There can be upwards of 6,000 passengers on board a cruise ship – roughly the population of a small town – and they only have so many days in which to enjoy the experience. So they want to get everywhere and see everything fast.
And with the entertainment, the restaurants, the casinos, the gym, the pools, the ice-skating rinks and all the other activities spread over 16 decks, walking is not an option. Nor is waiting several minutes for a lift or escalator.
That is the human logistical problem confronted by the designers of cruise ships – and elevators are their hard-working answer. Royal Caribbean International’s Oasis of the Seas, for example, contains a total of 46 elevators ranging from masterpieces of aesthetics soaring up and down the atrium to lifts for people with impaired mobility.
“[A cruise ship] is probably the most testing context for elevators, with heavy traffic in all directions 24 hours a day,” explained Robert Segercrantz, director for Helsinki-based Kone Marine at the time of the launch of Oasis of the Seas.
But passengers cannot be herded about a ship like cattle; they can only be encouraged to move in ways that, hopefully, create smooth flows of people. That is why, increasingly, analysis of human traffic is done before the ship is designed so that different situations can be taken into account in the vessel’s infrastructure. The main situations are embarkation and disembarkation, both of which can lead to bottle-necks, as well as everyday 24-hour operation at sea.
The transport of goods and luggage, all of which involve elevators, are also part of the challenge. For this Kone deploys its own proprietary TrafCal software to analyse the results, which are then incorporated into the ship’s vertical transportation systems.
Once the number and location of elevators and escalators have been determined in advance, manufacturers then assemble them off site in their own shafts. When finished, they are transported to the shipyard and plugged into the skeleton of the vessel – a time-saving measure.
On cruise ships in particular, elevators serve a dual role. As well as moving people around, they are designed to contribute to the vessel’s ambience. Manufacturers such as Schindler routinely contract outside designers to add the glamour with gleaming metals, mirrors and other touches. In keeping with Cunard Line’s traditional décor, its most recent launches Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth feature solid wood panelling, gilded accents and smoked mirrors. And on MSC Cruises’ MSC Meraviglia, a new-generation Vista class vessel taking shape at STX France’s Sainte-Nazaire yard, the lifts will include marble flooring. In short, “vertical transportation” is part of the theatre.
Important as the aesthetics are, practicality is probably of equal rank. In rough order of priority, say manufacturers, this comes down to reliability, maintenance and energy efficiency. The last of these is an important consideration, given the huge cost of power on cruise ships. To address this, The Netherlands-based Lift Emotion employs a technology known as optional frequency drive that claims to cut power consumption by up to half.
An improvement on standard traction-driven motors, it is often used in domestic lifts for the disabled. In the marine environment the technology is seen as particularly effective for lower-rise elevators commonly used on smaller passenger vessels. In the last few years Lift Emotion has found a ready market in ferries and high speed catamarans in Norway, Japan and the USA. It currently has an orderbook that includes elevators for two mini-cruise vessels, three ferries in Europe and another in the USA.
Kone’s contribution to energy efficiency is an elevator known as MonoSpace that does away entirely with the machine room, and is an energy-efficient alternative to hydraulic-powered elevators. A total of 19 of the smaller MiniSpace versions, that have reduced the size of the machine room but not quite eliminated it, are being installed on MSC Meraviglia. They include two scenic elevators. All are hoisted by an EcoDisc unit that is designed to run for a quarter of a century.
To reduce maintenance costs, Lift Emotion uses off-the-shelf equipment rather than proprietary technology. Corporate affairs spokesman Mike Brandt explained: “We do not have closed control systems that are only accessible by the supplier. Local approved maintenance companies can service our lifts. But most of our elevators have little down-time and require just one maintenance visit per year.”
Shipboard elevators have a hard life and have to be more rugged than their land-based equivalents. They have to withstand constant tremors, as though in a light earthquake, created by the vibration of the ship and the movement of the sea. This resilience requires not only powerful motors but also vibration-free cabins that make the occupants feel as though they are on dry land.
Despite this, the average economic life of a marine elevator could be as long as 25 years – although that would be pushing it to the limit. “An older elevator will probably still work, but a modernisation would reduce the cost of owning and operating it as well as increasing the up-time,” explains Schindler. This is especially true of elevators installed in cruise vessels and ferries.
Routine modernisation is the key to keeping the elevator functioning. Thus the current trend is to replace the hardest-working parts before they fail. As Schindler explains, the more vulnerable components include the control panel, the trailing cable, the doors, ropes, traction machine and sheaves, the interior, the bearings and the door controllers. With careful attention, a regularly modernised elevator could double its working life.
“Several factors affect the life span of an elevator,” explains a Kone spokesperson. “Usage, obviously, is the main one, but the care that is given to the maintenance and modernisation of equipment is also important. Generally speaking, after approximately 15 years elevators might need some broader modernisation. We reckon that, with our regular preventative maintenance and critical modernisation, elevator equipment can operate for some 30 years.”
Kone has come up with a system called E-Link that uses sensors to monitor usage and maintenance requirements and tells the operator when something needs to be done.
Since escalators were first installed some five years ago, they have become standard in the latest cruise ships as an important supplement to elevators. Kone’s escalators, for example, are found on Royal Caribbean’s Oasis-class vessels as well as on Norwegian Cruise Line, Tui Cruises and Star Cruises vessels. Over the next two years it will install two escalators, and 32 elevators, in a Breakaway Plus-class ship being built by Meyer Werft for Norwegian and due for launch in 2018.
Like everything else in vertical transportation technology, escalators are undergoing constant refinement. As a labour-saving bonus, the Helsinki-based group has introduced a self-washing system on its latest versions. Not only does this innovation save on cleaning bills, it doubles the escalator’s usefulness because it can be used in galleys or wherever else food is transported.
One thing that has not changed much is the speed of the elevator, especially the panoramic ones. That is mainly because, once passengers get into a lift, they like to take their time.
© 2023 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd.