Beijing Residential Community Performs "Minor Repairs"- Elevator Modernization

In Shuangyushu Dongli, Haidian District, Beijing, six old buildings constructed in the 1990s have recently become a hot topic online because of an elevator. Residents posted short videos of themselves riding it online, captioning them, "Going up to the 15th floor, whoosh! I was there before I even finished scrolling through my WeChat Moments!" Even more surprising, the electricity bill posted by the property management showed that after the renovation, the monthly electricity consumption of the same elevator dropped from 980 kWh to 460 kWh, a reduction of half. How did this old building elevator achieve both speed and energy savings? A reporter visited the old elevator that had just undergone its "minimally invasive" renovation.

I. A 30-Year-Old Elevator: Slow, Shaky, and Noisy--Elevator Modernization Project

"During rush hour, the elevator would shake for 30 seconds from the 1st to the 15th floor, making a creaking noise," said Ms. Wang, a resident on the 6th floor. The elevator was delivered with the building in 1993, serving for a full 30 years. Its rated speed is 1.0 m/s, and spare parts have long been discontinued; "when it breaks down, it takes a week."

Replacing the entire elevator? The budget is 500,000 yuan, the construction period is 3 months, and 100% of the residents' signatures are required. "As soon as they heard it would cost tens of thousands of yuan, the signature rate instantly dropped to 30%," said Mr. Zhao, the director of the community's residents' committee, scratching his head.

II. Minimally Invasive Solution: Replacing Only the "Three Major Components"--Elevator Modernization Solutions

In April of this year, Haidian District included Shuangyushu Dongli in the first batch of pilot projects for "modernizing old elevators." Technicians proposed a "modular" solution:

Retain the original steel structure, guide rails, and car frame;

Replace the control cabinet (brain), traction machine (heart), and door operator (hand);

Add energy feedback and an IoT gateway.

"It's like performing bypass surgery on the heart, without touching the skeleton, only replacing the lesion," explained Wang, the project manager. The budget was reduced to 150,000 yuan, and the construction period was shortened to 72 hours.

III. 72-Hour "Flash Mob" On-Site--Elevator Modernization Process

Day 1 20:00-8:00 (Next Day): Power outage → Old traction machine hoisted out → New permanent magnet synchronous motor "slides" into place, weight halved, volume reduced by 30%.

Day 2 8:00-20:00: Control cabinet replacement.

Door operator upgraded to VVVF frequency converter, door opening and closing noise reduced from 65 dB to 48 dB.

Day 3 20:00-24:00: Online detection of wire rope tension → Fine adjustment of balance coefficient → No-load and 125% load type tests passed on the first attempt.

Early on the fourth day, the elevator received the "Renovation Certificate" issued by the Haidian District Market Supervision Bureau and officially resumed operation.

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