Elevator, lift, escalator and moving walkway manufacturer Otis is providing equipment, advice and training to provide the vertical mobility that is needed to support the global trend of urbanisation, Otis Iberia, Middle East and Africa senior VP João Penedo tells Engineering News.

Urbanisation is a significant global trend, with projections that 70% of people will live in cities by 2050, up from 55% currently. This means that cities will need to become denser, which is where vertical transport plays a role, he points out.

However, cities and countries are urbanising at different rates and according to varying needs. As a multinational company, Otis can leverage its experience and expertise from other parts of the globe to provide bespoke and suitable solutions for clients based on their needs and contexts.

For example, China has urbanised rapidly and the company is leveraging the learnings from China in Egypt, which is seeing a boom in projects and significant investment in infrastructure, he illustrates.

Conversely, Morocco is seeing more development of medium-density residential districts, and the company leverages the lessons learned in Spain to advise clients in Morocco for these types of projects.

“Whether for residential, retail, healthcare or industrial purposes, vertical mobility equipment must support these industries,” says Penedo.

For example, as airports attract growing numbers of travellers, they sometimes become overwhelmed beyond their designed capacity.

Subsequently, it is usually more efficient to expand them than develop a new airport along with the associated new infrastructure. To ensure they remain efficient, the flow of people must be sufficient, which is where Otis's expertise comes into play.

In terms of urbanisation, the company can bring in experts from its research and development centres and even installation teams from across the world, he says.

“In the countries we operate in, we usually serve on standards committees to ensure high standards of safety and to engage with the local industries and authorities. In this way, we provide our specialised input on infrastructure projects.”

This is also how Otis advocates and lobbies for accessibility standards to be implemented and adhered to, Penedo adds.

“With differently able- or age-related mobility challenges, we must ensure that everyone can use the buildings and facilities that are built. Fortunately, many of the accessibility challenges can be addressed through proper design, which is why we provide direct input for standards.”

Further, digitalisation can help to make existing systems, their operations and maintenance more efficient.

If an elevator fault is reported, a technician can remotely connect to the controller, similar to what he would do in the machine room, and send a command. Otis's technicians are able to fix a problem remotely about 30% of the time, sometimes within minutes, he says.

However, safety is paramount and safety checks must be done to ensure no user or technician is harmed. While digitalised elevators can enable technicians to release people trapped in a non-operational lift within minutes, it is only done if it is safe to do so, he emphasises.

Meanwhile, Otis has also introduced lifts that have battery energy storage, which can run the lift for 100 times only on battery power.

This also enables its customers to store and then use renewable energy to power their lifts continuously, safely and sustainably.

“These types of innovations are applicable across Africa as well. Africa is urbanising and its population is growing, and will need suitable and effective mobility solutions to ensure its people are healthy and productive.”

Each customer, whether a shopping centre, high rise, hospital or transportation interlink, needs a solution that is designed for the desired purpose.

“We are working with associations and standards bodies to stay close to our customers and the industry, but also to raise the standards.

“For example, Braille is mandatory in our lifts to enable the visually impaired to use our systems and we are now working on trying to ensure that systems to help deaf people or those hard of hearing become part of the standards,” highlights Penedo.

Otis also provides certified training at its facilities in Africa. This grows the number of people able to work in the industry, but also helps to ensure that Africa has the requisite skills on its shores and secures the appropriate solutions for specific challenges, which are required for sustainable development, he says.

Additionally, the company continues to improve the efficiency of its systems and solutions, with the combination of engineering solutions and efficient operations, including dispatching during different periods of the day, contributing to 70% less energy needed for vertical mobility.

“Our role as a multinational is to leverage our capabilities and expertise to provide the most effective solution to clients. We need to work closely with engineers and architects to provide the most effective solutions.

“We have the tools, such as elevator traffic studies and modelling for different sectors, such as hotels or hospitals, that engineers and architects can use to inform their designs,” he explains.