Turkey’s Evora Istanbul housing project has enlisted the help of 26 construction hoists produced by Swedish lifting equipment manufacturer Alimak Hek. Contractor Teknik Yapi Construction acquired the hoists from local Alimak distributor Atilla Dural Mumessillik insaat Turizm Ticaret. The devices are being used to build the low-and medium-rise structures of Evora Istanbul, which is the Turkish capital’s largest housing project. The 44-block development occupies a 300-acre plot on the Anatolia side of Istanbul. Its high-rise towers are being constructed with the help of tower cranes. The Alimak hoists are designed to lift both materials and personnel. The Alimak Scando 450 model, which accounts for the majority of the hoists being used on the project, can lift a maximum load of two tonnes up to a height of 150m. Evora Istanbul is the brainchild of renowned Turkish architect Eren Yorulmazer, and has been under construction since 2011. The development is being built on a hillside overlooking the Sea of Marmara, and will eventually become home to more than 20,000 people. Once completed, the project will feature 4,300 residential units, three shopping districts, schools, and a host of recreational facilities. Work on the large-scale Turkish housing development is scheduled to end during the first quarter of this year.

Hoists are designed to carry loads vertically and come in all sizes, depending on the workload. Often a construction hoist is made up of one or more cage or car and can be operated by a lift-wheel or drum mechanism using rope or chain. More often, today’s hoists move with a rack and pinion system to carry objects or people up and down vertically and can be powered with gas, electric, or pressurized air systems, and sometimes even manually.

General construction hoists provide lift assistance in both, mid-rise to high-rise construction job sites. Often in the form of an industrial elevator or manlift, they can carry anywhere from hundreds to thousands of pounds of both material and personnel. General is simply a term lumping most basic construction hoists, lifts, and industrial elevators together.

Just as it sounds, material hoists will carry construction site materials as needed, but not personnel. They can be used in small spaces carrying lighter weight when necessary, and larger hoists for large spaces are typically made to handle thousands of pounds. Although it can be tempting, if a hoist is made for materials only, never combine it with personnel.