We have to take a leaf out of the auto industry.

A decade ago the author (Raj) in a

presentation had mentioned that India required a different type of car to suit the
masses. Now it is a reality. The whole world in looking in surprise at what has been
made available to the common Indian Welcome to India! Understand Indian
Needs!
Tycoon Ratan Tata, the 70-year-old who heads the tea-to-steel Tata group,
unveiled no frills Nano at the Geneva Auto Show. Tata touts the Nano as the
Worlds cheapest car at just Rs.100,000 ($2,500, 1,600 Euros), aimed at Indians
hoping to trade up from a motorcycle to four wheels. The basic model has no air
conditioning, no electric windows and no power steering was quoted in the news.
This is actually the need of the masses.

In India large masses require help. They need cars but need not have all the frills.
They need elevators, not necessary to have frills again. There is a huge population
that is desperate to handle their basic needs. As can be seen from pictures which
speak for themselves. People would travel on top of the trains / buses to reach their
destination (Figure 3 & 4). It is not the comforts it is the need to manage or
reach. That is why when people are in a much enviable situation and still
complain they should probably visit and see the troubles taken by these masses
(with even cheer on their faces often!) it would for sure give Humbling Effect to
say we are a lot better off. Now if there is an elevator solution to these masses
then it will be received with prompt acceptance like it is probably happening for
Nano .

Residential Building
Approximately 350 M people are expected to be in the urban environments. 350 M
people with 7 person in each family 50 million families. 42.5 million families live
in apartments (100 families per apartments buildings is 42.5 million/100 = 425,000
buildings of which above 5 % require elevators i.e. over 21,250 buildings). These
would be High end apartments requiring elevators like in any other part of the
world.
The low end apartments, the balance 90 %, has the potential to be converted to
building with elevators and this would depend upon the provision of economical
no frill, safe elevators (like no frills airline) and this is a large opportunity area
additionally.
15 % of them stay in villas and that is: 7.5 million villas. 5 % of the villas can be
considered top end with 2 floors and above, that is 375,000 deluxe villas. These
deluxe villas are potential for providing economical home lifts. This can also be
considered potential area for providing lifts.
Hotels/Offices Building
Additionally Hotels / High End office (supplement to residential buildings) would
have elevators being A Class. But Smaller Hotels/Ordinary office again

(supplement to residential buildings) would provide lifts if found to be economical

(no frills as mentioned earlier). The second category is again additional potential.
These are in addition to the residential units as all the working population has to be
housed in offices buildings and have to be housed during travels (largely business
and occasional holidays).
Airports, Expansion of Retail Trade
Lots of airports, MRTS, shopping complexes, theatres, etc. are also mushroom ing
will also require large number of elevators and escalators. The cities are getting
modern and more sophisticated.
Other Elevator Dependants
Looking at the growing population of older aged Indians, about 8.5 % population is
in the Senior Citizen category in the others about 9 % of total population is having
medical constraints or handicapped (apart from Senior Citizens). 8 % is children
below 3 years.
It is also noted that Houseless Population is 1,900,000. Very insignificant numbers,
hence goes to confirm all others are housed!

Other factors influencing more elevator requirements

Relative Prices

The necessity is the key word in India and with time there have been some
consolation to be able to provide elevators in apartment buildings. The cost of
elevators has not increased much over the years. For example, years ago, if the
apartments would cost about 10,000 $ each and the elevators would cost as much
as three apartments. Now the same type of apartment would cost around 100,000 $

each (due to increase in land cost) and the basic elevators would cost about 1/3 the
price of one apartment for a small sized building. Hence now the provision for
elevators has become a very small component in the building and is immediately
accepted, widely. Elevators also help to make the building go more higher.
Local Regulation
In quite a few cases the governments have also made it mandatory to have
elevators for buildings of about 4 floors & more. Hence, the apartments have to
necessarily have elevators.
Government Subsidies
The Government suppliers electronics/ easing on elevator prices while the cost of
petroleum products is going up (relatively). This makes the (nearer) urban vertical
housing (apartments) a stronger proposal, than traveling to their distant rural town
homes.
Hire Purchase
Earlier, a person can never save to get to the market price. With the hire purchase
and mortgage systems which have only now been well established, it makes it
possible to possess the apartments. So as more apartments taken, so more elevators
required. Hence, crowded joint family homes are breaking down into more single
family homes in apartments.
Preferred Investment
In other areas of investment there have been huge collapses like in share/stock
markets which have driven people towards presently more safer form of
investments in real estate and hence more need for buildings and hence elevators.
Comfort Levels
In the modern world, compared to old times and comfort levels of individuals are
also increasing and hence they would have the elevator than walk up the building
of 3 floors or above.

Type of elevator requirement

The taller towers are normally considered as a difficult proposition to handle from
civic, maintenance and other factors. Hence, elevators would bear the brunt of such
situations, if the building management is not good or if the residents do not
cooperate in taking care of maintenance commitments and then the whole support
system fails. The elevator provision / maintenance if not done properly it will be
badly affecting the building on day to day basis. Hence, low rise and mid rise is the
generally preferred requirement of buildings and the elevators required would also
fall in the category.

Of course Mumbai, for example, is a city with much less land area (and having to
reclaim land from the sea) there is a tendency to have taller towers. Most of the
other cities it is not need driven to have tall towers. However, to accommodate the
huge population requirement it is considered as an economic optimization to go
upwards as the cost of land gets higher. However, presently large number of
buildings are planned between 3 and 10 floors in the urban area.
Type of elevators would also depend upon type of buildings. The type of buildings
and location of buildings largely influence the decision on type of elevators. High
speed elevators to serve upper exclusive floors and pent houses would be important
in such Class A buildings.
The pent houses are also not the fancy as each city has upper crust of the society
living in certain areas and other areas are just about ordinary. For example in
Mumbai the high end would stay at Malabar Hills or Nariman point places like that
and then a pent house in that area would be considered as icing on the cake.
But if you live at the low end and stay at the pent house it does not attract any
attention. Hence, Pent house concept is only driven by the location. Hence, there
is a cream which would use a good class of elevators and using zoning/VIP service
etc. to cater to the elite residents at the top of the building. But the large majority
would not be too much concerned about the higher speeds or fanciful elevators but
treat it as a mode of transport.