Uno spettacolo per gli occhi irritati

di Angie C. Baldwin

Hiring in the U.S. has been up and down this summer; the price of oil and gasoline has been and remains high; at press time, the U.S. ceasefire with Iran is shaky at best; and the weather has been unpredictable and, at times, extreme. One could make the argument that these are turbulent and uncertain times. Even still, the U.S. recently celebrated its 250th birthday — and grandly. It was fireworks and tall ships, barbecues and time spent with family and friends, patriotism and nostalgia, all swirled with a little FIFA World Cup action. We are a lot of good things, this country. Certainly not perfect, but always working on it. Striving to reach our potential. In 1738, long before the birth of the U.S., the satirist and master of social commentary Jonathan Swift wrote in A Complete Collection of Genteel and Ingenious Conversation, "The sight of you is good for sore eyes." He didn't coin the phrase said by his character, but Swift is responsible for one of the earliest recorded uses of it. Since then, it has morphed into the modern, "A sight for sore eyes." Throughout time, its meaning and sentiment have remained the same: Someone or something that is especially welcome to see after an absence or during difficult circumstances. This Fourth of July reminded me of that phrase and all it invokes. The 14th annual Photo Contest, featured in this issue, does the same.

Here at ELEVATOR WORLD, the Photo Contest never fails to thrill us and remind us of the beauty of the vertical-transportation (VT) industry and the world around us. Concorso fotografico 2026 features 11 categories, and its first, second and third place winners span the globe, showcasing unique perspectives from Australia, the Middle East, North America, Europe and more. We hope you enjoy these images as much as we do.

Twice a year, we highlight a notable region. This issue's Special Regional Section is Chicagoland, the home of some of the U.S.' earliest and most renowned skyscrapers and plenty of prominent VT companies. The four articles in this section give us a sense of the region's rich history and ongoing progress. They are:

• Colley Elevator Co. — 118 Years and Counting submitted by Colley Elevator. This Company Spotlight looks at the various ways this Chicagoland-based company is going beyond elevators to lift others.
• KONE Americas in Chicago by Richie Deutsch. Your author tracks VT's evolution in Chicago and that city's importance to the industry, along with KONE's place in it.
• The Chicago Elevator Association by Kathleen Farrell. From the rise of the skyscraper to today's VT industry, the Chicago Elevator Association, one of the oldest continuously operating regional elevator organizations in the U.S., has been a witness to it all.
• 50 Years of Elevator Inspection in Chicago by Sara Korolevich. Anthony DiBiase and Frank Cervone built EIS into one of Chicagoland's most trusted names — and watched the city's VT industry transform along the way.

In these pages, we also report on events from around the world, from China to the U.S. to the Netherlands:

• WEE Expo 2026, Guangzhou by Peng Jie, EW Correspondent. Thirty years in, and the World Elevator & Escalator Expo still packs a punch, with this iteration seeing large crowds and outstanding innovations.
• Ascensore U 2026 by Lindsay Fletcher. Held in Quincy, Illinois, the home of Hollister-Whitney, the industry education event geared toward those working in university settings offered quite a bit beyond the classroom this year.
• Assemblea generale e conferenza dell'ELA 2026 by Sascha Göbel, EW Correspondent. The event in Rotterdam, Netherlands, focused on AI and the future.

There is so much more in this issue, and we hope you read and enjoy it from cover to cover. Send me your thoughts and ideas at [email protected].