Inside a glistening white elevator cab, pressurized to make my brief ride even more elevator from china, I’m whisked into the bowels of the earth in what could best be described as a mobile spa waiting room. I feel very out of place dressed in a hard hat and safety boots for the trip underground.
Soft ambient music plays as I drop at 6 meters a second, and lights pulse in multiple colors. This is all part of Kone’s efforts to make the time you spend in their products more enjoyable and relaxing.
Kone has developed and refined a technology on display at Tytyri called UltraRope. It’s a system to hoist elevators with lightweight, carbon-fiber straps that help designers and architects build higher with less weight. UltraRope will be installed in the forthcoming kilometer-high Jeddah Tower, set to be the world’s tallest building when it’s finished in Saudi Arabia, possibly as soon as sometime next year.
Not every new tower will be record-setting, but with urban growth and increased density, the world is certain to be spending a lot more time in elevators. Kone, like its three big competitors—Otis, ThyssenKrupp, and Schindler—wants to find ways to make your time in these steel boxes more efficient and engaging.“Our mission is to improve the flow of urban life,” says Ehrnrooth.
During one of my test rides at Tytyri, I get a chance to see what that future may look like. Many aspects of an elevator ride, such as top speeds and safety requirements, are governed by local building codes or regional customs. Kone engineers tell me, for example, that North Americans like a faster run, while Asians prefer a slower acceleration and deceleration. But Kone engineers and designers are exploring how lights, music, and even scents can improve your ride.
Inside one of the illuminated elevators at Tytyri.