TKE Upgrading Elevators To Meet Carbon-Emission Requirements

TK Elevator (TKE) said on January 5  it is working with building owners and property managers across NYC to upgrade elevators in light of Local Law 97, which requires buildings to obtain a Building Energy Efficiency Rating that proves reduced carbon emissions by 2024 or face stiff penalties. Older elevators, TKE points out, can account for 10% of a building’s power usage, and an energy retrofit can conserve up to 70% of a unit’s power usage. A TKE energy-efficient elevator modernization includes adding regenerative drive technology, which captures energy generated when the unit is braking and feeding it back into the building, as well as LED bulbs with automatic shutoff that can reduce energy use in the cab by 90%. Enacted in 2019, Local Law 97 concerns buildings larger than 25,000 ft², which TKE said is roughly 50,000 in NYC. TKE Senior Sustainability Manager Monica Miller Brown called Local Law 97 “a great step in addressing the carbon-emissions issues surrounding commercial buildings in NYC.”