From Operator to Self- Drive

The invention of passenger lifts brought with it a new form of employment - the lift operator. Rarely seen beyond the confines of films and period dramas nowadays, these workers would ride in the lifts for the entire day. They were responsible for opening and closing the doors, manually controlling the speed and direction of the carriage and taking requests for specific floors from passengers.

An Essential Job?

At first glance, such a job might appear mind-numbing, but lift operators had to know what was on each floor and announce it to passengers. In large department stores, they also functioned as an important public relations tool, greeting everyone who entered the building with a smile and providing a familiar face to regular customers, much like the store greeters in some modern shops.

Customers could tell the operator what they were looking for and be directed to the appropriate floor. Operators were the first representative of the company that customers saw, making the role so important that some American department stores in the 1950s and 1960s even trained their operators in ‘charm schools’.

The manual operation of the passenger lifts of the time was also a complex skill. The operator stood next to a large lever which controlled the direction and speed of the car, and it was their responsibility to ensure that, when stopped, the lift would perfectly align with the floor. Some countries even required operators to obtain a licence before they could take up their posts, guaranteeing passengers a smooth, safe ride. When modern electronic lifts were first introduced, passengers were often afraid of riding them alone without operators.

Ancient History

Nowadays, this almost seems like the very distant past. The practice of getting into a lift and pressing the button is something that many of us do every day without thinking twice. Lift operators continued their work up to the 1960s, however, at which point developments in electronic technology made it possible to create the lifts we know today.

Elevator technology has continued to develop by leaps and bounds since the 1960s, and the Platform Lift Company proudly stocks a wide range of lifts that don’t require an operator. From goods lifts for commercial premises to platform lifts for those with mobility issues, we are certain that our selection will meet your needs.

Contemporary lifts are no longer just a mechanical tool. We offer residential and platform lifts designed in a variety of continental styles, allowing your new commercial or home lift to increase the aesthetic appeal of the building as well as the accessibility. For any further information on what we can offer you, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.