A Love for Lifts

Our cover story is titled “Back to the Beginning” and helps celebrate Knowsley Lifts’ 25th anniversary. We’re pleased to share Knowsley’s origin story and its two-and-a-half decades of history in these pages. The article’s title speaks to an even bigger theme in this Publisher’s Overview – that of looking back to move forward. Sometimes, you have to go back and reflect on your origin story to fully appreciate where you are today and know how to best navigate the future.  

This is the 111th issue of ELEVATOR WORLD UK (EWUK), formerly ELEVATION, which is an amazing feat and reflective of more than 20 years of history and many people’s hard work and dedication. When Elevator World Inc. purchased ELEVATION a little more than four years ago, it was to keep alive the U.K. industry’s only independent media outlet and help it thrive with your assistance and input. We’ve rebranded, created a new monthly companion newsletter (EWUK News) and a digital version of the magazine, and weathered Brexit and a global pandemic, all while consistently publishing the quarterly print magazine. They have been trying times, to say the least. We thank you for sticking with us through all of it and supplying us with your industry news, important projects, latest code updates, market trends and more. 

Next issue, we want to honour the people of the U.K. lift industry whose dedication and expertise have made it what it is today. We want to bring you The First EWUK People Issue. The elevator industry is built on committed, hard-working people, and their stories, ideas, opinions, contributions and successes help motivate us, reminding us of why we do what we do. The goal is to provide our readers with stories of a diverse array of professionals who make an impact on our industry through the work they do for their companies, their communities and the industry as a whole. From the front office to the field, we want to learn about and share their journeys with you.

If you have an interesting story to tell or know someone whom you feel fits these criteria, nominate them. The nomination period is June 20-July 1. Simply visit elevatorworld.com/contests/people/EWUK, fill out the required information and click submit. We will review all submissions and respond no later than July 10. A select number of submissions will be featured in the 3rd Quarter issue, Issue #112. 

One person we should make mention of in this issue is Dave Cooper, the editor of EWUK since its first issue and a contributor to ELEVATION since its very beginning. Dave is signing off as editor, and we thank him for his years of insights and expertise. He did a masterful job of balancing his consultancy business and the needs of EWUK. He may continue to write for us from time to time on his favourite subject – safety. 

In this issue, we focus on Escalators and Moving Walks, a topic Dave covers well in his Safety Matters column, titled, “You Need To Think About Where You Put It!” He discusses handrail placement as a key component of escalator safety. Regular columnist Colin Craney also sheds light on the topic in “Key Escalator Events and Some Issues,” discussing factors and events that have served to drive change. EW Associate Editor Lindsay Fletcher visited with the Transport for London internal escalator team and in “Transporting London” reports on their specialist knowledge and years of experience. Lutfi Al-Sharif’s “The Two Modes of Failure of Escalator Braking Systems” covers that topic thoroughly. 

There is much more in this issue, and we wish you happy reading. Let us hear from you. Your input is most valuable and always welcome at editorial@elevatorworld.com.