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Americans take 18 billion trips on elevators each year, and travel 2.55 billion miles on elevators and escalators each year, according to National Elevator Industry, Inc. (NEII), the premier national trade association for the elevator and escalator industry. The goal being to get their occupants from point a to point b safely within a building.
Elevators don’t just help us get places a little faster – they make dense urban living possible, allowing the efficient construction of high-rise structures all across the world. However, if your property has slow, broken, or otherwise defective elevators, it could be making your life a whole lot less efficient.
Elevator Facts
- There are more than 1.03 million elevators in the United States, which is up from 900,000 in 2007
- California has the most elevators at over 145,000
- Each elevator carries 20,000 people per year (20 people x 4 trips = 80 people x 250 days)
- Elevators in the United States make 20.6 billion passenger trips per year
- Globally, 590,000 elevators were installed in 2016; 40,000 of those were in North America
- There is 1 elevator for every 317 riders in the U.S.
- The average number of landings in buildings across the U.S. is 4, with Hawaii with the highest average of landings at 8.
United States Inspections at the Federal Level
Just how far do elevator inspections go at the United States federal level?
The simple answer is, they don’t. There are, actually, no federal mandates on elevator inspections in the United States. There are guidelines governing elevator maintenance that are set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) under the Department of Labor, as well as the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), a globally-recognized, trusted source of standards used around the world. Read the OSHA guidelines for more information, or the ASME’s outline of elevator and escalator safety codes .
These federal guidelines must be followed in order to be in compliance and maintain an elevator’s permit.
- Periodic inspections are required, not exceeding 1 year between them
- Manlifts & equipment should be inspected every month
- A specialized elevator mechanic must clean, adjust, and lubricate the components that control operation and speed
- Thorough maintenance is required at least every six months, but if an elevator is used a lot, it may be done once a month
- Inspection records should be kept for at least a year and must be reviewed by State inspectors before a new permit is issued
But the truth is, not everyone follows the above.
Incidents
Incidents involving elevators and escalators kill about 30 and seriously injure about 17,000 people each year in the United States, according to data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Elevators cause almost 90 percent of the deaths and 60 percent of serious injuries.
Passengers and workers can both be affected by unsafe elevators. Among the top causes of passenger injuries are mechanical malfunctions and the elevator being out of service or under repair. Worker injury causes range from electrocution to being caught in the equipment. Regardless of the causes of elevator and escalator accidents, the injuries sustained may be serious and the incident rates are high.
The construction industry had the highest elevator and escalator injury rate among all U.S. industries, with elevator installers and repairers topping the list for both fatalities and injuries, an Electronic Library of Construction Occupational Safety & Health report details. In this same report, a study on the dangers of escalators found, “About 10,000 escalator-related injuries per year result in emergency department treatment in the United States. Since the 1990s, a steady increase has been reported….”
Those injuries ranged from sprains and strains to broken bones, concussions, and traumatic injuries or disorders.
Now, how do we fix this?
Individual State Codes
Laws, rules, and regulations, are set by individual state codes – and those vary wildly.
“Every state has a statewide elevator safety program other than New Mexico and Kansas,” said Kevin Sullivan of the Elevator Industry Work Preservation Fund, a labor management cooperative in the elevator industry. Sullivan also mentioned that 38 states that require elevator mechanic licensing require that those mechanics first pass a regulated test. Then, following that passing score, the most ideal scenario for safety standards, according to Sullivan, is when that mechanic performs an elevator inspection while an inspector witnesses the inspection – but this is only required in certain states. Model Elevator Legislation for Elevator Safety Laws, also, is employed and followed in 25 states. Other states have other methods.
There are ways to research more extensive requirements on mechanics and inspection in individual states. NEII comprises global leaders that manufacture, install, and/or maintain elevators, escalators, and other related building transportation products. They provide advocacy, codes, safety expertise and industry research. Members can research state and individual codes there, as well as general guidelines. Outside of the trade, however, researching state codes can require effort.
At the state level, some states run the application of these varied state-wide codes through the fire marshal’s office. In other states, the Department of Labor oversees elevator inspections. Others might use the Department of Public Safety, or the Department of Licensing & Regulation. In Ohio, oversight runs through the Department of Commerce and Industry. These laws, too, sometimes have city-wide or town-wide regulations that update frequently and need to be followed.
The Value of Professional Inspections
Is your head spinning yet? It can be complicated to sift through these codes, even at a one-state level. There are multiple factors to consider that Property Inspect can make easier. With tailored templates, diaries, and dashboards, Property Inspect can make sure your property is on target with state-level inspection codes, mandates, and laws. Clients can book inspections and monitor dates (many existing elevator codes require once-yearly inspection). With unlimited digital forms to capture everything you need about your property, Property Inspect has what you need to level up.
