The DTS Project House has chosen Elevator Boutique of Australia with a United States showroom in West Hollywood, California, to supply and install the DTS Project House’s five story glass and stainless steel elevator.
A central elevator connecting the multiple floors of the hillside property was an integral design element from the first schematic design. The elevator needed to be much more than a utilitarian way to get up and down, something different than the typical residential wood box with a swing door and accordion gate. The elevator was always envisioned as a design element accentuating the spatial dynamics of moving up and down the site, so a glass cab and shaft providing both views from the cab and into the cab was an early design decision.
The attributes of the desired design called for an elevator that was more public and commercial than private and residential. Thus, mills studio visited numerous glass elevator installations in public buildings documenting approaches to cab and shaft design and looking at how elevators have been integrated into art pieces or are used an integral element of aesthetic experiences. Particular attention was paid to differing approaches toward exposing the elevator infrastructure since the glass enclosure will allow views into the shaft and views of any exposed infrastructure that makes the elevator function.
Unfortunately, the City of Los Angeles Elevator Code is very restrictive on the design parameters of residential elevators, such as the allowable cab size and glass sliding doors. mills studio investigated the potential installation of a commercial elevator with less restrictions, but the commercial option was found to be prohibitively expensive and require specific pit and headroom dimensions that could not be met due to zoning height restrictions. A residential elevator was the only viable option, but it would be necessary to push the limits of the typical residential elevator design. mills studio and the Owners did their due diligence investigating and evaluating the products of both local, national, and international manufacturers.
Elevator Boutique’s combination of Italian Design and state of the art technology made Elevator Boutique the clear choice to supply and install the DTS Project House elevator. In contrast to other manufacturers that might provide some glass in a customizable cab, Elevator Boutique provides glass cabs and shafts as their “standard”. Customizing an Elevator Boutique glass and stainless elevator is about the refinement of details and finishes instead of introducing glass and steel. Although Elevator Boutique offers an elegant version of the swing door with a motorized accordion gate, Elevator Boutique offers the more commercial like sliding cab and shaft doors that provide for a more public like elevator experience. Elevator Boutique offers both solid and glass sliding doors. mills studio was able to look at all possible door locations on each floor level since Elevator Boutique offers almost any configuration of multiple door locations on different levels.
Elevator Boutique offers multiple finishes for the stainless steel portions of the cab and shaft and different materials of varying levels of reflectivity for finishing the cab. There are also options for design and finishing of the operational panels and buttons, including an integrated phone. The Elevator Boutique products require minimal pit and headroom dimensions and are able to provide the tall travel distance with five stops that the DTS Project House requires. Elevator Boutique products are also able to lift the glass and steel cab with Phase 1 power which eliminated the need for a cumbersome phase converter.
The Elevator Boutique showroom in the Pacific Design Center provides the invaluable opportunity to see actual multiple installations showing the various options from sizing to finishes to operation buttons to door operation types. The ability to ride in multiple alternatives is the best way to approximate the actual experience of riding in the elevator when installed in the DTS Project House.
Elevator Boutique elevators combine art and technology in the same way the DTS Project House attempts to integrate design and technology.