Elevator Maintenance is Crucial in Order to Provide Uninterrupted Service

With more than 900,000 elevators in the United States making an average of 18 billion trips per year, elevators require continuing elevator maintenance in order to function properly. To ensure their elevators operate properly it is imperative that building owners, property managers, and facility managers alike, are able to properly assess their elevator maintenance programs.

Getting Started with an Elevator Maintenance Program

We at Kencor recommend that any elevator maintenance program start with the elevator code that is in place in your area. Most recent additions of the ASME A17.1 Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators require a written maintenance control program be in place that includes examinations, maintenance, and tests of equipment at scheduled intervals. It is our opinion that the building owner is the owner of these documents and as such should have readily available access to them at their facility. This is not the practice of all elevator companies so as building owners, property managers, and facility mangers it is important you are educated in order to ensure you are in compliance.

Importance of Regularly Scheduled Service

It is imperative that routine and systematic maintenance be performed at various intervals depending on various site conditions such as equipment age, inherent condition, usage, and maintenance history. Consistent maintenance not only contributes to providing uninterrupted service, but it also adds to the lifespan of the equipment. The maintenance frequency should be specifically written into the maintenance control plan and maintenance agreement along with specifically documenting what it does and does not cover.

Obviously, uninterrupted service and lifespan are a critical component of any maintenance program, but elevator safety is paramount in any elevator maintenance program. Elevator incident rates are extremely low, approximately 0.00000015% per trip according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, but unsatisfactory elevator maintenance programs can lead to trip and fall events and persons being struck by malfunctioning doors among others.

If you should have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office:

Kencor, Inc. Elevator Systems
1-800-220-4046
www.kencorelevator.com
P.O. Box 1659
West Chester, PA 19380