What is an Elevator Machine Room?

What is an Elevator Machine Room? An elevator machine room is a mass of machinery that controls the lifts in a building. It is mainly found in high-rise buildings where the elevators are installed directly into the wall with only one or two cars rather than inside an open atrium. The elevator machine room can also be found in smaller, low-rise buildings that use one floor for mechanical equipment.

These rooms often require remarkable fire suppression and air conditioning systems because they produce noise from hydraulic pumps, motors, and compressed air lines. The sound can also create uncomfortable conditions for occupants.

Here are the advantages of having an elevator machine room

Cost reduction

Whereas elevator systems in the 1970s required installing elevators inside atriums, which increased costs due to more materials, labor, and plumbing specifications, constructing machine rooms was cheaper. The cost saving is made possible by reducing materials and avoiding the need to enclose the machinery inside a separate room and building (which also saves on extra architect fees). The costs of wiring, air conditioning, and sprinkler systems were also reduced.

Greater flexibility

A machine room can be changed or upgraded more often than a traditional open shaft system because it is in the same room as the original elevators. Thus, the system can be adjusted with minimum interruption to the building’s operations.

Elevators with the capacity to carry different cars independently from each other have the potential to prevent or reduce accidents, like loss of life or reduction in injury severity. This can further be reduced by adjusting car speeds, restricting access to certain areas, and preventing unauthorized use of elevators in an emergency.

Improved elevator security

The design of many machine rooms makes them inherently fire-resistant and capable of withstanding multiple types of fires and explosions, both those that occur within an elevator car and those associated with overhead sprinkler systems, electrical power, air conditioning equipment, and other building components that can cause fires during a power outage.

In addition to protecting occupants from fire, the machines are also protected from electrical fires that may occur in onboard computerized control systems.

Keeping buildings safe

Machine rooms can prevent elevator accidents from occurring. Fire alarms and sprinkler systems can be made more sensitive to detect any signs of smoke within an elevator car, allowing the system to halt operation and prevent the spread of fire. If a fire occurs in an elevator car or machine room, a building’s fire suppression system is activated.

Each elevator machine room must be ventilated so that the gas used by the fire suppression system can escape safely. Other measures are taken to ensure safety. Cable ducts are isolated with fireproof materials to prevent cables from being exposed to sparks, which could lead to fires breaking out in these areas.

Eliminating the need for maintenance in the elevator pits

While machine rooms are easier to maintain than traditional shafts, they have some maintenance requirements that must be taken care of. Elevator doors must be inspected regularly to prevent fires from spreading into a machine room and to ensure the safety of occupants and anyone entering an elevator car. Machine rooms also need to be cleaned regularly and cleared of dust and any oil or grease that may have accumulated on surfaces inside the room.

Reducing the need for heavy machinery in a building

While machine rooms require less machinery and equipment inside them than shafts and lobbies, they still require the installation of machinery that lifts cars, such as elevators, hoistways, and escalators.

The machinery will lift or lower cars into or out of a building. Machine rooms can contain up to three hoistways to allow different machines (e.g., elevators) to operate without having to stop other machines operating in an adjacent space.

Keeping computerized control systems safe

Control spaces are often separate air-conditioned rooms near the machine room. This keeps computerized control systems safe from fires and protects them from precipitation, temperature variations, and extreme humidity.

Reduced noise pollution

One of the main reasons machine rooms are installed is to reduce noise.

Traditional shafts and open lobbies allow machinery inside to be exposed to weather elements. These elements can increase wear on machinery, which causes more noise through vibration and friction. Elevator machinery produces a great deal of sound, so keeping it in a closed room with adequate barriers helps contain this noise pollution in a controlled environment.

Machine rooms eliminate the need to keep doors open, eliminating the noise and vibrations from the wind blowing into a building. This can be especially important in highly populated areas with upscale residential buildings or office complexes.

Decreased foot traffic

Elevators are often in areas where many people walk or pass through daily, so keeping them from entering can prevent foot traffic from disturbing machinery.

Elevator doors are also equipped with safety equipment that shuts the doors if someone gets onto an elevator car designed for carrying more than one person, preventing the doors from accidentally opening when someone trips onto the treads of an elevator. Suppose a machine room is not used for any purpose other than housing elevators.

In that case, it will contain only hoistways and escalators, which do not have to have doors that can open accidentally.

What is an Elevator Machine Room? – Conclusion

In conclusion, machine rooms are safer, easier to maintain, and more sanitary than traditional elevator shafts. Machine rooms do have some maintenance requirements that must be taken care of. Elevator doors must be inspected regularly to prevent fires from spreading into a machine room and ensure the safety of occupants and anyone entering an elevator car.

Machine rooms also need to be cleaned regularly and cleared of dust and any oil or grease that may have accumulated on surfaces inside the room. Elevator machinery produces a great deal of sound, so keeping it in a closed room with adequate barriers helps contain this noise pollution in a controlled environment.