Retrofit & Addition Elevator

Engineering notes

The problem is the building, not the lift

Adding a lift to a finished building means solving four problems at once: where the shaft goes, how its loads reach the ground, how the landings connect to existing floors, and how residents keep using the stairs during construction.

Our approach is a self-supporting steel shaft — a lattice or portal frame founded on new pad footings, carrying the lift, its loads and the cladding, and connected to the building only at the landings with movement-tolerant details. The existing structure takes no lift load, which is usually what makes the project approvable.

Coordinated with the way people live

Work is phased so that the stair remains usable throughout. Structural steel is erected from outside where access permits, and the shaft is clad before the internal fit-out begins, keeping dust and noise out of the building.

Landing doors are set into the existing walls with minimal breaking out, and the finishes around them are made good to match. Where a landing connects to a half-flight, we adjust the shaft position rather than rebuild the stair.

Modernisation of existing equipment

For buildings that already have a lift, we modernise rather than replace: new gearless machines and VVVF controllers, replacement door operators, light curtains, car interiors and landing indication. The existing shaft and guide rails are surveyed and reused wherever they meet tolerance.

Modernisation typically cuts energy consumption by 30–50%, reduces breakdown frequency and brings the installation up to current safety standards — at a fraction of the cost of a new lift, and with far less disruption to occupants.