Commercial Elevators: Know the Origination Basics
Commercial elevators are platforms used for lifting people or freight to upper floors within a building. These elevators are either open or enclosed. Earlier, manually operated elevators were used for lifting freight in warehouses and manufacturing plants. On the other side, the modern elevator is a direct descendant of a design first shown by Elisha G. Otis at the New York World's Fair in 1853. The best part about that elevator was its safety device that immediately engaged and held the elevator in the event the hoisting cables broke. Interestingly, the first elevators were operated by steam power to turn the cable drums while in 1871; the first hydraulic elevators were introduced using water pressure as the source of power. Commercial Elevators: Design ...