Elevator Boom: The Road to the Fastest Elevators in the World

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A recent article in the Washington Post, (January 4, 2017), discusses the world of high speed elevators and the race to go even faster.  The story begins with a trip to Shanghai and details a new office tower with an electric Mitsubishi elevator that exceeds 40 mph.  The Guinness World Book of Records officially awarded it the title of the fastest elevator.

Quicks notes about the article:

In the beginning elevators were propelled by, (not the safest) steam and then to more efficient hydraulic systems and on to electric traction systems.

The One World Trade Center in New York’s elevator goes 23 mph and even the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, a Disney haunted-elevator amusement-park ride, hurls thrill-seekers at 39 mph.

The Chinese are, at the moment, dominating the new elevator industry with 69% of the worlds elevator installations. China has become ever more urbanized and the high rise building boom over the past 20 years has fueled this high speed race. Japanese and Chinese manufacturers have dominated even as the Chinese economy has dramatically decreased.

Fast elevators need big buildings. Where are these buildings being built? Where are the buildings of tomorrow going to be built? What is in store for the fast elevator industry?

Read the full article on the Washington Post here.

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