing enhancements to boost their efficiency. One key improvement involves the adoption of gearless drives to replace the traditional cable-based mechanisms with flexible bands. This change offers several advantages, such as saving space, reducing weight, and enabling smoother and more precise movements of the elevator cabin.
The elevators’ motors are also receiving upgrades. A novel technique involves integrating rare earth metals into the motor’s rotor. In an electric motor, a magnetic field is necessary for it to function. The magnetic field interacts with the electrical current passing through the motor, causing it to rotate and drive the elevator. By incorporating rare earth metals into the rotor, the motor can generate this required magnetic field with significantly less energy, up to 35 percent less. This energy efficiency improvement is essential as it reduces the elevator’s overall power consumption, making it a more sustainable and cost-effective option.
As efficient as elevators have become, just saving energy is not enough. For elevators to really help drive the cost of energy down and reduce a building’s carbon emissions, they need to generate electricity as well. The new generation of elevator tech incorporates regenerative drives, which produce energy when the elevators are being lowered, particularly when they have a heavy load. That electricity is returned to a building’s power grid and can then be used to power other parts of the property. Regenerative drives also save energy by decreasing the elevator machine room’s cooling requirements by as much as 50 percent. There is a range of options in regenerative drives, which can recover up to 30 percent of an elevator’s total energy consumption. In terms of extra benefits, a regenerative drive can also allow an older elevator or escalator to provide passengers with smoother, more comfortable travels up and down. The drives enhance the controls of both torque and speed, thereby reducing those familiar jerking and vibrating motions that accompany the ride on an average elevator or escalator.
Another means of conserving elevator energy is the use of machine room-less elevators, or MRL elevators. MRL elevators rely on higher efficiency, compact, gearless traction systems that can fit into the system’s hoistway, thereby eliminating the need for an entirely separate energy-consuming elevator machine room. The savings in energy consumption can be as high as 50 percent. This technology also frees up valuable, leasable square footage.
Not all energy-conserving methods in vertical transportation are high-tech in nature. One of the simplest options for reducing elevator and escalator energy consumption involves what is one of the most important practices in vertical transportation. Maintenance. By consistently conducting maintenance of elevators and escalators, property managers can quickly identify any system problems that may be unnecessarily draining energy. Predictive maintenance takes the process a step further by using intelligent control systems that analyze system performance to forecast the necessity for maintenance. With the ability to address potential maintenance needs before they actually become an issue, one can avoid the energy-gobbling that can occur when certain requisite repairs go undetected.
When considering building energy savings, people almost always immediately think of cutting back on the use of lighting. While they are not the first to come to mind, elevators and escalators are fertile ground in the bid to conserve energy—and even produce it. Whether it’s a shopping mall, office high-rise, or multifamily tower, energy efficiency translates into significant cost savings, and looking at vertical transportation to achieve energy efficiency is likely to rise higher on the radar of building owners and operators. The energy conserved via the retrofitting of elevators and escalators with any of the numerous energy-saving mechanisms available also equals a reduction in a building’s carbon footprint. Saving money and getting closer to global goals of drastically decreasing carbon emissions are good reasons to take a second look at vertical transportation.
Escalator Handrail Design Sign in to your account