Schindler’s PORT elevator technology provides “concierge service” to occupants at The Crescent

by Ann Withanee — November 2, 2011—Schindler Elevator Corporation’s innovative PORT (Personal Occupant Requirement Terminal) elevator technology is helping move occupants faster and more efficiently at The Crescent Office Towers, Dallas’s premier office complex. It is the first complex in Dallas to benefit from Schindler’s third-generation destination dispatch system. The destination dispatch system is the equivalent of providing personalized “concierge service” to The Crescent users and visitors. The PORT elevator system also assures security for the building. Access control is managed with RFID badges.

Twenty-four passenger elevators in two 18-story towers and one 19-story tower are being modernized with the PORT Technology and Schindler’s Power Factor 1 regenerative drives. The entire project is expected to be complete in late 2013. Schindler comments that building owners and operators, including facilities executives, regard this as an efficient and energy-conscious system for the future.

PORT Technology, explains Schindler, is best understood as the central nervous system of a building, functions as a two-way communication interface between the occupants and The Crescent’s environment. The system’s visible aspect is a sleek, futuristic interface positioned at access points and elevators around the building. Behind the stylish touch screen is a powerful software system, capable not only of calculating the optimum route to any destination within the building, but also of “learning” how its occupants typically move around. With this information, PORT Technology primes the elevators to direct and transport people quickly and safely to their individual destinations. Furthermore, Schindler’s patented technology works with RFID badges to identify passengers and call elevators for personal service, including unprecedented levels of customization can be achieved.

Schindler points out these energy features:

• Each PORT terminal’s proximity sensor tells it when to be active and at all other times puts it into low energy consumption mode.
  
• When the terminal screen illuminates, an ambient light sensor determines only the brightness level required, again optimizing energy usage.
  
• The PORT Technology helps ensure elevator trips are as efficient as possible. This produces a very resourceful use of energy even during heavy traffic.
  
• Elevators feature Power Factor 1 drives that reduce energy consumption by up to 35 percent compared to standard drives and regenerate energy back into the building’s electrical system.