Elevators have been around for a couple of centuries, but since the first day, they have worked on a cable-based mechanism that only moved vertically. German elevator specialist ThyssenKrupp is changing that and introducing a completely unique idea of MULTI; the rope-less elevator system that moves both horizontally and vertically.
The MULTI elevator system is like a building metro system with multiple cabins that operate in a loop without any cables. The system was first introduced in 2014, and it has been tested successfully in the company’s test tower in Rottweil, Germany. The first customer for the elevator system will be the European real estate business OVG Real Estate, who will install the elevator in their new East-side tower building in Berlin.
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The rapid urbanization in the past years has made us build massive buildings that are energy efficient and sustainable. The only problem that comes with it is manoeuvrability, which becomes difficult even when you are moving about the same floor.
With the MULTI elevator system, the planners have managed to achieve 50 percent higher transport capacity than the traditional elevator systems, and that too while reducing the peak power demand by 60 percent. The cabins can move sideways around the same floors, and also vertically without any height limitations.
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The best features of the MULTI is not just its power efficiency, but also its space saving capability while using fewer and smaller shafts in comparison to conventional elevator systems. The arrangement can increase the building’s usable space by up to 25 percent leading to extra revenues. The reduction in power consumption dramatically lessens the energy demands of the building, thus reducing the investment costs as well as the carbon footprint.
The executive director of CTBUH (Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat), Antony Wood commented, “This is perhaps the biggest development in the elevator industry since the invention of the safety elevator some 165 years ago. The ‘holy grail’ of elevators has been to move beyond being pulled vertically by a rope under tension — towards a system that allows movement in inclined or horizontal directions. MULTI, more than any other product delivered to day, shows the way forward for that potential. This has the capacity to transform the industry at large, changing the way tall buildings are designed, and allowing for much more efficient core designs, as well as better connectivity in buildings.”
Watch the MULTI full scale model in the video below:
