“Office elevators” can be found in buildings around the world, allowing workers to reach their places of business in tall towers. ELEVATOR WORLD headquarters could be considered an “elevator office” — although its one-story nature makes vertical-transportation (VT) equipment unnecessary. But a functional elevator that doubles as an office workspace is a perplexing concept.
This vertically mobile mash-up does exist, however, at Bat’a’s Skyscraper in Zlín, Czech Republic. Also known as Building No. 21, the office tower was built between 1936 and 1938 to serve as the administration building of the Bata Shoes factory. Under the direction of company president Jan Antonín Bat’a, architect Vladimír Karfík designed the 16-floor tower in the Constructivist style. Bat’a’s tower was one of the first high-rise buildings constructed in Europe, and at the time, the third tallest.
The tower features an impressive array of VT equipment including four elevators with operators used by the staff, traveling at a speed of 2 m/s; an express elevator for company visitors, traveling at speeds of up to 3.2 m/s; and a paternoster lift with 31 cabins connecting two adjacent floors. The building also had a freight elevator and an elevator for mail delivery. And, of course, the large elevator/corner office built by Otis for the company president.
Moving at .75 m/s, the 6 x 6 m, air-conditioned lift office features a desk, working telephone line, overhead lighting and running sink with heated water. Sadly, Bat’a never had the chance to use it; it was completed during World War II after he had relocated abroad.
The building underwent a CZK630 million (US$27 million) renovation in 2014 and has since been used as the Regional Office of the Zlín Region. Additional restorations took place in 2018, including repairs to the elevators and paternoster. Visitors can view a permanent exhibition detailing the building’s history on the second floor, have a meal at the restaurant on the third floor and enjoy the café and viewing platform on the top-floor terrace.
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