By Matteo Volpe

Articolo apparso sul numero 1/2022 di Elevatori Magazine 

2022 is a special year for Elevatori Magazine as we celebrate our first 50 years. On this happy occasion, in the Voices from the World column, we will host the experts who have contributed to the success of our magazine over the years. We open this series of articles with a contribution by Dr Eur. Gina Barney (one of the greatest experts in vertical transport at international level, pictured below), who has actively contributed to the bilingual turnaround of Elevatori and who, still today, is our English Honorary Editor.

How did your collaboration with our magazine start?

I read Elevatori for the first time in 1988, when the magazine was still in its Italian version. I took part, with Carlo Distaso, in the development of the project that allowed Elevatori to become bilingual and be read by an international audience. I was English editor until issue No. 1/2018, a role I especially enjoyed.

What do you think are the most interesting topics for lift operators in this period of change in various countries around the world?

From my point of view, Brexit and all the topics about this issue are very important for internationally active lift operators. This is why, last year, I wrote for Elevatori Magazine the article ‘Pro Brexit’, in which I addressed the issue of the UKCA marking.

Dr Eur. Ing. Gina Barney

Which topics do you prefer among those covered in Elevatori Magazine?

I find that regulatory issues are always extremely important for our industry. That’s why my favourite column is ‘Standards, laws and regulations’. More generally, however, I believe that technical information, as a whole, is vital to our sector.

What about the next 50 years of Elevatori Magazine?

It could continue to spread knowledge to different countries around the world. That’s why I’d like it to become at least trilingual, adding German, or even quadrilingual, supplementing the offer with a French version.

Final comment

I have been in lifts since 1968, i.e. 54 years and it has moved from Ward-Leonard to permanent magnet drives and superb electronics. It still has Call Allocation to add to the list.