Trump

Trump International Hotel Elevator Modernization

Quality Elevator Company, Inc. 4808 Upshur Street Bladensburg, Maryland 20710 Phone: 301.779.9116 Fax: 301.779.4716

Project Description

Located at 1100 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC, the architecturally pleasing historic

landmark building identified as the “United States Post Office” is located within walking

distance from the White House, National Archives, and The Smithsonian. The Trump

Organization leased the building in 2013 from the General Service Administration (GSA) and

has transformed the site into a luxury hotel in record time. Quality Elevator Company was

awarded this prestigious contract to complete the Elevator Modernization portion of this

massive, historic Renovation. This project encompassed a Custom Design to modernize eleven

existing elevators, install two new dumbwaiters, three new handicap lifts, along with Design and

engineered drawings for an eleven-stop new construction Freight Elevator designed to service all

floors within the hotel. This is all inside an existing building whose historic structure was not

designed to carry such loads. Complications were such that the foundation for the building was

located on massive wooden piles driven down into the ground to carry the building loads. The

wooden pile foundation points could not be disturbed as part of this project. This project has

recently been completed, and was turned over ahead of schedule under budget.

Quality Elevator Company has been awarded several contracts for Elevator Maintenance and

Repairs at the Old Post Office since 2007. Over these past 10 years, Quality Elevator Company

has successfully performed several repairs and upgrades. The Trump International Hotel

Elevator Modernization Project consisted of upgrading the cab shells and cab interiors. Quality

Elevator Company also upgraded four hydraulic controllers and two traction controllers to MCE

Microprocessor Controllers. The Door Operator Systems on these elevators were replaced. Two

Hollister Whitney Machines were refurbished, and retrofitted rope grippers were installed.

Quality Elevator Company proposed the use MCE’s Freedom Machineroomless MP Series

Elevator for the new freight elevator installation portion of this project. The Freedom MRL-MP

product is structurally guiderail bearing, eliminating the need for building overhead structural

loading. This was a major design factor on this project due to the undocumented building

structure and the potential for damaging the historical masonry façade.

Background of the Project

The Old Post Office Pavilion, historically known as the Old Post Office and Clock Tower, was

completed in 1899. The building is an example of Richardsonian Romanesque, part of

the Romanesque Revival architecture of the nineteenth century United States. It was used as the

city's main post office until 1914. It functioned primarily as an office building afterward, and

was nearly torn down during the construction of the Federal Triangle complex in the 1920s. In

the 1970s, the site was nearly demolished again to make way for expansion of the Federal

Triangle. Major renovations occurred in 1976 and 1983. The 1983 renovation added a food

court and retail space, and the building was renamed the “Old Post Office Pavilion”. Part of this

renovation included the Annex, which was a large addition to the site to operate a shopping mall.

A water event flooded the area known as the Annex, and the Annex was vacated and never used

again as occupied space until the Trump Organization envisioned transforming this space into

Luxurious Ballrooms and High-Profile Meeting Rooms. In 2013, the U.S. General Services

Administration leased the property for 60 years to an association headed by DJT Holdings, LLC,

a holding company owned by Donald Trump through a revocable trust.

The Old Post Office Pavilion is the third-tallest building in Washington, D.C. Its 270-foot-high

open air observation deck in the building's 315-foot high Clock Tower offers distant panoramic

views of the city, with site lines all the way to the United States Capital Building. In some

opinions, these 360-degree open air site lines surpass the views from the Washington Monument.

Prior to the 2014 renovation, National Park Service provided tours of the Observation Deck and

Clock Tower. After stopping for three years during the tower's renovation, the Trump

Organization has returned the Clock Tower to the National Park Service for tours to resume in

February 2017.

The Trump Organization hired the interior design firm of Hirsch Bedner Associates to work on

the interior of the Old Post Office Building. The $200 million renovation began on May 1, 2014,

with the closure of the Clock Tower. This renovation held many complications that would not

be discovered until the renovation was initiated. From retaining and revitalizing the historic

aspects of the site, the poor condition of the building, to include the added infrastructure required

to provide plumbing and mechanical to each suite, Fire Safety, and Structural Support to add a

Freight Elevator necessary to service the guests of the Hotel. The contract agreements written to

the contractors placed heavy emphasis and serious fines if any part of the Historical aspect of the

site were damaged. Restrictions were placed on Historical Items such as the exterior appearance,

windows, and fixtures, including wood trim throughout the site. These items would be logged

into a registry and could only be cleaned and restored, and would be placed back in their original

position. Trump developed the property into a luxury hotel, Trump International Hotel

Washington, D.C., which opened in September 2016, featuring 263 luxurious guest rooms and

suites, BLT Prime by David Burke, Benjamin Bar & Lounge, and The Spa by Ivanka Trump.

Donald Trump’s daughter, Ivanka Trump, was directly involved in the contract reviews,

contractor selections, and product selections. Mr. Trump was directly involved in the decision to

contract Quality Elevator Company to perform the Elevator Modernization portion of this

renovation due to Quality’s expertise of the equipment, and their knowledge of this unique

historic site. Quality Elevator Company completed this project on time and with no change

orders. The craftsmanship and engineering is second to none.

Scenic Elevator in Atrium – Tourists ride this elevator to access the Clock Tower

BEFORE

AFTER

Clock Tower from Atrium

Open Hoistway of the Scenic Elevator

Elevator Lobby Door Renovation

Newly Installed MRL Machine Structure

Fabricated Hoist Way for the New MRL

Elevator Cab Interior

BEFORE

AFTER