Residential and commercial lift installation: a guide for architects

In the home, a lift can be a luxurious and convenient addition that enhances the quality of living and adds resale value. They also provide accessibility for all, allowing the homeowner to continue living in their home for many years to come. 

"At Savaria, we have the saying, 'stay at home'. It's about being able to make modifications to people's homes so they don't have to leave – they can stay at home," says Bernard Edwards, national sales and marketing manager at Savaria. 

In commercial settings, improving accessibility is also Savaria's goal. Globally, the company invests heavily in research and development to break down barriers, and works with architects, builders, contractors, designers, property managers and other industry professionals to create barrier-free spaces. 

"Overall, the focus is providing ease of access – whether it be in a private situation or commercial situation," says Edwards.  

"When we get a request for a quote on a project, we're always asking for building plans – we're clarifying if it's a residential or commercial property. If it's a commercial property, we clarify that it's a lift that we can provide, as any lifts we offer for commercial projects are purely for wheelchair access and accessibility.

"In either scenario, we work through any size restraints and any issues such as access to the property and where services need to be located."

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By providing free consultations for building and construction professionals, along with a range of documentation and illustrations, Savaria makes it a stress-free process when specifying residential and commercial lift solutions. 

A planning guide is available for each product, detailing information including decibel ratings and everything the lift is capable of. "These guides are a handy reference tool, alongside documents for finish options and a general brochure – all downloadable for people to be able to use, free of charge," says Edwards.

BIM objects are available for the lifts, as well as Savaria's configurator that allows the end user to choose their finishes and create a render of what the lift will look like – various on-trend colour options are available to choose from, and custom colours and other finishing options are available on request.

"From the outset, even for those simply wanting a quote on a project, we're also able to generate drawings in both PDF and CAD versions to allow architects to slot the drawing into their software program at the design stage of a project."

Explore architectural drawings available for Savaria’s home lifts, wheelchair lifts, commercial lifts and stairlifts.

As part of Savaria's goal to help create more accessible public spaces and allow people to continue living in their homes, educational showcases are hosted in the company's Brisbane and Melbourne showrooms.

"Sometimes a customer may be in hospital, and they can't come home until a lift is put in place, or they may have an illness that is progressing and at some point in the future, they're going to need something for accessibility," says Edwards.

As a result, Savaria works with many occupational therapists and can offer in-person demonstrations of the products available, as well as via video conferencing. 

"We can showcase our products, educate on what we have available, what each product can do and any limitations – we're trying to help the occupational therapists become aware of what options are out there for their clients."

Savaria is also working towards providing certified courses for professional development. 

"At the end of the day, any professional dealing with any supplier wants the confidence that whoever they're recommending will be there to support them if anything goes wrong.

"At Savaria, there's no dealing with the middleman – we are our own manufacturer and part of a publicly listed global company. We're a strong company to deal with and can offer a lot of confidence in the product we provide."

If you're a design professional looking to learn more about Savaria's range of lifts, get in touch to learn more.