5 signs to undertake a lift refurbishment

Despite being used everyday by hundreds of people, lifts are often overlooked during refurbishments. A neglected lift can be extremely costly to run, cause long delays while waiting for repairs, lead to premature aging and worse still, become a danger to both passengers and service personnel. To help our clients know what to look out for, we’ve outlined the top 5 signs indicating you should undertake a lift refurbishment.

1.     Faults and breakdowns

Older lifts are more prone to breakdowns, so if your lift system has multiple reported faults, look at refurbishment and modernisation. Even minor faults can take a toll on the overall condition of your lift system, leading to huge expenditure and long out of service periods while your lift goes through unscheduled maintenance, causing disruptions to the entire building. It’s extremely important to go the extra mile when it comes to health and safety and be prepared to schedule maintenance checks before they’re needed, and look into refurbishment if problems continue. 

2.     Lift car condition

Appearances can be deceiving, and as the part of the lift used by passengers every single day, the lift car should be a reflection of the rest of the building. If the lift car is old fashioned and the rest of your building is sleek and modern, you might want to consider refurbishing the lift to match the rest of the décor. As well as giving off the wrong impression, an old, worn lift car screams neglect. Catch the problem early and opt for a lift refurbishment before problems start to arise.

3.     Speed

Does your lift struggle to make it from floor to floor? If you can’t accommodate the visitors to your building, it may be time to look at modernising the lift system. Facilities managers should embrace fast-changing technological advancements to take advantage of the many benefits. Modernisation will result in a faster lift with a smoother ride, reduce overall costs and make your lift more reliable.

4.     Increased footfall

The amount of footfall a lift endures may cause the system to wear prematurely, so there will need to be a discussion about the level of predicted lift use with your service provider before your lift is installed or upgraded. If your system is dated, it may not be able to cope with the amount of foot traffic. To avoid breakdowns and disruption to the flow of your building, it’s wise to spot these issues well in advance and plan work to prevent this. Whether that means scheduling maintenance work and warning passengers in advance that the lift will be out of service, or refurbishing the lift system to cope with a sudden surge in footfall. You might even consider investing in additional lifts to relieve some of the pressure.

5.     Energy wastage

In a world that’s becoming increasingly aware of its carbon footprint, buildings can struggle to keep up with adapting energy rules. Improving a lift’s performance through modernisation is a key energy saving tool, as it can significantly reduce the energy wastage of the entire building. For example, replacing old drive systems with modern alternatives can reduce power consumption by around 30%.  
 

You can find out more about lift refurbishments here.

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