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Going Up? Reduce Costs and Energy Use Through Elevator Efficiency
by Michael Lewis and Kellie Lindquist   


Buildings and Energy

One way to measure overall energy usage is by calculating the power factor (PF) of the building and/or its energy-consuming devices. These are generally motors, transformers, high intensity discharge (HID) lighting, fluorescent devices or other pieces of equipment that require magnetism to operate. The following are three components to the power consumption of an electrical device in alternating current (AC) circuits:

  • True power is electricity consumed to do the work of an electrical device. Measured in watts, this is the energy that the meter on a building measures.
  • Reactive power is non-working electricity required to generate the magnetic fields needed by some devices in order to operate. This power is not a direct component of a consumer’s electric bill.
  • Apparent power is electricity provided by the utility company to meet the demands of a facility. It is measured in volt-amps (VA). Apparent power is what utilities must generate to meet demand.




Comparative Analysis





Hydraulic Elevators


So how does a hydraulic elevator measure up in energy consumption?

Charts 4 and 5 show the results of two before and after 2009 studies in which energy data was collected on two hydro-to-traction elevator modernizations. In each case, two identical hydros operating as a duplex were replaced by two identical traction elevators utilizing AC-permanent magnet motors. This is a process where the elevator hoistways and machine rooms were stripped to the walls of their hydraulic elevator components and replaced with traction elevator components. As reflected in the charts, there is tremendous opportunity to lower energy consumption of low-rise elevator applications by replacing aging hydros with modern traction elevators.

Considerations Beyond the Hoistway




Reducing Energy Consumption



Michael Lewis is the North American project manager, R&D product development, for KONE Inc. He is concentrating on introducing a new, energy efficient traction elevator system and validating energy consumption of several other key KONE control systems. Kellie Lindquist is the North American marketing manager for KONE Inc., focusing her time on educating vertical transportation customers’ about the latest product/service solutions. Contact KONE at 602.269.7977 or 520.631.6552


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