How do They do That? — Extend the Construction Elevator/Hoist (aka Man Lift)

Tomorrow, so I was told, the ironworkers will be setting the beams and girders for the ninth floor, but to do that the lattice tower must be extended. Right on schedule, two elevator utility trucks arrived from the company along with a flatbed carrying the extension. After the construction elevators were first installed several months ago it was a relatively simple to extend the elevator tower, but now that the steel structure is above the podium, it takes a crane to lift the extension into place. The circle in the feature photo designates where the elevator tower will be extended. The arrow in the inset photo illustrates where the next section will be extended just above the ninth floor.

August 22, 2018, the day before the elevator tower extension was installed.

At the upper left one of the elevator utility trucks is parked in front of the elevator platform. At the upper right is a a photo (cropped because of all of the activity in the yard) of the elevator extension on the back of a flatbed. The above photo (center) show the other elevator utility truck with Max, the job superintendent looking up at the activity on the elevator tower.

As the elevator car at the right stops at every floor to take on anyone who is going down, an elevator technician (standing on the roof of the left car) works on the cable harness.

If Max (seen in the previous photo) would have shifted to his left a few feet, he would have seen the sun seemingly burn a hole through the steel girder.

To add an extension to the elevator tower, the system must be shut down for general use. It would be difficult to shut down the system during peak work hours, and so the work begins after the early shift is done around 3 PM. Having just stepped off the elevator this group heads for the parking structure, while the elevator technicians begin to shut the system down. The notice has gone to every floor: “THE ELEVATOR IS SHUTTING DOWN.”

One of the technicians hops down into the pit where he will man the power cables to keep them taut as the cable harness is raised with the extension.

With both elevator cars out of service, the extension process begins in earnest.

Back up the tower, the technician removes the harness pole.

With the harness pole attached to the tower a technician (behind the tower) bolts it into place.

The tower extension lying in the yard prior to being hoisted by the crane.

The extension being lowered into place.

Maneuvering the extension tower section into place.

Tower extension is being bolted into place.

Standing on the tower tightening the final connection.

The elevator technician climbs to the top of the tower and leans over and disconnects the crane’s cable.

With the cable disconnected, the tower extension stands on its own.

The elevator tower extension as viewed from Anderson Street.

The elevator tower extension photographed from parking structure P4.

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