Category: Services

In several States of Europe the competent authorities periodically use to inspect all the lifts in order to ensure their safety.
For instance, in Italy, lifts must be inspected in accordance with DPR 214/2010, lifts must also be inspected once every two years by competent organizations that are qualified to perform these checks, as designated by the owner of the systems; such bodies must be absolutely independent of the company or companies responsible for manufacturing and installing the lift systems.
The purpose of these inspections is to ensure that the safety conditions do not fall below the level at the moment the system was installed, and in certain cases to increase the level to meet current regulations.
Therefore, after the checks have been carried out, the inspector will issue a report that may contain recommendations requiring the owner to implement modifications which, from a certain point of view may be defined as modernization.

Naturally, the owner may decide of his or her own volition to carry out this kind of work, either because advised to do so by the maintenance technician, or simply to improve the operating condition of the systems.
All such modifications should be performed in conformity with local safety standards, such as in Italy the series UNI 10411, which guarantee that the previous safety conditions are improved or at least maintained.

In order to ensure that the lift will always operate correctly and safely, a preventive maintenance should be performed on lifts on a regular basis.
European States normally ask this by a local law.
Maintenance frequency depends on the type of system and how much the lift is used; the usual period is every month.
Moreover, Koppel A.W. technicians, according to the Italian law, use to check all the system safety components once every six months and make a note of the results in the maintenance handbook, which should be kept on site.
Lift maintenance cannot be carried out by just anyone, but by qualified technicians only.
Since 1999, from a 95/16/EC lift directive requirement, lifts must be supplied complete with operating instructions prepared in accordance with the standard EN 13015.
Lifts systems are designed to last from 30 to 60 years, depending on usage, and of course on the quality of the maintenance, therefore the maintenance contracts should be drawn on a multi year basis, since a correct schedule will be spread over a number of years. However, it is possible to stipulate yearly agreements, provided a tacit renewal clause is inserted in the contract.