HOW IS MAINTENANCE DOCUMENTED?
How is Maintenance documented?
The A17.1 Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators has included the maintenance requirements into the A17.1 Code for Elevators and Escalators for many years. With each edition of this A17.1 Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators the maintenance requirements have increased. This requirement for maintenance including the required periodic inspections and tests are intended to assure the level of safety is equal to what was required when the elevator equipment was installed and/or altered.
These maintenance requirements are detailed in Part 8.6 of the current A17.1 Code for Elevators and Escalators and are limited to maintaining equipment and components required by the A17.1. Records are an important part of maintaining equipment in a safe operation condition and are necessary for scheduling maintenance.
Records must be available to all elevator personnel, but these records are not specifically required by code to be available to the elevator owner. This requirement is written in performance terms; it can be met by methods such as on-site storage or electronic records. Records are not required to be physically present in the machine room or building. The essential requirements are that records be kept and are available to elevator personnel upon request.
Since these records are required by the A17.1 Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators, the elevator inspector that performs the periodic inspection of your elevator is required to verify the availability of these records. Do you as the elevator owner know where these records are or do you know how to access them? You are paying for this as part of your maintenance contract services; you should know about your elevator records!
Each time service is performed, we advise the owner to get a copy of the work performed in writing. Many elevator maintenance providers have switched to electronic devices to log time and other information including maintenance visits. These devices log every time service personnel come to the building to maintain or repair the elevators. The actual maintenance actions are not as clear since most companies use numerous codes as descriptions of the maintenance tasks.
While this is fine for the contractors' tracking of employed personnel; the building owner should require time sheets filled out for each visit describing the actual work performed. If the contractor stores this information electronically the building owner should be provided a printed copy of these actions on a periodic basis for the building owner records.
Additionally there are many requirements based on Statutes and Administrative Rules in the various jurisdictional authorities that regulate elevators across the country. In the State of Florida these requirements can be found on the Bureau of Elevator Safety website in Chapter 399 Elevator Safety Act
and also in Florida Administrative Rule Chapter 61C-5, Florida Elevator Safety Code
in great detail.
Specifically in Florida Administrative Rule Chapter 61C-5, Florida Elevator Safety Code the elevator service maintenance company must make a written record indicating the date or dates of routine examinations and required testing. This record must be maintained in the elevator machine room, available for review by the division or its contractual designees. Have you as the elevator owner seen these records? You are paying for this as part of your maintenance contract services; you should know about your elevator records!
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