Elevator door restrictors can prevent accidents

I just read an article about someone in New York trying to escape from a stuck elevator and falling down the elevator shaft.  From the look of the building it looks like a pretty old building with a collapsible gate and a swing door.  This is a reminder to everyone the safest place to be when an elevator is stuck is INSIDE THE ELEVATOR.  Stay and wait for help to come. 

Credit - http://ditmasparkcorner.com/blog/crime/man-falls-down-elevator-shaft-in-building-managed-by-shamco/

That brings me to the point of having door restrictors installed on all elevators.  I’m not sure if in New York has a requirement that all elevators shall have door restrictors.  Every elevator in the State of Illinois should have them by now as it was a requirement in the City in the 1990’s and in the rest of the State it should have been completed by 1/1/14.

There have been occasions where an elevator gets stuck between floors and passengers try to get out of the elevator by either opening the door from the inside or outside and the passenger tries to jump and out falls underneath the car down the elevator shaft.

This is where the door restrictor comes in; the door restrictor restricts access to the elevator when it is out of the door zone range. This eliminates the possibility for injuries or fatalities. The main point of the door restrictor is to restrict access to the elevator cab when it is outside the door zone to prevent injuries or fatalities. When the elevator is not in the door zone, it is very important to have trained personal on site to assist in the rescue.

There are quite a few different door restrictor options on the market now. A few door restrictor options are listed below.

Electromechanical door restrictor – An electromechanical door restrictor can be used on most elevators, however, the negative of this is that there are batteries and a lot of parts that can malfunction.

[Adams Hatch Latch door restrictor]

Mechanical door restrictors – The mechanical door restrictor is the most reliable door restrictor.  You can have this installed on the elevator’s door clutch or you can put one on the back of an elevator car door and install flags on the hoist way.  Not all elevators will have enough room to install mechanical door restrictors.

[GAL door restrictor on the clutch]

There is a negative to the elevator door restrictor, it does cause entrapments if it is not working properly.  Which is a reason we find that many of the door restrictors are disabled.  For elevator industry people, lets make sure our door restrictors work, if the electro mechanical restrictors aren't working have the office sell them a mechanical restrictor to the building owner.  The cost of a door restrictor is much less expensive then someone falling down the hoistway.

Credits 
Elevator Radio Show – www.elevatorradioshow.com
GAL –www.Gal.com

Adams Elevator - www.Adamselevator.com

If you have any questions or would like information from Colley Elevator you can go to www.colleyelevator.com, email Craigz@colleyelevator.com or call 630-766-7230.