Edmolift, based in Steeple Bumpstead, near Haverhill, wins Elevator World ‘Ellie’ for Project of the Year
A company has rubbed shoulders with the world’s best after winning an award dubbed the ‘Oscars of the lift industry’.
Edmolift, which is based in Steeple Bumpstead, took home the Platform Lift and Stairway Chairlift ‘Ellie’ for its Paris Olympics Dive Platform Lift.
The awards are presented by Elevator World magazine, which is read in more than 80 countries around the world.
The lift was installed at the Dive Gym, which was next to the competition pool for Paris 2024. It allowed divers across different disciplines to practice at different heights all in the same space while also reducing the floor area needs for the practice zone by two thirds.
Darren Papani, who has been managing director of Edmolift since 2008 and in the industry for 34 years, said the project was an incredible team effort.
“I must thank everyone at Edmolift, they have been truly magnificent in bringing this award back to Suffolk.
“This was a two year project, 18 months in the design and development stage and six months to build, test, install and commission.
“To have our products installed for the Summer Olympics was incredible but to then be awarded the biggest prize in the worldwide lift industry has been absolutely amazing. A fantastic way to end 2024, I couldn’t be more proud of our brilliant team.”
Other winners in the awards were installed across the world, including in Dubai, Boston, Chongqing and Doha. The team at Edmolift with be featured in the January edition of Elevator World alongside the other champions to highlight their achievements.
Two Haverhill residents, James and Marcus, installed the lift in Paris alongside Faye, who lives in Great Yeldham. In total, 15 Edmolift team members worked on the project, all of whom live in or around the town.
The lift was used by athletes to assist with muscle memory when entering the pool. The company met with the Olympics contracted design team two years before the games to begin the process of producing the essential infrastructure, while the design stage took around a year.
In the practice area, Olympians would dive into a foam pit. It was shipped to Paris eight weeks before the opening ceremony in parts, and was then reassembled and installed over the course of a week.
Edmolift was established in 1991 and has a sister company, Lyfthaus Limited, which supplies around 400 lifts every year. Alongside its Steeple Bumpstead site, it has a larger factory in Sweden which builds the bulk of its core scissor lift platforms.
