Abstract. We consider elementary operators x → n j=1 a j xb j , acting on a unital Banach algebra, where a j and b j are separately commuting families of generalized scalar elements. We give an ascent estimate and a lower bound estimate for such an operator. Additionally, we give a weak variant of the Fuglede-Putnam theorem for an elementary operator with strongly commuting families {a j } and {b j }, i.e. a j = awhere all a 0. Introduction. The theory of generalized scalar operators on a Banach space was developed in [6]. Briefly, a ∈ A is a generalized scalar element of a unital Banach algebra A if it has real spectrum, and if for all real t, e ita ≤ C(1 + |t| s ), for some constant C depending only on a. Also, it is known that these two conditions are equivalent to the existence of a functional calculus for a, based on R. If s = 0, we say that such an element is pre-hermitian. In that case the condition of having real spectrum is not necessary. Also we can define pre-normal elements as elements of the form h+ik with h, k pre-hermitian. Many properties of pre-hermitian, pre-normal, and generalized scalar elements can be found in [6] and [5]. In Section 1 we review results concerning such elements, necessary for reading this note. In [13], a functional calculus for several commuting operators on a Banach space, using Fourier transform, was developed. In Section 2, we prove two results about L 1 behaviour of the Fourier transforms of a family of C ∞ cpt functions. These results have a central role in further applications to the theory of elementary operators on a unital Banach algebra.Section 3 contains applications of the results from Section 2 to elementary operators on a unital Banach algebra A, i.e. to mappings Λ : A → A of the form 2000 Mathematics Subject Classification: 47B48, 47B47, 42B10.