A new report by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) investigates the potential for rope-less and multidirectional elevator cabins for high-rise buildings.
The technology runs on a series of seamless loops, powered by magnetic levitation. These rope-less and multidirectional elevator cabins could follow multiple routes within a given building.
This would reduce the number of shafts needed and increase rentable area, while also allowing elevators more options in terms of where they stop across a building’s dimensions. This technology could be paired with skybridges and skyspaces to link communities together at height.
This concept could bolster “the critical link between a piece of architecture and the urban sphere, while combating some of the insularity endemic to skyscrapers,” according to CTBUH. The report is the result of two years of research by the CTBUH Research Office in Venice, CTBUH staff, professionals in the field, and a research team of architecture and supporting academic advisors. It is part of a series of research reports that offer insight into specific areas of skyscraper research.
Related Stories
| Feb 9, 2012
Rapid growth of zero energy buildings expected
Much of that growth will be in the European Union, where near-zero energy buildings are mandated by 2019 for public buildings, and by 2021 for all construction.
| Feb 9, 2012
Stiffer OSHA fines put strain on Kansas contractors
A fine for a violation that once cost between $750 and $1,200 now runs $7,000 or more per incident, according to a state industry association official.
| Feb 9, 2012
Webinar focuses on lessons learned from LEED-certified industrial project
A Construction Specifications Institute webinar will focus on the lessons learned through the design and construction of a LEED-certified industrial project, Better Living Mill Shop, the first industrial building in Central Virginia to earn LEED certification.
| Feb 8, 2012
California likely to eliminate redevelopment agencies
Leaders of California cities had been trying to fashion a compromise with lawmakers after the state Supreme Court ruled the state had the authority to eliminate the agencies and use their property tax money for local services.
| Feb 8, 2012
Project aimed at economical seismic retrofits on historic Memphis structures
The group will develop a low-cost seismic retrofit model that would benefit aging brick-and-mortar structures. It involves bolting steel brackets to existing wooden floor and ceiling joists.
| Feb 8, 2012
Houston signs on to Better Buildings Challenge
The challenge has about $4 billion in federal and private-sector funds, which it will use for building energy upgrades nationwide in the next two years.
| Feb 8, 2012
OSHA offers free health and safety consulting for small businesses
The consultants offer confidential, non-punitive advice.
| Feb 8, 2012
Controversy over pay for prisoners on roofing job in Michigan
The disagreement was over whether the prisoners should have been paid prevailing wage for their brief time on the job because the project was paid for with a U.S. Department of Energy grant.
