Why Are Traction Elevators Considered Safer Than Other Types?

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The technology used for vertical transportation is advancing and evolving rapidly. Traction elevators are the outcome of this advanced technology, and they have emerged as the key player that allows older people and people with mobility issues to access the upper floors of a high-rise building. This post discusses the main functionality of these traction elevators, and we will also go through the pros and cons.

WHAT IS A TRACTION ELEVATOR?

The traction lift offered by any elevator service company is also referred to as a cable lift, counterweight lift, or rope lift. The main components of a traction elevator are – 

• Cables or ropes

• A sheave or pulley

• Counterweight

• Motor

Some traction lifts also have gears between the motor and the sheave, while some lifts are directly connecting the motor and the sheave. The cable ropes are made from solid stainless steel for enhanced safety. These cables ensure that even if the strand breaks fail, the cable will be there to hold the cab.

WHAT IS THE FUNCTIONING OF A TRACTION ELEVATOR?

The overall functioning is effortless to understand as the motor is attached to a sheave with the help of a rope or cable. This rope is attached to the lift on one end and the counterweight on the other end. Upon getting a call, the motor turns the sheave, and this motor can move in both directions to move the cab up and down. The cab rises upwards, and the counterweight goes downwards, and vice versa. This counterweight is present to lower the pressure or strain on the motor. This translates into lesser power consumption and better stability. These elevators also come with an overspeeding governor to monitor the speed of your traction elevator.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF USING TRACTION ELEVATORS?

The traction lifts offered by an elevator service company will come with several benefits or advantages over other types. For example – they are more reliable compared to hydraulic lifts as they come with fewer mechanical parts. There is no fluid system involved in traction lifts, and this means fewer chances of any breakdowns or faults. They are also less space-consuming than hydraulic lifts and require additional space to store oil in reserve. Moreover, traction elevators are faster than hydraulic lifts, and this makes them ideal for high-rise buildings. Safety systems are also believed to be better in traction lifts than hydraulic lifts. They come with an overspeeding governor to prevent the cab from overspeeding or falling.

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Important Steps to Take Before Commercial Lifts Installation

A number of things could influence the overall cost of getting commercial lifts installed and therefore, it is very important that before you get one installed, you carry out a small research. This research should be basically on whether the chosen lift is going to fit your purpose not and what would be the overall cost of this installation. Here in this post, we will have a look at some common factors that will influence the final cost. 

The Basic Points To Consider Are:

Meeting the Codes

• According to the experts, no matter they are home or office lifts or residential or commercial lifts, it is very important that they meet the Building Code of Australia for Disabled Access. 
• However, an important point to take into note is that this will vary depending upon the application and here, a building surveyor would be able to tell you about the mandatory requirements of a project.
• At the same time, the residential, as well as commercial lifts, must conform to a recognized lift code such as AS1735 or EN81.
• Not to mention that these installations should also meet AS3000 for electrical installations.
• When all these things are decided and you are also determined about the size and rated load, you will be in a better position to discuss the project and its requirements with the supplier of commercial lifts.
• These suppliers will give you a firm quote along with the drawings of the upcoming project and here, you will have the option of choosing the company of your choice.
• It’s important that before starting the project, even the minutest details are discussed face to face because experts believe that with it, costly mistakes can be averted straightaway.

When Comparing Prices The Following Are The Main Points:

• What speed does the lift travel at and is it appropriate for the size and use of the building?
• What finishes are offered within the quote?
• What structure is required to support the lift? 
• Does it have its own support structure?
• What is the quality of the motor, drive, and electronics?
• Does the company have spare parts and a quality maintenance department in your city?

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Reduce Electricity of Commercial/Residential Lifts with These Tips

In a commercial building, it is said that an elevator or lift consume only 5-7 percent of the total electricity, but this too can be saved by a number of steps. The best thing about these steps is they work equally on commercial as well as residential elevators and lifts for houses and some important points have been mentioned here.

Hardware Improvements

• With several small and major improvements of the overall mechanism or the hardware, you can make sure that commercial, as well as residential lifts, can be made to consume less electricity.
• The biggest step you could take is replacing the old school hydraulic lift with a traction elevator that travels up and down on a steel rope.
• With traction lifts, you will not require a dedicated machine room because the entire mechanism or machine is kept on the top of the cabin.
• This way, you actually get a more usable space, less heat and consumes less energy.

Other Hardware Improvements you could make include – 

• Motors – Replacing old obsolete DC motors with AC motors
• Lighting – Replacing fluorescent tubes, incandescent and halogen lights with high-efficiency, low-heat LED lighting.
• Doors – Using door drive motors that can go into standby mode when not in use.
• Starters – Replacing old starters with new ones can help in greater energy efficiency.
• Landing systems – Replacing old landing systems that use magnets or tape with new ones.
• Lights & Fans – These can be turned off if the lift is stationary.

Software Improvements

According to the sellers of commercial and residential lifts, the biggest change here is switching to software that can accommodate any kind of hardware or software based changes.

Some important changes to make in the software to decrease the energy consumption of lifts for houses – 

• Use Standby Mode – Automatically powers down lighting and all non-essential operations.
• Destination Despatch Control – Groups elevator stop requests, creating fewer stops, minimising wait time.
• Data Logging – Provides tools that allow for traffic studies to be performed. 

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Types of Wheelchair Lifts for Houses

A wheelchair can make life easier for those facing a disability or unable to move because of the age factor. Even better than wheelchairs is the wheelchair lift that allows these people to live without boundaries or worries of going upstairs. There are several versions present in the markets that can be used as residential lifts, but it is important to pick the right one based on your needs. To be very precise, there are two most popular types present that can be used as wheelchair lifts for houses and here is the brief information of them all.

 

 

Vertical platform lift

• The first one is called vertical platform lift that has a huge plethora of features to cite here.
• In most cases, you will find this version being installed near a stairway, but not on it.
• It resembles almost an elevator and raises and lowers the person in a wheelchair straight up and down.
• One more feature that needs a mention here is that it can hold at least 500 pounds.
• As far as the installation is concerned, there is nothing very fancy required and can be installed by an expert installation team.
• The last thing to describe here is that they are sometimes also used for public buildings.

Inclined platform lift

• The next version is the inclined platform lift and this one is basically the largest and most stable style.
• It is available at very justified residential elevator cost and can be installed inside the stair railing of a flight of stairs.
• Other than this, it can also be installed indoors or out.
• According to the suppliers of traction lifts, this version happens to be the most commonly used in most of the places like government offices and public schools.
• The biggest feature is that it is very reliable and stable and comes with extraordinary features and extra heavy weight lifting capacity.
• However, a drawback associated with version is that they usually take up a lot of space.
• Because of this drawback, you will not find it practical for smaller homes or narrow hallways.

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