Issue 2/2010
4th European Lift Congress in Heilbronn
October 19 and 20, 2010
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The "European Lift Congress in Heilbronn" will be taking place this year on October 19 and 20, 2010. Preparations are largely completed for this, the fourth event of its kind, making it possible to provide advance information about the planned program and the subjects of the speeches.
The Heilbronn Technical Academy and all the people involved in organizing the Congress are glad to offer participants once again a highly attractive program with top-class speakers. Thanks to the "moral support" of the European Lift Association (ELA), the two German manufacturers' associations (VDMA and VFA) and the Federation of German TÜVs (VdTÜV), the Congress again promises to be a rousing success.
As in years past Professor Georg Clauss (Executive Director at the Heilbronn Technical Academy) and Luc Rivet (General Secretary of the European Lift Association ELA) will welcome participants at the beginning of the event. The formal opening of the Congress and an introduction to the technical subjects will be handled by Dr. Gerhard Schiffner (ThyssenKrupp Aufzugswerke, Germany). Once again in this year he drafted the concept for the Congress and assumed responsibility for the professional aspects. This year's Congress will devote attention to the subjects of lift regulations, environment, accessibility, safety and technology/innovations.
As regards regulations governing lifts, Beata Pich of the European Commission will supply information on new developments for the EU directives governing lifts. The introduction of the new Machinery Directive at the end of 2009 and its practical effects on the lift industry along with - and in particular - the upcoming revision of the Lifts Directive will make up the bulk of this report . Ian Jones of Otis (UK), who chairs the working group, will report first-hand on the ongoing revision of EN 81, Parts 1 and 2. At the middle of this year most suggestions for changes will have been reconciled in the responsible boards. The first drafts of the new EN 81-20 and EN 81-50 standards might well be available.
In the section on the environment, Professor Anibal T. de Almeida of the University of Coimbra (Portugal) and Esfandiar Gharibaan of KONE International (Belgium) will present the results of the E4 Project (Energy Efficiency of Elevators and Escalators). They will explain the potential consequences for regulations specific to certain products and the impact on the elevator industry. Installing ventilation systems with controls optimized for matching momentary needs - the intention being to reduce energy losses associated with ventilating the hoistway and machinery room - will be the subject of a report by Guy Stamet of the Haus vun der Energie (Luxembourg). In addition to describing the technical solutions available, the report will devote special attention to questions of safety, health and hygiene in energy-efficient buildings.
In the framework of environment protection management as per ISO 14 000, commercial firms are required to carry out a holistic analysis covering a lift's entire life cycle. It is to cover all the phases, from making up the raw materials, processing and machining those materials, transportation, installation, operation, maintenance and modernization and continuing through to include removal and disposal. Mr. Peter Betz of PE International (Germany) will use a practical example to show how to conduct an evaluation of a lift's
ecological footprint. On the subject of accessibility , the question to be answered is whether the goal of a barrier-free Europe , with 2010 being set by the European Union as the completion target, has already become reality. Monika Klenovec (architect and expert on accessibility questions in Austria) will touch upon the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and will delve into both the legal and technical questions associated with the implementation of that convention.
Speaking on the subject of safety, Holger Zerelles of ThyssenKrupp Aufzugswerke (Germany) will be looking at how safe safety spaces really are. There are pros and cons for both permanent and temporary safety spaces. Differing safety levels can result, depending on the technical design selected. Luciano Faletto of S.A.L.A. Consulting (Italy) will analyze the safety aspects of lifts engineered as per the Lifts Directive or as per the Machinery Directive. Even though both directives are supposed to result in identical safety levels, interpretations and conclusions nonetheless differ in practice.
Turning to the topics of technology and innovation, Florian Leutner of the Wittur company (Austria) will be introducing new safety devices intended to prevent unintended car movement when the doors are open, at the landing. Such safety devices have to be present in all new lifts as of mid-2011, as is prescribed by Amendment A3 to EN 81-1/2. Gerhard Thumm of ThyssenKrupp Elevator (CENE) (Germany) will explain how advanced technologies are adopted in lift control systems. This has resulted in a new generation of elevator controls, one that opens up new vectors in regard to functionality and safety.
In response to new regulations and technologies, some innovations in remote alarm systems are expected to appear in coming years. Lars Odlen of Safeline Europe (Belgium) will indicate how these challenges can be realized in remote alarm systems. Dr. Christian Studer of Schindler Elevator (Switzerland) is to explain a highly effi cient system for traction drives in which the power for moving the counterweight is coordinated with the power for moving the car – matched to the momentary loading status. Thanks to a variable speed transmission concept, the counterweight can be used to store energy.
