How long should my Elevator Maintenance Mechanic be here?

Is maintenance time on site a good measurement of the quality of elevator maintenance? I would answer NO to that question since there are much better things to monitor than just the time on site. Certainly if your elevator mechanic is in-and-out of your building inside of 5 or 10 minutes, it is not possible to do a good job of preventative maintenance to minimize the number of breakdowns and maximize the equipment life.

What can you monitor to see if good maintenance is being done?

Monitor the number of Elevator Breakdowns

Good preventative elevator maintenance tries to proactively replace, or adjust parts before they result in an unscheduled elevator shutdown. At Elevator One, we average less than one breakdown per elevator per year. This is a very low number and may not be a fair expectation for your elevator contractor, but it should not be significantly more than that if you are receiving quality preventative maintenance. Most elevator service companies are pleased if they can achieve an average result of less than 4 breakdowns per elevator per year.

Monitor the number of safety related deficiencies written by the TSSA inspector

The number of safety related deficiencies written by the TSSA (Technical Standard Safety Authority) inspector during his periodic inspection is a good indicator of the quality of maintenance being done. You will, however, need to determine who’s responsibility the various deficiencies are. Some deficiencies are the responsibility of the owner to take care of and some must be corrected by a licensed elevator contractor. (see my blog The TSSA elevator Inspector has been here. What should I do? Where I go into detail to determine responsibility). No elevator contractor will be able to perform preventative maintenance that will never result in any deficiencies when the inspector comes to visit, but a good contractor should be able to do the work so that the majority of the time, there are no directions. Please note that the elevator contractor can only keep the elevators running in top condition if the owner works together with the contractor to follow the contractor’s recommendations and if they upgrade some of the elevator components when it is appropriate.

See how the TSSA’s statistics for your elevator contractor compare

The Technical Standard Safety Authority (TSSA), who oversees all elevating devices in Ontario, provides a detailed rating of all elevator contractors as they compare to the industry average. These stats are only provided directly to the elevator contractor and were most recently released at the end of November 2012 and represent the maintenance performance results of the first 10 months of the year.

Here is the link to the complete rating data that TSSA recently sent to Elevator One.

Elevator One Nov 19, 2012 Contractor Rating

See the article How Good is you Elevator Maintenance Contractor? for more information on TSSA contractor ratings.

Observe the Elevator Performance and Cleanliness

Look in the elevator mechanical room. See if things are being kept clean and tidy. If this area isn’t being well maintained, do you think that the elevator pit, car top and hoistway, where you can’t see, will be any better?

Check to see if minor adjustments get done during the service. Are the elevator and its doors running as well or better than before the mechanic was there? After the service mechanic has been on-site, have the burnt out indicator bulbs and button lights been replaced? Have other obvious maladjustments and deficiencies been corrected (it often helps to have site maintenance staff point out any unusual issues or concerns to the elevator technician when they are there) While cleaning and adjusting minor items, a good elevator technician will find and address small problems before they turn into big expensive problems that will result in extended elevator shut-downs. Doing this preventative maintenance work will also increase the life of your elevator and extend the time before a major costly elevator modernization is required.

Conclusion

If the above metrics seem to indicate reasonable results for your elevator, then your elevator service technician is spending enough time in your building and they are also prioritizing their time well to maximize the life of your elevator equipment.

Another related Article is: How to choose an Elevator Maintenance Company