Featured Project
30 meters in 3 seconds
In Melbourne, Australia, the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre (VCCC) bundles the knowledge and powers of a total of ten organizations focusing on the treatment and research of cancer. With its white spiral-shaped ramp extending from the ground to the top floor, the curving structure, spanning 130,000 square meters, is somewhat reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Guggenheim Museum. The elevator system by Schindler forms the heart of the center: A total of 23 elevators of types 7000 and 5500 were installed in the buildings. The high-performance Schindler 7000 elevators zips up the building’s 13 stories at a speed of up to ten meters per second. Yet both elevator models are efficient and easy on the environment: They save resources during operation by using a regenerative drive. The Schindler 5500 thus for example uses up to 40 percent less energy than comparable facilities by feeding the braking energy back into the power grid with the aid of an inverter.
Planning a transport system for a medical facility was a special challenge for Schindler: As patients are also moved using the lifts, the elevators’ functions had to be fine-tuned to fit the hospital’s particular needs. The entire system is hence controlled and monitored from a central point. During operation, all of the facility’s working data can be read on monitors: In the event of emergencies occurring during the ride, an internal communication system makes a rapid response possible. Schindler’s “Port Technology” enables further individual settings; for example, certain floors can therefore only be accessed by authorized persons. Schindler received the distinction “Elevator World Project of the Year” from “Elevator World” magazine for the custom-made project. (am)
