More or fewer people claim that elevators originated from unpretentious rope or chain cranes. An elevator is basically a platform that, in addition, can be pulled or pushed up by motorized means. Modern elevators consist of a cab or car straddling a platform, which is located in an enclosed space, the so-called shaft or sometimes "lift way". In the past, the active mechanism of elevators was driven by steam and liquid hydraulic pistons or manually. In a "traction" or belt-driven elevator, the car is pulled by wire ropes that advance on a sharply grooved sheave, commonly referred to in the manufacturing industry as a pulley.

    Hydraulic lifts use hydraulic codes to pressurize overhead or underground pistons to advance and lower the carriage. Roped hydraulics use a combination of rope and hydraulic commands to lift and slave carriages. Recent inventions include permanent magnet motors, gearless mechanisms with the machine room-less rail connections, and central processor control.

    The machinery used in innovative installations depends on a number of factors. Hydraulic lifts are cheap, but installing cylinders larger than a certain length is unreasonable for very tall lifts. For houses with more than seven floors, traction elevators must be used. Hydraulic elevators are generally slower than traction elevators.

    Elevators are candidates for image customization. The mass production of mechanical installations needs to be ready economically, but each building has its own special requirements, such as a different number of floors, size of wells, and use of decorations.

    Suzhou Zhongling Tongda Elevator Co., Ltd. is an elevator manufacturer and supplier from China. The company has long provided escalator lifts and sightseeing elevators and other elevator equipment.