Elevator IoT Correlation – Tracker & Cylinder Gland Packing - Labor Day

 

This week we had an emergency packing replacement on an elevator.  Bad timing since there was a component failure with a building full of people who needed to use the elevator. 

After we arrived at the building with parts, we looked at the OEM packing and wondered if it was a space age material or just made with being economically conscience in mind.  I saw the old packing and it was falling apart; the new one will eventually too.  This is a pretty run of the mill elevator with no concerning environmental issues and is low to mid usage.  The elevator was installed less than 5 years ago and had a CAT 1 test completed recently.  The CAT 1 test most likely damaged the packing.

[Damaged cylinder gland packing]

After commenting on the packing not lasting 5 years, and the unique properties of the packing material, I did notice a tracking device that picks up data and helps with predictive modeling of elevator shut downs.  It is an interesting concept, predictive modeling and elevator reliability, sounds pretty good!  Right? 

[This is the antenna that communicates elevator information]

[This is the device that replaces labor hours and visits to your building]

There is a correlation between the packing and the tracker.  Our general focus as an elevator industry has been shifting away from being the premiere service provider in the trades.  The elevator industry was the first group to offer mechanical insurance, with a full maintenance agreement, on equipment.  We have shifted away from providing a great service to providing a product that is getting thinner and thinner with less and less people to provide great service.  Our products are going from the elevator being a building item that lasts many many years to one that has parts failing quickly or going obsolete.  We are removing labor hours away from elevator maintenance and replacing it with an antenna that will tell you when your elevator will fail.  

In most cases the building will call the service provider before the antenna works.  The antenna only works if there is enough elevator personnel to get to the buildings to address the issues before they cause shut downs.  Instead of the building manager calling XYZ multinational company to say my elevator is broken at 10am and hearing “this will be an overtime call”, will the antenna have XYZ multinational company call the customer and say “It is 9am and your elevator will be breaking down shortly, would you like to schedule overtime service as we do not have enough people to make it to your building during normal working hours”?  

This repair was completed the same day as the failure by an independent elevator company.  Something to think about when an intergalactic multinational OEM sales person discusses the internet of things and predictive modeling for equipment maintenance or replacement.

Join the revolution!  Go independent!  Make elevator maintenance & repair great again!

If you have any questions or would like additional information feel free to contact me at CraigZ@colleyelevator.com or 630-766-7230 ext. 107.