Some applications that others won’t touch include building controllers that have to be mounted far away from the elevator motor it is controlling, 400 plus feet.  I’m happy to report that with the assistance of the G7 Drive from Yaskawa and some pretty clever controller engineering, we’ve been extremely successful with fabricating four G7 Controller projects this past year.  Outlined below are the general specs for them.

Job: Refinery – Saudi Arabia – Two issues at hand, heat and the fact that this was an explosion proof application. The client wanted to mount the elevator controller at the bottom of the tower, where they could air condition it and not in the machine room.  CJA Controller and Fixtures Provided.

Job: Cement Facility – USA  – Again, with two issues at hand, heat and cement dust the best solution was to mount the controller at the bottom floor in a space that could be climate controlled easier. Two units were installed at this location. CJA Controller and Fixtures Provided. This controller is pictured. It also utilized the Allen Bradley PLC and LCD Diagnostic Screen.

Job: Rocket Engine Test Tower – USA  – This elevator was a Rack & Pinion Elevator, three motor controls and encoder feedback. The elevator controller needed to be installed at the base of the elevator and had a NEMA 4X Cabinet and air conditioner.   CJA Controller and Fixtures Provided.

Long Range VFD Specifications

• Ratings: 0.5 to 150 HP, 240 VAC
  0.5 to 500 HP, 480 VAC
• Overload capacity: Heavy duty, 150% for 1 minute, 200% peak
• Starting torque: 150% at frequency;
  1.0Hz (V/f), 0.5Hz (open loop vector), 0.0Hz (closed loop vector)
• Output frequency: 0.01 to 400 Hz
• Output frequency resolution: 0.001 Hz
• Speed control range:
  40:1 (V/f), 200:1 (open loop vector), 1000:1 (closed loop vector)
• Speed regulation:
  1.0% (V/f), 0.2% (open loop vector),
  0.01% (closed loop vector)
• Speed response: 60 Hz
• Torque response: 300 Hz
• Speed reference resolution:
  0.01 Hz with digital reference,
  0.03 Hz with analog reference,
  0.01 Hz with network reference
• Speed/Torque/Position control
• Zero-servo mode
• Adjustable accel/decel: 0.01 to 6000 seconds
• S-Curve: 0.00 to 2.50 seconds, adjustable for each corner
• Stall prevention: Accel / decel / running
• Power loss ride-thru: Auto-restart or inertia ride-thru

When you think about these kinds of projects think about the length that the motor cable must travel.  For three out of the four projects listed above the distances were more than twice the travel of the elevator.  If you have a unique application that requires a solution that others don’t feel comfortable with providing call us toll free at 1-800-252-1910 for pricing on your next controller project!

What’s most enjoyable about heading into the archives room is the sense of history of thousands of job files cataloged. We have two locations where we keep our older job files. The first room has four vertical olive green metal cabinets. Each cabinet has five shelves with ten to fifteen 4” three ring binders from back in the day. Each binder has a company name on it and is filled with thin pieces of paper with job records on them. There have to be close to 1000 jobs in each binder.

If it’s a really old job, we’ve got another room that has file cabinets with thousands of job cards that date back to the 1910’s -1930’s. The smell of thumbing through these cards and folders brings me back to the days when I’d explore books in the library. It’s one of those smells that you just never forget.

The attached job file was for a customer who wanted to update the star wheel selector system. From the serial number he gave me I was able to find the following information.

1. Serial Number: 22602
2. Job Record File: 1931
3. Installer of Elevator: S. Heller
4. Location of Elevator: Milwaukee, WI
5. Serial Number of Wiring Diagram
6. Type of Fixtures/Selector System Used.

Again, it’s amazing the records we still have on file. While all current projects are archived both on paper and electronic format I wonder what it will be like in another 100 years when people are still calling wanting information on old C.J. Anderson Elevator installations. Whether it’s like for like or parts for an old system, C.J. Anderson continues to provide wiring diagrams and certain parts for years to come!

The next time a custom project turns up, turn to CJA and we’ll be happy  assist. These are the types of projects that we truly enjoy working on.

Along the photos Jack added the following history behind it.

The background for this unique piece was my Dad worked at Lietelt elevator works in Grand Rapids Michigan from 1959 until 1960 building the controllers for Montgomery Elevator. One day the construction Super talked him into going to work for them.

Dave Otten gave me, Jack Jr.,  the fixture in 1996 to give to my dad.  My Dad built the lamp in 1998. When my dad past away in 1999 my mother gave it to me to keep in the family. Underneath it is my dad’s original gang box that Montgomery gave him to work out of. I remember as a kid the thing always being in our garage somewhere piled high with junk. My dad made it into a table as you see there around the same time as the lamp.

All I can say is very cool!  I hope this piece stays in the Bultman family but if you’re ever looking for another home for it please let us know.

If you’ve got old photos that you’d like to share please send them our way.  We’ll be happy to post them along with the story behind them.

Remember that that the dials shown are cast yellow brass and are antiqued to match our clients request. We also refurbish indicators when possible and can provide electronics only packages for units that do not have face plates. For more information please visit the link below or call us toll free at 1-800-252-1910.

http://www.cjanderson.com/elevatordialindicators.aspx 

I received a call yesterday from an elevator company wanting to add fire service to a controller we built back in 1984. I pulled the file and found that it was single speed AC soft start back in 1984. He didn’t want to mess around with an overlay and his line of thinking was right on as Fire Service Overlays can be a nightmare if a good set of prints can’t be found.

The original controller that was provided in 1984 was relay logic with a soft start.  It had an AC Motor and manual freight doors. Because it was so simple we were able to ad Fire Service features without having to use a PLC to run it. This is not always the case and typically we’re unable to add Fire Service without utilizing a PLC which does not fall within the criteria for a like for like elevator controller replacement.

Important things to remember when replacing like for like.

• Motor Control Must Remain The Same – Single Speed AC Motors or Two Speed AC Motors are typical for this kind of application.
• Speed of Elevator MUST be less than 100 FPM – Single Speed and less than 150 FPM – 2 Speed - Reason being is that the elevator is going to stop on the brake but have a smooth start up. Speeds higher than this will really give you a run for your money when setting up the leveling.
• Cannot Use PLC or VVVF Drive
• 2 Speed Motors work better than single speed motors
• The operation of the system must be single automatic
• Check with your local AHJ to make sure that they understand that this type of installation is considered a like for like replacement

The next time you consider an upgrading an outdated antiquated elevator, consider replacing the controller for a like for like system. PLC based controllers that are being built today have a life cycle of 10-15 years if you’re lucky. By removing the PLC from the equation you’ve doubled the life of your controller. Keep in mind that you won’t be improving the performance of the elevator but you will make it so that components can be purchased from local electrical distributors.

The original Controller has been working great for the last 25 years. Installing a like for like controller will easily give it another 25.

To get a price quote today http://www.cjanderson.com/controllerquoteform.aspx

Call, e-mail or contact us today! http://www.cjanderson.com/10offcoupon.aspx

Tip: If you have an older unit with a black box and have a board that’s dead, either master or slave, we recommend that you purchase a complete control box as this will minimize your repair time and you won’t need to rewire the boards to the sensors which when trying to do on top of an elevator is no picnic.