In Memoriam: Ami Lustig

Engineer Ami Lustig, born in Israel in 1950, passed away in November 2021. It was clear from the age of 6 — when he would accompany his father, Simha, to the office of ESL, the leading elevator consultants in Israel — that his future lay in the elevator industry. After graduating with an engineering degree from Tel Aviv University in 1977, he joined ESL full time. Over the years, he became involved in many prestigious projects both in Israel and internationally. Lustig was also an active member of the ISO/TC178 Plenary Committee on Lifts, Escalators and Moving Walks, as well as several ISO working groups, Standards Institution of Israel committees and chairman of the Intelligent Building International Steering Committee. During this time, he published a great number of papers on various aspects of vertical-transportation (VT) technologies. In 1985, Lustig played a pivotal role in establishing the International Association of Elevator Engineers (IAEE), which aimed to define VT engineering as a specialized profession, promoting scientific and technological expertise specific to the industry. From 2000, he served as chairman of IAEE’s congress Elevcon, and, in 2014, was appointed president of IAEE. One of Lustig’s greatest professional contributions was to create a blueprint for the integration of the VT systems within the broader concept and design of the architect’s vision. He was a longtime ELEVATOR WORLD contributor and correspondent. Lustig was beloved and respected, both personally and professionally. He is survived by his wife of 45 years, two children and two grandchildren.