Inspection and maintenance of elevators

January 10, 2023
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Unkategorisiert

Why does an elevator need to be inspected and maintained?

There are over 100,000 elevators in operation in Austria and they complete over 6.5 billion journeys every year! In view of these figures, relatively few faults occur and elevators get stuck even less frequently.
One reason for this high level of reliability is, on the one hand, the solid and reliable construction of the systems by the manufacturers and, on the other, the qualified and regular maintenance and inspection of the systems by well-qualified personnel.
This ensures a safe journey for the passenger and a high level of legal certainty and cost-effectiveness for the operator/owner. This is because defects detected in good time can usually prevent personal injury, property damage or environmental damage and keep usage costs low.

Practical tips
To detect faults and damage to elevators in good time, they should be inspected regularly – paying particular attention to the following points

Damage to the doors
Cleanliness of the floor guide rails
Level differences on the floor
Failure of interior lighting lamps
Do not overload
Unusual noises when closing the door or when driving
With hydraulic drive: Leaks in the engine compartment

How are elevators driven?
The two most common drives are electric (especially in residential buildings) using a cable (even without a machine room) or electro-hydraulic (directly or indirectly via cables). Hydraulic elevators are mostly used for freight elevators.

What is part of the system?
The main components are

The access doors
The elevator shaft
The elevator cage
The engine room
Rope or hydraulic cylinder

Which parts are checked and maintained?

Door contacts and operator
Safety equipment (e.g. safety gear, speed limiter, remote emergency call system)
Mechanics/guides
Electrics/controls/drives
Elevator shaft (e.g. hydraulic cylinders, ropes, cleanliness, corrosion, water ingress)
Engine compartment (e.g. engine, traction sheaves, hydraulic lines, valve unit)
Accessibility (e.g. level differences on the floor)

How is maintenance carried out and how often is it necessary?
Lifts do not have to be maintained by law. However, from a liability and business point of view, it usually makes sense to carry out maintenance, as this has a major impact on reliability and longevity.

Who may carry out maintenance?
Maintenance should be carried out by a specialist company (usually by the manufacturer) and is separate from the inspection.

How often is maintenance required?
The frequency depends largely on the number of journeys and the load. The interval ranges from 2 months (with many journeys and/or high loads) to 6 months (with few journeys and/or low loads).

What types of maintenance contracts are there?
Customers can choose between 3 types of contract:

Basic maintenance – cleaning, lubrication, inspection, adjustment work – defects are pointed out and must be ordered and paid for separately
Partial maintenance – here the basic maintenance is extended to include troubleshooting (travel, labor, spare parts up to a certain value limit)
Full maintenance – this variant provides all the services required for trouble-free operation of the system and usually runs for at least 5 – 10 years

The costs are therefore largely dependent on the type of contract, the interval and the size of the elevator system.

What are the statutory inspection obligations?
In Austria, the Lift Safety Ordinance (ASV) and the Lift System Operating Ordinance (HBV) apply nationwide, as well as various supplementary regulations (see legal provisions below) for each federal state regarding the inspection of elevators.

When must an elevator be inspected?
Elevators must

before initial commissioning (by notified body)
after significant changes
regularly recurring

be checked.

The recurring tests are

Requiredonce a year by an independent inspection body/lift inspector
In addition, an interim inspection by the elevator attendant is required every 3 months
A weekly check must be carried out by the elevator attendant every 1-4 weeks (depending on the federal state)

How is the test carried out?
The audit is carried out by

Inspection – visual inspection for damage, marking, labeling, accessibility, documentation
Testing – function of the protective and monitoring device, function of the safety devices
Measurement – analysis of the system status and parameters by reading data from the control unit, fault messages

Who can carry out the test?
Elevator inspections may only be carried out by officially appointed inspection bodies for lifting systems and elevator inspectors in accordance with HBV. HBV.

How should the inspection and maintenance be documented?
Today, most service providers document maintenance work digitally and send it to the customer.
Elevator inspections are still often documented in inspection logbooks on site. With digital inspection and system documentation, the inspection logbook entry can be photographed and stored.

To avoid missing any more appointments in the future, download the MyBuilding24 app, where you can record all your devices requiring maintenance and manage the associated appointments, ensuring you are always on the safe side with a complete list of maintenance work available at all times.