Internet of elevators - Elevator maintenance analytics

I was on a discussion board on Linked In and found some information on the “internet of elevators”.  Connecting elevators to the internet and giving alerts when there are issues is nothing new and the OEM’s and some larger independents have been utilizing this for some time.  We have been hearing about analytics for a bit now with Billy Bean and the Oakland A’s, Theo Epstein when he was at the Boston Red Sox[now Chicago Cubs], Google search, etc.  Analytics helps us use data to make better decisions using nontraditional correlations to get better value from decisions.

This is the post of someone selling a product to help independent companies similar product offerings as what the OEM’s are doing.

“Extreme market competition in recent years, the rise of union wages, and cost increases in parts; have had a negative impact on how elevator service was always performed in the past. No longer can service companies provide the preventative maintenance that they once were able to. 

There is a solutions though! By connecting your elevators to the cloud, we will have control like never before. Insuring higher profits, sales, customer satisfaction, and reliability/safety. We can transition to "targeted" and "predictive" maintenance, by using predictive analytic models and smart data from our elevators. 

I think the time has come for the Internet of Elevators! “

While I agree technology can aid in giving better maintenance to buildings, I don’t know if technology would pick up the items I got a text from a mechanic on Friday. 

36" of water in the elevator pit

  Hole in the elevator cab floor

The reason decision makers prefer to work independent companies rather than a multinational firm is because we will actually show up for maintenance, respond to elevator shut downs and return phone calls in a timely manner.  While there is value in technology aiding in maintenance, what I see is companies using technology for a reason to decrease man hours to buildings because “it is being monitored 24 hours a day”.  Monitoring this elevator 24 hours a day would not have picked up on 36" of water in the pit or the hole in the elevator cab floor.

I always ask building owners “how often do you want to see your elevator person in the building.” .  Most building owners are fairly specific in their expectations[if given options], we then can tailor a maintenance agreement to their desires[assuming their desires are reasonable].  When we go to a building that has a OEM maintaining the equipment I ask “how often is your elevator person at the building”.  They may say “once a month”, I ask “do you see them once a month or do you get a bill once a month”, typically the response is “I get a bill once a month and haven’t seen anyone in a long time” or “I don’t know when they come”.   Many companies do not leave maintenance records in the elevator machine room so it is impossible for building owners to know when their elevator is being visited by their maintenance provider. 

I agree there is a tremendous value in analytics and using technology to improve our services.  But, beware when the sale of technology moves more into smoke and mirrors in order to increase profits than to provide superior service.  I believe there is a benefit to having an experience person looking over critical building components on a regular basis.  Ultimately a building owner needs to have all of the information on benefits and service offering choices in order to make and an educated decision on what is best for their building.  If you’re a building owner START ASKING QUESTIONS about your elevator maintenance.  

Chicago Elevator Association meeting – October 8, 2015 6:30pm – Presenter is GAL

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.

Elevator Life Jacket sizing & City of Chicago mandates

Over the last few months we have gotten quite a few requests for the Adams Life Jacket product.  This may be due to the mandate by the City of Chicago requiring single bottom cylinders to be replaced or a safety device installed by 1/1/13. – I.E. Adams Life Jacket.  We are in the 3^rd quarter of 2015 and there are still quite a few buildings that have not addressed their elevator single bottom cylinder.  The reason this is mandated is to prevent catastrophic failure that could cause damage to the elevator equipment and riders.  There have been catastrophic failures that have caused injuries and deaths. 

At one time I was not a believer of the catastrophic failure possibility until I witnessed a catastrophic cylinder failure in Chicago after CAT 1 testing in 2009.  The mechanic indicated he couldn’t get the car up after testing, I went to the building and found he was correct the car wouldn’t go up.  We removed the cylinder and found the cylinder no longer had a bottom to it.  If there where riders on this elevator when this occurred they would have had significant injuries.  This is another reason we complete annual CAT 1 testing on elevators, I would much rather see an elevator break during testing then when there are riders using the elevator.  Any financial component associated with installing a safety device or new elevator part is far less than injury or death claims.

Chicago Building code section 18-30-100 text :
14. 8.6.5.8 (Safety Bulkhead). This section of ASME shall not go into full force and effect until 36 months after passage (Oct 7, 2009) and publication of this Ordinance (Nov 16, 2009). Provided however, that during such 36-month period, such existing installation shall be tested, at an interval of at least once every 12 months, in accordance with the requirements set forth in 8.11.3.2 (Periodic Test Requirements: Category 1) of ASME.

ANSI 17.1 2007 text referred to above:
8.6.5.8 Hydraulic cylinders installed below ground shall conform to 3.18.3.4, or the elevator shall conform to 8.6.5.8(a) pr 8.6.5.8(b):

(a) the elevator shall be provided with car safeties conforming to 3.17.1 and guide rails, guide-rail supports, and fastenings conforming to 3.23.1; or
(b) the elevator shall be provided with a plunger gripper conforming to
3.17.3. the plunger gripper shall grip the plunger when the applicable
maximum governor tripping speed in Table 2.18.2.1 is achieved.

Summation - you can do 1 of 3 things; Install a new code compliant cylinder, install a car safety device on the elevator [governor] or install a Adams Life Jacket [plunger gripper].

We are only going to talk about the Life Jacket in this posting.

                                                  [Before Life Jacket installation]

[After Life Jacket installation]

Pros of a Life Jacket[Plunger Gripper] – Less expensive & complies with code.  The installation value[compared to cylinder replacement] for compliance of the Life Jacket goes up the higher the travel is.

Cons of a Life Jacket[Plunger Gripper] – Cannot be used on all elevators, if cylinder does ever have a leak it, cylinder needs to be replaced, the new cylinder would not require the Life Jacket to be reinstalled.  The Life Jacket can be reused but it would be a secondary safety item.

I was at three buildings on Thursday and measured the items under the elevator to see if a Life Jacket could fit.  2 did not have enough strike distance and one is on the bubble.

The most important measurement is the Strike Distance when the elevator is on the lowest landing.  You will need to have 9” to be within code.  The Life Jacket device takes 6” and you should have 3” of bottom runby.  You can get a variance to reduce the runby requirement, I would not recommend this as we have seen buildings with variances have continued issues with the car setting the Life Jacket and shutting the elevator down due to lack of bottom runby.

[Look at the silver portion of the picture, that is the piston and strike distance, there are 2", not a candidate for a Life Jacket, this was measured while the car was on the lowest landing]

[Life Jacket survey form]

Cylinder flange sizes – If your cylinder flange is over 17" you cannot install a Life Jacket

Most important take away – If you are interested in installing a Life Jacket[Plunger Gripper] make sure the elevator company completes a survey and understands if it will fit or not before signing a contract.  We have encountered some building owners getting stuck working with a company on a cylinder replacement because they committed to installing a Life Jacket that would not fit and the company required them to work with them on the cylinder installation.  Get all of the information 1st before you sign a contract!

The Life Jacket device is a great remedy for complying with the code requirement but a building owner should weigh the cost of the installation versus the installation of a new cylinder. 

If you are a building owner in Chicago and have not addressed your single bottom bulk head elevator, do it now!  You will be inspected and sent to admin hearings if you do not get moving. If you are in the Chicago area we have a great video of the installation of this device you can come to our office and watch.

Adams Elevator - More information on the Life Jacket go to  http://adamselevator.com/products_life_jacket.asp

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.

Obsolete Elevator Equipment

From time to time we get questions about obsolete elevator equipment.  Some companies use this as a reason to bill building owners or tell them to replace their equipment.  At the company I work for we do not typically use this as a reason why a building owner should replace their equipment.  But, the reality is that there are times that the equipment is “obsolete” and parts cannot be found.  So for a repair you would have to “make something work”.   These are difficult conversations to have with building owners.  I will give two examples of where a company may have been misinformed about the availability because they did not want to replace the equipment and one which is a legitimately obsolete.

Definition – Obsolete – Dictionary.com

1. no longer in general use; fallen into disuse: 

2. of a discarded or outmoded type; out of date: 

Example #1 – Motor control was causing issues on a high use elevator.  The incumbent vendor indicated that it may be the motor or the brake or something in the controller.  We had been at the building and bumped into the maintenance person from the incumbent company and they told us what the issue was.   After looking at the controller I suggested replacing the “Smooth Move” AC elevator control component.  The incumbent company wanted to install a new motor drive on the elevator because the “Smooth Move” control component was obsolete.  The only reason I remember this part so distinctly is because I had to find a replacement for a building on the north side of Chicago and any elevator part called “Smooth Move” I would not forget.  I looked up the part and it is still available in East Dundee, IL by Power Electronics.  I do not know if the incumbent was looking to maximize their benefit on this elevator or if they really didn’t know this part existed.  The take away here is that we need to exhaust our resources to find these parts. From a definition aspect, this part would be still in general use because someone is still making the part, while it may also be out of date technology. 

[What a great name - Smooth Move]

Example #2 – We are working on a controller which was damaged after some storms rolled through and now the elevator is having some intermittent issues with the PLC.  The company who made the control system is no longer in business.  The person who designed the system is still in the business but has sent out notes indicating that he will no longer support this product and all controllers should be considered for replacement.  When we as an elevator company run into this it becomes very difficult as there is no support and parts are few and far between, most of these replacement parts are used and not manufactured any longer.  This would quality as obsolete equipment as the company who manufactured the controller is out of business, there are not new parts available and there is no support available.  From a definition aspect this part is no longer in general use on elevators and it is out of date.

We as elevator contractors have a lot of equipment that is considered “obsolete” that we maintain, repair and take care of.  It is our responsibility to let building owners and managers know that the equipment should be replaced or they will incur potentially large repair charges and on the rare occasion, the elevator equipment may not be able to be repaired.  While I do not think a 30 year old elevator is old, our reality is that control component companies are not supporting their equipment after 15-20 years and calling it obsolete.

As a building owner or manager you should be reviewing your elevator equipment and talking with your vendor on what they should be planning for.  I recently saw some US Elevator Ascension 1000 controllers on a maintenance walk through and made a recommendation that they should consider replacing them.  They told me that is what their current vendor told them.  The elevators are from 1997, these are not old elevator systems.  The elevator company who installed the elevator is out of business, the company who acquired the company has fewer and fewer people that are familiar with this control equipment.  This all means that there are fewer and fewer options on repairing the elevator system if there is a significant issue.  On Friday at 4pm building owners do not want to hear “I cannot fix the elevator”, while it is only 18 years old, it should be replaced which will take weeks or months to get in process. The elevator company can typically send the solid state boards in for repair, but this does take days to do, which is a frustration for the building owner.  Talk about these situations and be proactive with the equipment replacement.  My suggestion is to get a new controller that has parts available and you can get tech support on.

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.

Planning for elevator modernization & the cost of emergency repairs

I was recently at a building this week and found some elevator equipment from late 1950’s to early 1960’s.  The elevator door operator sounds like a draw bridge is opening and closing and they have had some reliability issues.  This particular building has not saved for modernization and the equipment is reaching 60+ years old.  The building just recently started a dialog with their long time service provider about replacing their equipment. 

[I haven't seen too many of these door operators still around]

This is another reminder to buildings they should budget to have their elevator updated the same they would budget for new drive ways, roofs, boilers, windows, etc.  After elevator equipment is 20-25 years old buildings should begin talking to their elevator company about what they will need to be replacing.   This can be a longer term plan, but a plan needs to be made.

Costs of an older elevator – Elevator modernization is an expensive proposition.  But if building owners add up the repair costs of their aging elevator system, they may be well on their way to the cost of a modernized elevator.  We complete emergency repairs on older elevator systems and they always tend to occur on Friday at 4pm[or other very inconvenient times].  Elevator repairs are expensive not to mention “the over time” component.  If your modernization costs $50,000.00, $100,000.00 or $200,000.00 paying for stop gap repairs of $5,000.00, $7,500.00, $17,000.00 adds up over the years.

                                        [Emergency repairs never completely finished]

                                              [Emergency repair never completed]

Take away – If your elevator is over 20-25 years old start talking to your elevator service provider about how much you will need to invest in the elevator system so you can begin saving for it.  Long term planning does take time but it is much easier than trying to pay for a very expensive equipment replacement all at once.

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.

What happens when demo contractors try and take an elevator out

We are getting involved with larger projects that the elevator is a small portion of the overall project.  During the last 5 years we have seen time and time again that a general contractor may opt to have their demolition company remove the elevator system.  This is a dangerous spot to put the demolition contractor as well as puts the building owner in a peculiar position.  All work inside the elevator shaft should be completed by elevator contractors and trained elevator personnel.

Case 1 – There was a building that I went to where the demo team removed the elevators but they forgot to secure the hoistway so there are fall hazards in a building that did not have power.  The fall hazard was about 50'.

Case 2 – There was a building that was going to have a demo contractor remove the freight elevator.  The bi parting doors are in the open position.  

Both of these scenarios are not safe and should not be completed.  If you are a general contractor or construction manager, an elevator company may be a bit more expensive than your demo team but they will be 100% safer.

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.

Proper elevator machine room access

Safe access to elevator equipment is very important in our trade.  It is very important as inspectors, office staff and field staff to let building owners know what is acceptable and not acceptable access to machine areas, pits, control areas, etc.

[This is a kids slide to get into the machine room, to get to the roof you had to climb up a wooden ladder that wasn't structurally sound]

A few items to look for when entering machine or control spaces

1.    A permanent and unobstructed means of access shall be provided to

a.    Machine rooms and control rooms

b.    Machinery spaces and control spaces outside the hoist way

c.    Machinery spaces and control spaces inside the hoist way that do not have means of access to the space as specified in 2.7.3.1.2

2.    Clear path not less than 18” shall be provided in the direction required for maintenance access

3.    Must be fire rated

4.    Access to other locations within the building of access to equipment not related to elevators through the machine space, machine room, control space or control rooms shall not be permitted – This means that if you have to walk through the elevator room to get to the air handling unit would not cut it.

5.    A permanent, fixed, noncombustible ladder or stair shall be provided where the floor of the room or space above or below the floor or roof which the means of access leads, or where the distance between floor levels in the room or space, is more than 8”.

6.    A permanent, noncombustible stair shall be provided where the floor of the room or the space above or below the floor or roof from which the means of access leads, or where the distance between floor levels in the machine space is 35” or more.  Vertical ladders with hand grips shall be permitted to be used in lieu of stairs for access to overhead machinery spaces, except those containing controllers and motor generators.

7.    Stairs shall have a maximum angle of 60 degrees

8.    The list goes on with similar requirements

If you are in question if your building’s machine space complies talk with your elevator professional.   If the particular elevator professional does not know someone at their office will know and can get them the information to get to you.

Older buildings – We run into older buildings on a regular basis where these requirements just will not happen as an air handler has been in the way of putting a proper stairway.  In this case it is up to the inspector and the elevator professional to come up with a safe solution.

What does this all mean?  This all means that your elevator professional requires safe and reasonable access to the equipment that needs to be maintained, repaired or replaced.  If you are a building owner that has been climbing over an object and moving through a confined space to climb up a wooden ladder attached to a hoistway wall[which may have been there for 80 years] to get to the elevator equipment and you are OK with it, doesn’t necessarily mean it is safe and reasonable to expect an elevator professional to do so.

We want to maintain your elevator equipment in a safe manner, we ask for your help as building owners and managers to help us do so.

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.

Elevator preparations during harsh weather

I signed on to a news aggregation site and I got a press release from a multi-national elevator company with some good ideas for building owners.  Please note that while I agree these are good ideas they are copied from another source.  What you should take away from this is to get together with your elevator company to have a plan in place so the right people know what to do when a situation comes up.  Emergency weather situations come flying up quickly so figure it out before hand and you could save yourself money and headaches.

Initial Preparations

A diagram showing the location of your elevators, car numbers and the elevator car phone number should be in your designated security area. In addition, you should have your elevator company’s emergency phone number available along with any required numerical designations.

Before any inclement weather happens, building and facility managers can start by inspecting the elevator machine room’s ventilation openings, windows and doors for possible rain leakage. If, during the inspection, water leakage is found, prevent water from reaching electrical panels by installing metal splash guards around ventilation openings and weather stripping around any machine room doors that open to the outdoors.

Before a Storm Hits

If a storm is near, there are steps that should be taken immediately to prevent damage to elevator equipment. The first step is to close all vents and openings at the top of the hoistway to prevent water from entering the elevator shaft. Next, barricade the machine room, and be sure that no occupants are left in buildings that are reliant on elevators for egress.

If buildings have elevators that are enclosed, managers should run each car to the center of the building, or to the top floor for two-story buildings. Elevators exposed to the outdoors should always be run to the floor below the top. After cars are parked appropriately, shut the elevator down with the keyed switch and close the doors to prevent unauthorized personnel from using the equipment. In addition, place the mainline disconnect in the "off" position to completely remove power from the elevator. Elevator personnel can provide assistance if a customer is unsure of what to do.

While parking elevators and preventing unauthorized use is important, preparing for power problems is a necessity. Managers should also familiarize themselves with their equipment’s emergency systems in case there is a need to exit passengers quickly. Ensure that the elevator has a surge protection system. If there is an emergency power generation system backup or an emergency return system for hydraulic, machine room-less or traction elevators make sure it is reliable. Finally ensure that emergency lighting and elevator communications are operable.

 

Before and After the Storm

Refrain from using an elevator at all due to the water or wind-driven water that can disable elevators and lead to dangerous passenger entrapments. As soon as the skies are officially clear, check for water on the control panels or in the machine room before restoring power. If water is found, don’t resume operation until the elevator service provider provides a thorough inspection.

Because weather conditions can be unpredictable, We recommend facility and building managers take these precautions and set up a process ahead of time in order to secure safety of the equipment and its occupants. Practice sessions should be conducted during low-demand hours of the elevator system and in the presence of a supervisor within the facility, or trained elevator technician.

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.