If your lifts are slow or showing signs of malfunctioning, it may be time to schedule lift maintenance. A proactive approach to your lift maintenance helps ensure lift users are in for a reliable, efficient, and satisfactory experience. Frustrations will be alleviated faster, customer satisfaction will return, and you can protect yourself against potential emergencies later.
Lifts play a vital role in private and commercial properties, ensuring accessibility and efficient transportation in multi-storey buildings. Inadequately maintained lifts can potentially risk the safety of visitors, as well as affect accessibility.
So, let’s explore…
In this guide, we’ll be taking a deep dive into:
- How regularly you should schedule lift maintenance
- Your lift maintenance checklist
- Why lift maintenance is important
- The legal requirements of lift inspections
- Warning signs to look out for
If you suspect you’re due a repair or routine check, we’ll also be taking you through the lift maintenance packages available to you at Sheridan Lifts.
How Regularly Should You Schedule Lift Maintenance?
Legally, passenger lifts and hybrid lifts that carry people require inspections every six months.
For goods-only lifts, like car lifts or dumbwaiters, there is less of a requirement for as frequent a visit. For these types of service lifts, you’re only legally required to schedule an inspection every 12 months.
If, at any point, you have any major repairs on the lift or it’s been out of action for a while, we also recommend that you follow it up with a maintenance check for added peace of mind.
Who Is Responsible for Lift Maintenance?
LOLER and PUWER-compliant lifts are crucial for user safety, and it’s the responsibility of businesses and building owners to ensure regulations are being adhered to. Our team offers quick response, excellent communication, and quality lift services.
Regular lift inspections prevent delays and minimise maintenance issues or breakdowns. Ensure your lifts are always operational with more frequent maintenance visits.
Lift Maintenance Checklist: What Will Be Checked During Your Lift Service
In a lift examination, your lift engineer would carry out a risk assessment, considering a number of factors:
- The type of lift and where it’s being used
- How often it’s used
- The age and condition of the lift
- The weight of loads to be lifted
Your assigned engineer may suggest a visual inspection or a test of the lift if a risk assessment deems it necessary.
Routine inspections typically cover various components such as
- The lift shaft
- Landing and car doors
- Landing and car door interlocks
- Safety gears
- Suspension chains and chain systems
- Suspension ropes
- Main drive system components
- Assorted gearing
- Braking system (including buffers and overspeed)
- Electrical components and electrical mechanisms
- Governors
- Hydraulics
- Overload detection devices
Feel free to keep this list handy so you not only know what to expect during an inspection but also which components to keep an eye on between visits. You can find out more about things to look out for in our 5 Signs That Your Lift Needs Maintenance blog.
Will My Lift Be Out of Action During the Visit?
Yes, during the engineer’s visit, numerous items within the lift shaft/structure and motor room will be thoroughly checked. As a result, the lift will be temporarily unavailable or ‘out of service’ while the engineer is on-site.
The Importance of Lift Maintenance for Customer Retention
Don’t underestimate the significance of elevator maintenance. Neglecting it can lead to noticeable problems, dissatisfied visitors – even accidents and emergencies.
Lifts are often in densely populated areas of a building, such as lobbies, entrances and atriums. A poorly functioning lift in these spaces with so many eyes and ears can give a negative impression that the building or the company simply doesn’t care for its customers’ experience or its outward appearance.
On the other hand, staying proactive with lift servicing to ensure your property’s elevators are in top condition shows that the building or company cares about the customers’ experience and safety, keenly follows regulations like LOLER, and has a mindful eye on the business’s day-to-day.
By ensuring your property’s elevators are in top condition, you can provide a smooth and safe experience for everyone, as well as have a positive impact on customer retention and accessibility. But a faulty lift can cost a business money, impact its reputation, and deter customers from returning.
Schedule Lift Maintenance to Keep Your Business Running Like Clockwork
A properly functioning lift system means that visitor movements around the building are easier to predict, reduces the chance of blocks and bottlenecks, and keeps things going smoothly like a well-oiled machine.
A working lift can be the difference between a successful business day and a standstill with angry customers queuing to both leave and enter. It can be the difference between customers successfully accessing the building, or giving up and heading to a competitor.
These factors both pose monetary losses to the business, and that’s not counting fines or compensation for instances of accident, injury, or non-compliance.
In larger buildings where hundreds or even thousands of people may be on-site at any one time, efficiency isn’t the only concern – ease of accessibility becomes essential to avoid chaos and safety concerns.
Aside from the physical risks of not allowing freedom of movement with a well-maintained lift system, any malfunctions or accidents that occur risk customers taking legal action. The risks and subsequent costs of not adequately maintaining a lift system can add up quickly.
It’s important to compare the savings you’d make if you weren’t to schedule lift maintenance with the possible cost if something were to go wrong as a consequence of your non-compliance!
What Can You Expect from Our Lift Maintenance Packages?
At Sheridan Lifts, we know how important it is for building owners and managers to have a contact for service and support when it comes to their lifts.
Every lift, building, and use is unique – as such, we offer a comprehensive lift maintenance package at a range of different levels of cover to suit your needs.
Sheridan Standard
Our Sheridan Standard package is perfect for clients who have lifts with low usage rates, a smaller number of floors, or just one or two lifts on-site. It’s designed to be accessible and hassle-free.
With the Sheridan Standard package, our team of expert lift technicians will visit your location 4, 6, or 12 times per year to ensure your lift is well-maintained and compliant with legal regulations. Although callouts and parts are not included in this package, you can still rely on our 24-hour helpline: 0330 175 8743.
In cases with trapped passengers, we guarantee a response time of just 1 hour; for repairs, we’ll be there within 4 hours.
Sheridan Premium
With this package, you not only receive the 4, 6, or 12 service visits included in our Sheridan Standard package but also enjoy the added benefit of complimentary callouts for lift breakdown repairs during regular business hours.
We understand the importance of peak times and high footfall periods when your lift needs to be operating at its best. That’s why our Sheridan Premium package ensures you’re covered during those crucial moments, with no extra cost for repair services.
Experience peace of mind knowing that our team at Sheridan Lifts has got you covered when it matters the most.
Sheridan Comprehensive
Our Sheridan Comprehensive package is our most extensive plan. On this package, your assigned lift engineer will visit you 6 or 12 times a year, ensuring your lift receives top-notch care and attention.
What’s more, we’ve got you covered for additional services, including parts up to £350 per visit.
- Guaranteed callout service within 4 hours of an emergency breakdown
- Guaranteed callout service within 1 hour of an emergency breakdown with a passenger trapped
- Callout assistance available 24/7, 365 days a year
- Minor adjustments performed as needed
- Engineers’ method statements
- On-site service reports
- Regular cleaning of all equipment
- Regular oiling & lubrication of moving parts and oil systems
- Risk assessment completed in full
- Assigned personal key account manager
Is It Time to Schedule Lift Maintenance? Call Sheridan Lifts Today
If you feel like you’re due a lift service, don’t hesitate to contact us – Sheridan Lifts would be happy to look at your current lift maintenance arrangements and provide a proposal based on your requirements.
Interested in the range of services you can expect? Check out our blog exploring the different types of lift maintenance available at Sheridan Lifts.
Elevate the performance of your lift with our Sheridan Lift maintenance packages today.