Vertical Lift Project in Fort Worth TX

Industry: Luxury Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas
Challenge: Transporting laundry in a newly renovated hotel presented challenge. Did not want laundry bins in guest elevators, but very tight on space so a custom fit was required.
Solution: Add a custom sized vertical lift freight elevator for safe and discreet laundry bin transport.
Equipment:  PFlow Hydraulic Vertical Reciprocating Conveyor (VRC)

A Tight Squeeze

Our client, Sinclair Holdings LLC, had purchased downtown Fort Worth’s historic Sinclair Building to transform it into an upscale Marriott Autograph Collection hotel. When it came to the discreet transport of laundry bins, they ran into a particular challenge that they brought to our team at W.W. Cannon.

They were looking for a solution that would allow workers to transport laundry from the ground floor to the basement – without forcing large carts of dirty laundry on patrons in the guest elevators.

Challenges: We had very limited options on space to install a freight elevator/VRC.

“There were elevator shafts in the building, but they were being used for transporting people” says W.W. Cannon Material Handling Specialist, Doug Hutchins.

“So our only option was to use an old brick elevator shaft – or maybe it had been a fireplace back in the day. And that’s where we had to fit the VRC. It was an interesting challenge.”

And the challenges didn’t stop with the tight space.

“It was an odd setup — the basement had a smaller footprint than the sub-basement, so the floor from the basement actually extended over into the sub-basement. It certainly called for a custom solution.”

“We had to make sure that the VRC wasn’t too big, otherwise it would fit one floor but not the other. The owner of the building even came up and said he didn’t think it was going to fit, and was concerned this may put the install behind schedule.”

Solution: Custom Sized PFlow Vertical Reciprocating Conveyor

Pushing the Right Buttons

As it turns out, that comment from the owner was exactly the motivation installation lead, Richard Fargason, needed.

“It fired him up,” says Hutchins. “and he figured out how to fit this VRC into that awkward space.”

“He’s amazing with handling installation challenges and brainstorming solutions that work in the field.”

But it took more than just careful measurements.

First the installation team had to jackhammer the floor and re-level it. Then, over the course of about a week and a half, the installation team, led by Fargason, managed to get the laundry elevator installed in a way that perfectly fit both floors.

All-Star Results

Considering the challenges involved and the tight space, it’s no surprise that the client was more than pleased with the work.

“Richard was the all-star on this project,” says Hutchins. “He measured out the project before installation and his measurements were perfect.”

“He just blew the owner’s mind with how fast they were able to do it, and they were happy with everything and singing Richard’s praises.”

But don’t take Doug’s word for it. Here’s the feedback we received from our customer:

“W.W. Cannon solved very important problems for us. And Richard was excellent with a perfect install.  I am very impressed.”

“I own hotels, and I rely on my customer’s feedback so that we can learn from our mistakes and earn our customer’s positive feedback. As your customer, my feedback is excellent.”

– Testimonial from Project Manager at Sinclair Holdings LLC –

Next Steps

Our team of specialists excel in turning space challenges into efficient results. Call us. Let’s talk through what you’re dealing with and where you’d like to see improvements.