EOX Manufacturing Facility in Byhalia emphasizes a culture of empowering its operators to deliver on quality

Thirteen years ago, Senior Field Service Engineer, Scott Lahmers took some photos of the escalators being hoisted into the construction of the One World Trade building. Those photos quickly spread among communities following the rebuilding of the 9/11 site, highlighting the project's remarkable scale and innovation.

At the time, Lahmers told photo-sharing site Flickr, "I'm an elevator man, not a photographer."

Lahmers, who is still an engineer with TK Elevator today, maintains that is still very true. He says he just happened to be there as part of the elevator team and was fortunate enough to capture a historic moment.

Lahmers recalls that the company's foreman at the time "was a real wizard" when it came to logistics and planning for the installation of the elevators and escalators.

"He planned it weeks ahead, and the team assembled the escalators remotely before bringing them in on semis to be lifted into place by tower crane," says Lahmers.

This year, on the 25th anniversary of the tragic attacks, Lahmers reflected on the role he played in the rebuilding of One World Trade Center. "I'm thankful for the opportunity to have worked there. I made some lifelong friends," he says. "The majority of the things we had to do on the project were new, one-of-a-kind, and had never been done, at least by us."

Today, those one-of-a-kind 71 elevators and 12 escalators inside One World Trade Center help safely move more than 3 million visitors each year through this sacred space. They stand as a testament to the TK Elevator teams, past and present, who played a role in this historic project.

One World Trade Center opened to the public 12 years ago and stands as a beacon in downtown Manhattan. Looking up at the building, it is both a somber reminder of the devastation that occurred and a symbol of the resilience of a city determined to stand tall.