120 years ago, the Stoffel textile factory arrived in the Swiss village of Mels and the company made a significant impact on the region at that time. The new jobs brought an economic boom as well as change in the region. However, over the years, the textile factory became less and less important until the plant closed
in 1995, heralding the end of the textile industry in Mels.

Now, over twenty years later, the textile factory is set to become a central part of the region once again. With the Uptown Mels project, the old factory buildings are to be converted into new homes and will therefore create new and modern housing.

The location on a small hill also offers an ideal view of the surrounding mountain landscape. A key part of the new project is an inclined elevator from INAUENSCHÄTTI.

The inclined elevators from INAUEN-SCHÄTTI is a key area of the Uptown Mels project, as the 48.5 metre facility will enable subsequent residents to get to the centre with minimum effort and no car. As well as the desire for a modern and convenient transport system, many special requests have been introduced in the course of the project. As with most projects, there were also several special requests here, which the Swiss experts had to implement.

“At the request of the client, in a late phase of the project, the cabin roof was modified with the technical possibilities to give the facility a special character. Each inclined elevator is one of a kind due to the length and steepness of the terrain.

Thus, more flexible customer requirements can be addressed“, says Pascal Voegtlin Project Manager at INAUEN-SCHÄTTI. The Uptown Mels project should appeal to all target groups and therefore needed to be designed to meet the needs of young and old alike.

To facilitate vibrant life in the district for everyone, the issue of mobility is a key factor.The inclined elevator offers enough space to transport a bicycle, pushchair or wheelchair and therefore matches the ideas of the project managers to create individual living space.

The long history of the textile factory should also be reflected in the design of the inclined elevator. It took three colour samples to find the right  brown, which is used in all elements. Whereas it was possible to make some compromises on design matters, the responsibilities in matters of safety lay clearly with INAUENSCHÄTTI.

Steps fitted on the side facilitate access in the case of maintenance work and can also easily serve as an evacuation option in an emergency. The four cables that move the inclined elevator have been fitted with slack cable monitoring systems.

If even a slight deviation from the standard occurs, warning signals are immediately sent to the people responsible. The future residents of Uptown therefore have the best possible transport facility.

Two years have passed since the contract was awarded to INAUENSCHÄTTI. In that time, the old design of the Stoffel textile factory has been linked up with the modern technology from the Swiss company.

A beautiful bridge has therefore been created between function, safety and architecture. On schedule, the facility officially opened on 22nd June and whilst conversion work is still in full swing in the old factory, the inclined elevator is already in operation, making the daily journey to work easier for the tradespeople. tm

• Route Length 48.48 m
• Motor Capacity 37 kW
• Height Difference 31.1 m
• Incline 39.91°
• Travel speed 1.5 m/s
• Load Capacity 12 p.