UCSF Childcare Center Features MEM Elevator

June 9, 2011 - PRLog -- A modular elevator from Modular Elevator Manufacturing, Inc. (MEM), leading manufacturer of factory preinstalled commercial hydraulic and machine-room-less elevators, has been installed at the Kirkham Childcare Center at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).

The Kirkham Childcare Center is a 6,700 square foot permanent modular building that serves as a childcare center for three to five year olds. The Center is two stories tall created from various size modules set on a concrete masonry unit foundation and clad in brightly-colored lap siding.

“A modular elevator from MEM offered the project many advantages and all parties were happy with the final result,” says Tony Wong, architect, Kendall Young Associates. “It was a Division of the State Architect approved product offered at a reasonable cost, requiring a short lead-time, and the interface to the rest of the building was easy to address.”

The Kirkham Childcare Center features a hydraulic holeless modular elevator with above ground cylinders. The holeless design requires less on-site construction and greatly minimizes project costs. The equipment room was approximately 75 feet away instead of being adjacent to the modular elevator. Since the building was made up of modular components on a hillside site, the structure required a raised foundation. The crawl space of the foundation housed the long hydraulic and electrical runs for the modular elevator. The motor and pump were upsized accordingly to accommodate the distance.

MEM’s modular elevator features nonproprietary, high-quality components featuring state of the art digital controls, a fully equipped steel car and a fully pre-assembled elevator tower constructed from welded tubular steel. Before installation, an elevator pit was prepared with anchor bolt imbeds to ensure precise placement. The elevator was then delivered to the job site on a flatbed truck, picked up with a crane, set in place and anchored.

“A modular elevator was an ideal solution to provide accessibility for students, teachers, parents and staff at the Kirkham Childcare Center,” says Tom Shield, President and Founder of MEM. “We provide a cost-effective solution that installs in less time than a conventional elevator and requires very little maintenance.”

MEM’s elevators meet the requirements set by the Americans with Disabilities Act and ASME A17.1, the latest edition of elevator specifications set by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

The project received a first place award from the Modular Building Institute’s 2011 Awards of Distinction for permanent modular educational buildings from 5,000 to 10,000 square feet. Entries were judged on architectural excellence, technical innovation, cost effectiveness, energy efficiency and calendar days to complete.

The project was completed in August 2009. In addition to MEM, the project team included Kendall Young Associates, San Francisco, CA as the architect and TCB Builders, San Francisco, CA as the general contractor.

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Modular Elevator Manufacturing, Inc. (MEM) designs and manufactures factory preinstalled commercial hydraulic and machine-room-less (MRL) elevators. Built as freestanding structures in rated or non-rated hoistways, MEM elevators enable virtually any kind of facility to achieve and/or improve accessibility, meeting ADA compliance while saving time and money. MEM’s holeless-designed elevators arrive on-site fully installed, can be made operational in one day and are priced below conventional elevator systems. For more information about Modular Elevator Manufacturing, visit www.modularelevator.net.