The world’s one billion lift users could benefit from a new cloud based system which could elevate the mode of transport from ‘out of service’ to ‘as a service’, through a series of technical improvements.

Lift manager ThyssenKrupp has launched MAX, a system of ‘urban efficiency’ which runs via Microsoft Azure’s Internet of Things (IoT) enabled technology.

With 12 million lifts across the world shifting a billion people each day, downtime of this increasingly critical transport mechanism is becoming increasingly critical. However, management of lifts has not kept pacing with technology developments and service disruptions amount to over 190 million cumulative hours. The amount of time wasted, as staff are forced to walk up several floors, or wait for a crowded alternative lift, has not been calculated but is expected to be several times higher. However, the ThyssenKrupp Elevator company says its new MAX system will improve productivity by cutting lift service outages by half.

The MAX system aims to raise the reliability of lifts with a predictive and pre-emptive service that uses remote monitoring to dramatically increase the availability levels lifts. It uses intelligent agents to tell service technicians the needs of the lift, including the identification of repairs, component replacements and proactive system maintenance.

Data collected from millions of connected ThyssenKrupp elevators is sent to a system running in Microsoft’s Azure cloud, where an algorithm calculates the remaining lifetime of key systems and components in each elevator. From this ThyssenKrupp’s team of 20,000 global service engineers and technicians can inform building owners in advance when systems or components will need attention. These programmed interventions help avert life downtime, according to Andreas Schierenbeck, CEO of ThyssenKrupp Elevator.

“Our mission is to transform a century-old industry that has relied on established technology until now. We are very pleased to take ThyssenKrupp into the digital era and change the way the elevator industry offers maintenance services,” he said .

ThyssenKrupp aims to connect 180,000 units in North America and Europe, with the US, Germany, and Spain as pilot countries and other key countries in Europe, Asia and South America following shortly after. In two years, the offering will be expanded to all continents, becoming available to 80% of all elevators worldwide.