The Versatile Elevator

Platform elevators are often associated with accessibility. While this is one aspect in which this type of elevator excels, David Schill, Marketing Director at Aritco Lift, assures that it is far from the only one.

“When I tell people that we are manufacturing platform elevators, their immediate reaction is, ‘OK, you are making disability elevators,” David says, noting that this has happened more than a few times.

So common is the misconception about platform elevators being solely used for accessibility purposes, that a Wikipedia query for “platform elevator” lands you on a page with Wheelchair lift.

“While that is part of our portfolio, an even bigger part is for other purposes, such as retail spaces, offices, et cetera, all with great Scandinavian design and built on our safe, proven platform elevator technology.”

There are myriad examples where platform elevators have been the best solution for both public and private constructions, let us have a look at two.

In a Swedish apartment building with four floors and three apartments per floor, new regulations prompted the installation of an elevator. The twelve households living in the apartments owned the building themselves and considered building a traditional cabin elevator with a shaft and machine room. Quickly, they realized that this was not only going to be very expensive, but that they would also need to sacrifice a lot of space and re-build parts of the building.

They contacted an architect for help who pointed them in the direction of our Aritco PublicLift Cabin, which does not require a concrete shaft or machine room. The cost was far lower than for their first idea and they did not have to change the floorplan of the building, since our platform elevator could be set up in the existing open staircase.

As an Amsterdam office was being rebuilt and redesigned to include a lot of glass walls, an open plan and many social areas, an elevator was also needed. The choice fell on our Aritco PublicLift Access, a platform elevator with no cabin and a shaft in glass that creates a fully open and shared experience.

With the Aritco SmartSafety system, the elevator is just as safe as any cabin solution would be. The Aritco PublicLift Access was chosen mainly for its slim and open design, where the social contact between the people in the elevator and those outside is naturally maintained. The design of the control panel was also of importance. Its sleek, backlit panel has a contemporary feel to it as well as a clear Scandinavian design heritage.

As you see, Aritco platform elevators are great options for a wide variety of reasons beyond accessibility. When asked if the market for disability support is interesting for Aritco, David responds:

“Of course it is. However, we do not split the market in disability or non-disability elevators.”

“We make great-looking elevators that have smart functionality and are safe to travel in with sustainable environmental and lifecycle costs, no matter what they will be used for. In short, great elevators with a multitude of possibilities.”