Welcome to Industrial/Commercial Elevator’s very own blog about all things in the vertical transportation world. We will be discussing elevators and escalators, along with a variety of other equipment, safety standards, answering common questions, and possibly even adding some elevator humor.
For our first blog, let me introduce you to our company, ICE.
Founded in 1975 by Raymond “Ray” Gielarowski, Sr., ICE was originally known as Industrial Elevator Maintenance Company. Ray had been working as an elevator mechanic for many years and was known for his outgoing personality and hard work. After several years, Ray decided to take a chance and venture out on his own. With a truck, a set of tools and a very close friend as his ‘helper’, Ray went door to door looking for customers, particularly in the industrial fields—coal mines were his specialty.
Ray believed the key to success was to make sure that his customers were ALWAYS satisfied—that their needs would be met. He believed that with hard work and a special ‘gift for gab’, it was a sure bet he could build his business, and he did. To this day, we are guided by the philosophy that we are “Geared to Serve Your Needs.”
Ray headquartered his new business in Cecil, PA. With a large warehouse space and convenience to highway roads, it made for a great business location. 45 years later, ICE’s growing business continues to operate at this main location. As ICE became known for expert service and customer satisfaction, the business grew and was a top choice for coal mines, power plants and steel mills. As the business grew, Ray knew he needed help and encouraged his sons, Stephen Gielarowski, Sr. and Raymond Gielarowski, Jr. to join him in the family business.
Steve studied Engineering at West Virginia University, working his summer breaks in the coal mines, before coming home to help his father run the family business and earn a Business Management degree from Robert Morris University.
Ray Jr. (or JR as he is known) honed his skills in the elevator trade by joining the IUEC Local #6 directly out of high school, thus, giving him the valuable, hands-on experience and wealth of knowledge that makes him the elevator and escalator expert he is today.
As times changed, and some local coal mines and steel mills closed, the demand for expertise in the commercial industry increased. The company’s continued success depended on its ability to adapt to the ever-changing industry. The company expanded and began providing elevator services to commercial properties, including professional office buildings, universities and colleges, hospitals, retail shopping malls, government housing and hi-rise apartments and condominiums. Our name was changed to Industrial/Commercial Elevator Maintenance Company.
Always learning, improving and growing, it was important to do more than maintenance and service. Expanding into the competitive areas of construction and elevator modernization was yet another change for our family business. New buildings were going up everywhere and old buildings were being renovated. Installing new equipment and modernizing out-of-date equipment was the next step and we excelled. The modernization and new construction aspect of our business grew rapidly as word spread of our knowledgeable sales team and technical expertise.
Today, we are often known as ICE, short for Industrial Commercial Elevator. You can spot our white vehicles with our yellow and gold gears logo all over the city of Pittsburgh and surrounding areas as well as in West Virginia and Ohio. We’ve learned and grown over the years past 45 years, but one thing has not changed, we are still geared to serve the needs of our customers.
I hope this gives you a little insight as to who we are as a company. We’re looking forward to continuing the conversation.
For any questions or topics you might like discussed, please contact me at stephenjr@icelevator.com. We’d be happy to hear from you!
Until next time . . .
Stephen Jr.