How to Prevent Lift Breakdowns?

How to Prevent Lift Breakdowns? It can be problematic not only for the users of the lift but also for the owner of the building if there is a breakdown in the lift.

Proper maintenance of lifts is mandatory these days as they are frequently used in the complex as well as large buildings to transport goods as well as people. Lift breakdowns can stop all the operations in a building.

After the failure of lift operations in any building can considerably face disruptions whether it is a hotel, hospital, office building, shopping center, airport, or an apartment society.

Some tips are provided in this write-up to guide the owners of the buildings containing lifts to prevent breakdowns or failures of their lifts.

Strictly Implementation of Maintenance Program:

To prevent lift breakdowns the owners of the building must hire a specialist professional to check their lift regularly as per the recommendations of the manufacturers of the lift.

The regular checking of the lift by a specialist professional can ensure the fast supply of spare parts and the availability of technical know-how required for its proper working.

The maintenance program of the lift can be modified according to the flow of traffic, location, age, and condition of the lift. The practical and proper maintenance of the lift can not only improve its lifespan but also maximize its reliability, extend the time between breakdowns and reduce the risk of litigations and accidents.

Regular Legal Inspections:

The lift that is used to carry people should be inspected regularly by an experienced and knowledgeable technician at least after every six months to prevent lift breakdowns.

According to LOLER or Lifting Operations & Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998, legally a lift must be inspected after a year to ensure its proper working. These inspections should be carried out independently by a third party instead of a maintenance contractor to avoid any conflicting situation.

On-Site Functional Tests Every Day:

To prevent any kind of lift breakdowns it is necessary to carry out certain functional tests on-site every day like:

Lighting: Lighting inside the lift should be checked regularly and bulbs should be replaced promptly.
Working of the emergency communications system: It must work perfectly every time. Legally it is mandatory to have an emergency communication system in every passenger lift and it should be checked at least after every 3 days. The owner of the building must ensure to check the communication system of the lift after every 72 hours.
Tracks of the door: Dirt tracks of the door of the lift can be one of the main causes of lift breakdowns, especially when they fail to close or open. They should be cleaned and vacuumed in routine while cleaning the entire building.
Thresholds of the lift: The level of the threshold of the lift should be equal to the level of the floors at all the floors it opens at. Improper leveling can cause accidents.
Odd noises: If the lift makes strange noises while going up or down then it should be checked as soon as possible to avoid its failure.
Working of car push buttons: The working of car push and landing buttons should be checked regularly to ensure the proper working of the lift on every floor.
Safety devices of the door: These devices should be checked regularly to ensure the safety of the passengers traveling in it.

Use Lifts Correctly:

You can maintain your lift more efficiently by using it correctly which can depend on its design. If the lift is used for doing some other things than carrying goods and passengers like overloading it etc. then the chances of lift breakdowns can increase.

Educate The Users:

To ensure the proper working of a lift the owner of the building must educate its users. It will stop the users to obstruct the working of its equipment and tools as well as reduce the chances of lift breakdowns.

There can be several simple things that the users should know to allow the lift to perform effectively.

Forcing the car door to open, hitting the lift door, miss-aligning the electronic parts, or putting a hand between the closing doors of the lift are some of the common things that can be avoided by educating the users of the lift.