In Control

New York-based ESI forges ahead as it marks its golden anniversary. 

Responsible for motion control, call dispatching and safety functions — all while maintaining uninterrupted service — controllers are the brains behind an elevator’s electrical system. Companies like Elevator Systems LLC (ESI), based in Garden City, New York, have made a name for themselves providing these nonproprietary “brains” — in ESI’s case, for 50 years in 2023.

Company Beginnings and Evolution

The company formerly known as Elevator Systems, Inc., was founded in 1973 in Deer Park, New York, by Ignatius “Nat” Alcamo Sr., former owner of Unified Elevator Co. and an engineer at the now-defunct O. Thompson Co. elevator controller company. Nat Sr. handed the reins over to his son, Nat Jr., in the early 2000s. Nat Jr. had been successfully running the company for two decades when it received an investment from ShoreView Industries, a Minneapolis-based private equity firm. As a part of this investment, Amit Bansal was named the new CEO. Nat Jr. transitioned from running day-to-day operations at ESI and is now focused on developing newer products/technology at the company (ELEVATOR WORLD, January 2021). 

Described as a visionary leader, investor and global executive with more than 20 years’ experience, including leading a Fortune 500 company in a key geographic market, Bansal joined ESI with a strong background in mergers and acquisitions, business development, operations and finance. Since joining ESI, Bansal has led company investment in acquiring new resources, products and office space, along with actively marketing and selling products in and beyond the Tri-State area. Bansal says ESI has “made a conscious decision to spread its wings and offer its product to the entire U.S. market.” 

An Expanding Presence

ESI continues to grow its customer base through a combination of networking, word-of-mouth, repeat business and advertising. In the beginning, the company attended only the Elevator Conference of New York Supplier Showcase, but has since grown its presence to regularly include the National Association of Elevator Contractors annual convention, Elevator U, NAESA International’s Wisconsin Elevator Symposium and events held by the Massachusetts Elevator Safety Association, the Elevator Association of Florida and the Chicago Elevator Association. 

Since its inception, ESI has partnered on more than 80,000 new elevator controller installation and modernization packages for both commercial and residential systems.

Still based in Garden City, ESI has remote sales offices and teams in the U.S. South, Southeast and Midwest. Its core team consists of Bansal, Vice President (VP) of Operations and Customer Service Maritza Carire (EW, February 2023); Controller Mariah Castor; Vice President (VP) of Sales Jeff Johnson; VP of Engineering Robert Carlson; and its most recent addition, VP of Business Development Ricky Williams (EW, April 2023).

Since its inception, ESI has partnered on more than 80,000 new elevator controller installation and modernization packages for both commercial and residential systems. The company has also played a role in producing more than 8,000 code-compliant solution panels such as for door-lock monitoring, fire phase one and two operations and rope grippers. A majority of its clients are general contractors, but the company also has a “great working relationship with OEMs,” Bansal observes.

Into the Future

ESI is expanding both its product portfolio and its reach in the U.S. market. The company plans to soon debut a cloud-based monitoring solution for its controllers. In parallel, the company is working on a total refresh of its controller design, with plans to launch in 2024. 

As the COVID-19 pandemic tightened its grip on North America in 2020, ESI overstocked its supplies, Bansal says. He states: 

“ESI still has better-than-average lead times in the industry. ESI deeply believes in the philosophy that it is harder to retain a customer than to attract one. We take pride in the fact that our customers ‘want’ to buy from us rather than ‘have’ to buy from us.”

Looking ahead, Bansal says: 

“We will continue to monitor elevator industry progression to stay on top of the market in light of continual codes changes happening across the nation and the world.”