Commercial Inclined Elevator Lifts & Trams

Our systems are built with high-end, outdoor-rated components allowing them to withstand all sorts of conditions and environmental hazards such as rain, snow, ice, heat, cold, salt water and harmful UV rays. From tundra to tropical, and everything in between, we have you covered. Check out our project locations map to see what climates we’ve worked in.
– All electronic enclosures and components are rated NEMA 4X or better for superior weather resistance and extreme environments.
– Our motors and gearboxes are industrial strength designed for constant and heavy use.
– All metal components are either hot dip galvanized steel, outdoor-rated powder-coat painted steel or high-grade stainless steel to resist corrosion and provide superior strength over aluminum and other materials.

Whether your conditions involve steep cliffs, mountains, sand dunes, rock fields, seismic zones, jungle slopes or river banks, our team can produce a product tailor-made to each site’s unique challenges.
Hill Hiker, Inc. is one of the only companies to offer a full range of foundation compatibility options to best meet the challenges of any hillside. To see how we’ve risen to the occasion in the past, check out our portfolio featuring many unique projects.

Hill Hiker®’s portion of the install takes about 1-2 week for most projects.
Project Phases:
– Pre-construction: design, engineering, permitting, planning
– Manufacturing: ordering, fabrication, material finish, assembly, QC, shipping
– Installation: clearing, foundation, system install, landings, inspection, close out
The entire project duration from start (down payment) to finish (inspection) can vary greatly and depends on many factors such as the complexity of the system, material ordering lead times, the level of engineering, permitting and inspection needed, the foundation and landings type, shipping, etc. Because many of these tasks are out of Hill Hiker®’s control, it can be very hard to give accurate and complete timelines. If you want to learn more about the project process, check out our Manufacturing and Installation Process page or contact us.

In the extremely rare case that a cable were to break our mechanical slack cable brakes located on the chassis would immediately engage the rails and bring the car to an instantaneous stop.
For reference, Hill Hiker, Inc. uses a minimum of 3/8th in. dia. galvanized aircraft cable on our standard systems which is rated to 14,400 lbs of breaking strength. This is thicker and stronger than what most of our competitors use.

Very safe. From the very start of our company, we’ve designed our systems with safety as the most important priority. With more than 25 standard safety features and over 10 optional safety features, and years of R&D and improvements, we are proud of our safety record with hundreds of systems installed.

Inclined elevators are a heavily regulated industry with strict safety standards and codes but that doesn’t mean all systems are created equal. Many competitors and one-off installers bootleg their products in without ever having licenses, insurance or even looking at the code or pulling permits.

You can rest easy knowing Hill Hiker® builds each of our systems to meet or exceed the highest national elevator safety standards as outlined in ASME A17.1 5.1 for commercial systems and 5.4 for residential systems. We will pull the necessary permits and pass the necessary inspections. Many times this includes performing full load break-away testing among other tests to pass rigorous state inspections.

Hill Hiker, Inc. as a company, our lead factory technicians and/or our local partners hold their elevator contractor and master elevator mechanic licenses wherever required. Check out our 50-state permitting and licensing guide to see exactly who pulls the permits, holds the licenses and handles the installation in your state. Hill Hiker, Inc. also has full product liability insurance and a 29+ years of experience to backup all our systems.

NOTE – Like with any heavy piece of machinery (for example: an automobile) regular maintenance and inspection is critical to ensure safety. Our systems are outdoors in the elements 24/7 – 365. Over time this exposure will cause normal wear and tear and the only way to ensure safety is to have routine maintenance and safety inspections by authorized and trained individuals. We recommend all systems have at least one maintenance / safety inception a year. For more information please see your owners manual or contact our service department.

It can be. Our team is well-versed with ADA standards, and we’ve built many ADA approved and non-ADA approved handicap accessible lifts in the past. With handicap accessible lifts, it’s extra important to have well-designed landing platforms and ramping, if needed, in addition to the design and function of the elevator car itself.
Two great car options:
– Our XL car has a 4 ft by 5 ft interior floor space and comes with a 36 in wide door which works well for most wheelchairs.
– Our XXL/ADA car has a 5 ft by 5 ft interior floor space and 36 in wide door that meets the technical square footage requirements of ADA.

Hill Hiker® commercial and industrial systems are engineered, manufactured, and installed to meet or exceed the strictest structural building codes and elevator safety standards in North America. Specifically, we comply with the ASME A17.1 (Section 5.1) / CSA B44 National Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators, which governs inclined elevators.

We also offer fully ADA-compliant and handicap-accessible options to meet local commercial building requirements.

Getting a custom quote is easy! Give us a call at 952-476-2422 or fill out our online contact form. Our team will reach out to discuss your specific property, answer your questions, and provide a free initial estimate.