By Limb Jae-un www.joongangdaily.joins.com
Imagine being able to zip to the top of Seoul’s tallest buildings at 65 kilometers (40 miles) an hour – roughly twice the speed of the fastest elevators in use here today.
Hyundai Elevator Co. announced yesterday that it has developed a new elevator that will allow you to do just that, claiming it’s the fastest of its kind in the world.
The company, which ranks as the largest elevator firm in Korea by sales, said its latest creation – called The EL – is capable of traveling at a maximum speed of 1,080 meters (3,543 feet) per minute.
“The elevator was developed to address the demand for high-speed elevators used in skyscrapers,” said Song Jin-chul, chief executive officer of Hyundai Elevator. The fastest elevator currently used in the world is at the Taipei 101 tower and can move at a speed of 1,010 meters per minute. The fastest in Korea is in the 63 Building in Yeouido, Seoul, which can travel at up to 540 meters per minute.
Hyundai said the new elevator can travel up to 600 meters in terms of distance. The elevators in Dubai’s Burj Kahlifa – which at 828 meters high ranks as the world’s tallest building – have a limit of 500 meters.
Additionally, Hyundai said it also developed a double-decker elevator in which one compartment is stacked on top of the other.
The system is used for high skyscrapers like the Burj Khalifa, though it has not yet been employed in Korea.
There are several skyscrapers planned in Korea including Lotte World II in Seoul; Landmark City in Songdo, Incheon; and Busan Lotte World.
Limb Jae-un [jbiz91@joongang.co.kr]
