Home Builder Webzine
The value of a UT Elevator
Home Elevator Customers
Home Construction
Glass Elevators
Door Systems
General Options
Drive Systems
Process
Elevator Safety Standards
Elevator Specifications

The value of a UT Elevator

With almost 40 years of experience, we make it seamlessly easy to incorporate an elevator into a home

Custom elevators

It is no longer necessary to choose an elevator based on a fixed model. Now, a custom elevator can accommodate the space a home allows, match the style of a home, or bring to life the vision of an artist.

Experienced guidance

Whether this is your initial venture incorporating an elevator or your first custom elevator design, our vast experience can help you avoid pitfalls and focus early on the important details that pay off dividends during construction and elevator installation.

Home Builder Supplier Packaging

Whether your homes require three, five, or fifty elevators in a year, we have the right package pricing available for you. We are committed to building long-lasting partnerships with home builders across the continent.

Home Elevator Customers

A growing number of home owners are considering elevators for various reasons

Mobility Concerns

These customers currently have mobility or accessibility concerns. They may also care for aging relatives or have extended family that often visit with mobility concerns.

Anticipating a Future in their Home

These customers plan to retire in their home. They continue to be active and wish to enjoy the freedom of mobility down the road.

Convenience

These customers want to transport items such as groceries, laundry, children, luggage, and furniture with greater ease.

Want to Increase Home Value

These customers view their home as a monetary asset and understand adding a residential elevator will increase its value.

Wish to Display a Showpiece

These customers want to add a uniquely beautiful feature to their home.

Home Construction

Building a shaft for an elevator is as important as the elevator itself

New home construction

Residential elevators are now commonplace additions to new homes and, with the right information, it is fairly straightforward to offer this valuable benefit.

Home renovation

As a large number of homeowners explore aging in place, renovations to add a home elevator are become more common. It is important to coordinate across stakeholders to adapt the existing home for an elevator.

Glass Elevators

Revealing the potential behind the scenes

It is as important to consider the absence of the elevator at a landing as it is to imagine it there.

When glass is introduced, the curtains are drawn and the hoistway and the elevator machinery become part of the visual flow of the home. It could simply be the car or landing doors incorporate glass or the whole shaft may be constructed with glass panels.

Glass introduces complexity and opportunity and requires extensive coordination and attention to detail. UT Elevator is at the forefront of glass elevator technology and we bring that expertise to every project.

Door Systems

Where the elevator and the building meet

The landing doors and the cab are the most important point of integration between the building and the elevator.

When the landing doors are provided by UT Elevator as part of a door system, the openings are provided to spec and the doors are set on each floor during installation.

If the builder is providing the landing doors, the TYPE and placement of the doors is specified. In all cases, close coordination and knowing what to focus on early pays off down the road.

Car door options
Sliding doors

One or more panels that slide open. The hoistway size must accommodate a pocket for the door to slide into.

Gates

These doors collapse to open, the most common of which is an accordion gate. An excellent choice when there is not enough space to accommodate space for a sliding door.

None

There are no doors for car openings. This option is only possible with manual operation.

Landing door options
Swing doors

A door that swings open on hinges away from the elevator.

Sliding doors

One or more panels that slide open. The landing must accommodate a pocket for the door to slide into.

Door operation

Any car or landing door can be made to automatically open through the use of a door operator. When the door operator is on the elevator car, it is possible for the the door operator to open both the car and the landing doors simultaneously. The location of the door operator can be hidden / visible.

General Options

The functionally of the elevator is based on the properties of the home and the needs of the client

The flexibility to specify stops, landings, and car openings independently allows for a unique level of customization.

Number of Stops

The number of stops the elevator car makes. This corresponds to the number of different elevations, usually floors, throughout the house that have elevator access.

Number of Landings

The number of entries to the elevator from the building. This is usually the number of stops but it is possible for a floor to have multiple entries or for some floors to not have elevator access.

Car Openings

The number of openings in the elevator car. Each landing will match to an opening in the car when the elevator stops on the landing floor.

The flexibility to specify stops, landings, and car openings independently allows for a unique level of customization.

Operation
Automatic

User presses button once and elevator cab will automatically progress to designated floor.

Manual

User applies constant pressure to push buttons in order to move the elevator up or down. This configuration requires constant pressure button operation avoiding the necessity of a car door system. The user must keep the button pressed until arriving at the designated floor.

Drive Systems

At the heart of each residential elevator is its drive system. Choose between state of the art technologies

MRL - Gearless Traction

All UT residential elevator models are equipped for MRL application. Machine Room-Less technology allows for a complete in-shaft elevator requiring no external space for any subcomponents. At the core of this drive system is a gearless, permanent magnet motor utilizing precise VVVF (variable voltage variable frequency) control. The compact machine mounts within the shaft and allows for a smooth ride with low decibel output comparable to that of a passenger elevator. Our ability to custom fit our MRL elevators to suit any existing or new home environment is the UT advantage. These machines operate efficiently consuming up to 40% less power than that of hydraulic drive systems making MRL elevators a green-friendly solution.

Roped Hydraulic

UT manufactured 1:2 Roped hydraulic drive systems provide an economical and proven solution for residential elevators. Our hydraulic jack systems are manufactured, assembled and tested in-house and are designed to drive loads optimally, avoiding unnecessary shaft modifications. A small compartment space conveniently located outside of the shaft is required for the pump control unit. With over 25 years of manufacturing success, UT hydraulic jacks offer unsurpassed quality that results in long and healthy product lifetimes.

Process

A successful home elevator project begins with a solid project plan Here we outline the UT process

Each custom home project requires a considerable amount of coordination amongst the owner, the architect, the contractor, and the construction trades. A home elevator is no different. Our past experience with residential elevator projects have helped highlight the primary design considerations to take into account.

The home elevator process begins with a solid project plan. Along the way efficient and dynamic interactions must take place between the relevant parties and this is especially true with custom elevators. Our vast experience with the process can help you avoid pitfalls and focus early on the important details that pay off dividends during design the design, construction, and installation stages.

UT Elevator

Architect

Home Builder

Homeowner

Define User Requirements

Provides Architectural Floor Plan including shaft dimension

UT preliminary elevator drawings with load calculations

Signoff

Shop Drawings

Signoff

Elevator Manufacturing

Shaft Construction

Site Inspection

Elevator Installation

Exterior Finishing

Final Inspection

Elevator Safety Standards

UT Elevator is committed to safety and exceeds compliance with all governing technical codes and associations

When planning for building codes and permits it is imperative to find out which safety codes are relevant for your location before starting the design process begins. UT Elevator can assist you in the very beginning to ensure that there are no surprises later on.

Below is a listing of all the regulatory codes and standards in North America that overlap with the elevating industry. To the right you can view some useful definitions.

The governing bodies and safety codes that regulate ELEVATOR INSTALLATION are:

  1. American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME): ASME 17.1 (5.3 concerning Private Residential Elevators)
  2. Canadian Standards Association (CSA): B44
  3. Local and State Codes

The governing bodies and safety codes that regulate SHAFT CONSTRUCTION are:

  1. International Code Council (ICC): International Building Code (IBC).
  2. National Building Code (NBC) – Canadian
  3. American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME): ASME 17.1 (5.3 concerning Private Residential Elevators)
  4. Electrical

Elevator Specifications

Download basic specifications to reference

Specifications for a custom elevator are developed as the project progresses but general specifications are useful as a starting point. Below are models that can easily be configured into any floor plan. The type of operation and the door systems categorize the three configurations below. Download the following spec sheets according to your preliminary project requirements.

S - Automatic Operation with Sliding Doors

This configuration includes automatic button operation and commercial style sliding doors with finish chosen by the customer.

A - Automatic Operation with Accordion Gate

This configuration includes automatic button operation. It couples a collapsible accordion gate on the car with standard swing doors at each hoistway entrance.

L - Manual Operation with no car door requirement

This configuration requires constant pressure button operation avoiding the necessity of a car door system. The user must keep the button pressed until arriving at the designated floor.