When Is It Time To Modernize An Elevator?

 

As a building owner, condo board member or property manager, the thought of modernizing elevators, if you have not done it before, is incredibly confusing and complicated.  Even for property owners who have gone through the process, it becomes a challenging task because there are a lot of questions from shareholders[residents, unit owners, owner groups].

The intent of this quick blog is to help identify when it is time to think about modernizing your elevator equipment.

When should I think about modernizing our elevator equipment?  This is a great question and each building will have a different answer.  We have buildings that have their elevator equipment for 60 years, we have building’s that would like to replace their elevator equipment every 15-20 years.  Our biggest recommended take away from this information is to be informed.

How each elevator is different

Usage – Some buildings are sleepy, some buildings are busy.  A care facility and a 9 unit condominium have a very different traffic schedule each day.  A busy building will require more maintenance if possible [see maintainability]

Environment – Is the elevator exposed to the elements, is the machine room or hoistway right by the laundry area vent which shoots lint into the machine room, is the elevator room in the garage and cold in the winter and hot in the summer, are there residents in the building that can treat the elevator better and not punch out the buttons or hit the doors on a regular basis. 

Reliability expectations –  We have a 4 unit buildings that have no elasticity for the elevator being out of service and want their equipment brand new all the time.  We have buildings that have 60 year old equipment that are ok with regular shut downs.  How does the building feel about their equipment being in service, how reliant is the building on their elevator system.

[CJ Anderson controller from 1964 - original to building]

Replacement equipment availability – Are there parts available to replace the elevator’s equipment if it requires it?  Do you have a Dover DMC that just had their parts line retired?  Do you have a US elevator that is one power outage away from waiting 4-6 weeks for a new controller because parts are not available. 

[Dover DMC - Obsolete - Not supported by OEM]

Elevator mechanic domain knowledge – As our elevators age, so do the technicians that know how to work on the equipment. Typically the elevator mechanics who installed the equipment during construction or modernization end up becoming maintenance technicians. As elevator technicians retire, they take their knowledge and experience with them. In our area we had a lot of great technicians who were incredible with US elevators installed in the 1970’s. Well, those guys and girls who know this stuff like the back of their hand are hanging up their cleats.

[US Elevator - fewer and fewer mechanics with domain knowledge]

[Montgomery MiProm - fewer and fewer mechanics with domain knowledge]

Maintainability – Do you have a building that allows the technician to take the elevator out of service to change door rollers, bearings, chains, lubricate, etc?  We have some buildings who pay for maintenance but will not allow us to take the conveyance out of service to work on the elevator.  In this event we do what we can, we do equipment replacement when the elevator is out of service, but this situation makes it very difficult to do preventative maintenance and extend the life of the overall system.

Proprietary equipment – Does the building want to have equipment that the only elevator company that can successfully navigate repairs and get replacement parts is the company who installed it?  Many buildings are replacing newer equipment to get away from proprietary equipment.  I was at a building on Thursday who has had enough of their elevator company but didn't realize what they had and the limited choices they have.

[Otis Gen 2 elevator controller]

How popular is your controller platform in your market – You can have a newer elevator controller but it never took off in the market you are in.  If this is the case then you will not have too many technicians familiar with troubleshooting.

[US Elevator Accession 1000 - Not a many in the Chicago market ]

Equipment replacement philosophy

Proactive replacement – Our recommendation for buildings is to understand the useful life of their elevator systems and how long it will last before it becomes problematic.  We[Colley Elevator] try to get in front of buildings to let them know that your elevator has X time period before you may start experiencing problems.  These problems can be reliability issues, safety issues, or replacement part acquisition challenges.  Talk to your elevator service provider and get some timelines and dates of their recommendations and understand your equipment.  We like to see buildings put their elevator in the reserve study and schedule for replacement or at least have funding available.  If 5 years go by and the elevator is scheduled to be replaced, if there are no issues with the elevator and a façade repair comes up for replacement, maybe you can push it for a year, but at least you have the funding available and can make a good decision for the building. 

[MCE black box - OEM support/replacement may be challenging]

Reactive replacement – What we try and discourage is to run the equipment in the ground or have a potential doomsday event when your circuit board goes out and there is not a replacement available and you have to rely on a circuit board repair shop to give you a moon shot at getting your elevator back running.  You can also have an issue at the building where an elevator installed in 1967 has a leveling problem when someone trips out of their elevator and there isn’t a clear path to return the elevator back to a safe and reliable working condition and you have a difficult choice to make with the elevator contractor to repair[if possible] or replace.  If you are in the reactive category you may also need to deal with how to fund this modernization project quickly which is its own challenge. 

[ERM - Original to building - Domain knowledge almost non existent - Not supported by OEM]

Take away – Learn about your elevator equipment, ask your maintenance technician, have your elevator contractor send you information, come to a board meeting, do an equipment walk through with the key building people.  A few important things to take away; elevator modernization is expensive, elevator modernization can be confusing, and elevator modernization may require other trades to be involved. What helps is having someone from the elevator contractor to educate you and give you the tools to be successful in planning.

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.

Two Way Elevator Visual Communication ASME A17.1 2019 IBC 2018 Code Requirement - State Of Illinois

 

[New camera - text display on all A17.1 2019 code elevator car stations]

We have a newer code to benefit hearing impaired elevator riders in the State of Illinois. There are a lot of questions on how to execute on the elevator contractor, municipality’s call center & building owner side.  On the outset it appears it is a confusing and daunting addition to our work and building owner requirements. The only item we are really adding is an internet line and additional 110 vac outlet to the elevator machine room. And then we need more education for elevator personnel, emergency services, building owners, inspectors and anyone involved in this part of the elevator installation/emergency communication.

 

[This is the portal we see when we log into the Smartview link]

New municipality of call center requirements

Ability to sign on to the internet and get to the portal needed for visual/texting communication.

New building requirements

An internet line, live CAT 5/6 line using DHCP

Additional 110 vac outlet for visual equipment plug in

There is a great short video that Rath Communications developed showing the new system and how it works.

https://www.rathmicrotech.com/visual-communication.html

How it works

 A phone call is placed on the elevator emergency phone

a.    If two way communication is established – follow normal procedures(speak to person)

b.    If two way communication is not established – log onto the Smartview portal, enter the elevator specific passcode and get a visual in the elevator. You can communicate through with the texting feature.   The Rath Smartview portal has an internet link that can be signed in from anywhere

How does the elevator passenger communicate with emergency services – There is a yes and no button on the bottom of the car station that will allow the person in the elevator to communicate with the emergency services person. 

What if my municipality does not have the ability answer these visual calls? There are several call centers that can be engaged.  One of which is Kings III, click link below. 

https://www.kingsiii.com/elevator-code/

Where is my code to sign in – The code to sign in is located on the back of one of the car station devices.  This should only be retrieved by the elevator contractor and given to the appropriate emergency services parties. The elevator contractor should put the Rath # on the voice recording on the phone message when it plays back to emergency services.

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.

Elevator Picture Hall of Fame 2022 – Superbowl of Elevators

The Hall of Fame posts are typically some of the more popular blogs in the Colley blog history. Throughout the year, we get to see a lot of elevators during our initial visits for pricing or engineering for projects.  Of the hundreds of elevators and thousands of pictures we look at, these are some of the gems we've seen this past year.

 

Hi Otis – Everyone knows Otis Elevator right?  When I tell someone I work in elevators they say “Otis Elevator”, I say “yes, kinda same thing but different company”.  This was a site survey at a building who was looking for an alternative to Otis Elevator for maintenance.  It reminds me of the semi trucks that get “CLEAN ME” written on the back of the trailer when the trailer hasn’t been cleaned in some time or going through a spell of bad weather.

 

Snakes on a Plane – In 1995 I was in high school doing a record label and met a great guy named Gabe on Prodigy who was in a band called the Humble Beginnings from New Jersey.  For those who do not know what Prodigy is/was, it was an early online dialup platform with chat rooms.  We finally met in real life a few times at shows at the Underdog Loft – Chicago, IL, back yard show in Hoffman Estates, IL and at a few Warped Tours.  Gabe went on to a few bands that had success but in my opinion his coolest song was “Snakes on a Plane” while he was in a band called Cobra Starship. That song was later featured in the movie "Snakes on a Plane" that starred Samuel L. Jackson, Julianna Marguiles, and Kenan Thompson among others.  About the picture, we had 70+ years of elevator experience in a room the day the elevator mechanic sent this picture over from a new account. Seeing this snaky traveling cable was a first for all of us. Another good reference would be the 1989 WWF Survivor Series reference when Hulk Hogan, Jake the Snake and Demolition partnered up and Vince McMahon wanted all of them to carry a 250lb+ snake out to the ring during their match with Ted Dibiasi The Million Dollar Man, Zeus and Powers of Pain.  Jake said "if everyone is supposed to be afraid of my snake how does it make sense if we are all carrying it out to the ring, its kinda ruining my schtick". To make a long story short, this traveling cable needs to be replaced.

Swim Lessons – This is a very large pit, with a very large amount of water in it.  We made one of the probationary apprentices dive for an Allen set the mechanic threw to the back of the pit.  For his success, the wet probie got to buy coffee for the team the following morning.  I am 100% not serious whatsoever about making a probie get in this water.

 

Jeepers Creepers – Overall this is a creepy pit

 

R2D2 – One of the first VHS tapes I learned to use in my family’s 2 piece VCR was Star Wars.  This reminds me of R2D2 on the X Wing during the Empire Strikes Back.  Since then I have been an avid Starwars fan. Jorus C’Baoth, yes I know him! A creative way of coving a hole, not necessarily protecting the tank from contaminants.

 

No Life Guards on Duty – Fortunately, as an elevator industry we have gotten much better at this.  Make sure we mark the controller cabinet for the electricians if you are not going to be there or you will get this. 

I Don't Like You Sales/Office Guy – If you don't like your sales guy[girl]/office guy[girl] send him/her pictures like this and tell them you need a repack.

 

PVC Dump – This was a creative way to get rid of splashing in the power unit.  While there is no pressure on the dump, I’m not sure PVC and hydraulic fluid mix very well because of some additives and cleaners in hydraulic fluid. A good piece of steel pipe would be a great fit in the long run.

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.