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WLEtter ............... January 2000 Useful information for the Clients and Other Friends of Wieland Lindgren Engineers |
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ELEVATORS are the topic of this first issue of WLEtter. The principal article addresses modernization, a topic of increasing interest as the huge numbers of machines installed in buildings of the 1960's and 1970's wear out and demand increased attention. In a smaller item, there are some interesting aspects of elevator traffic analysis that we would like to share. Finally, we bring attention to interactions between new-style solid-state elevator drives and other electrical systems and equipment in buildings. ELEVATOR MODERNIZATIONS Elevators get old, too. If your building has traction elevators installed in the 1960's or 1970's (or even earlier), they probably have relay-type or early-model solid-state controllers that are wearing out. The elevator maintenance contractor is having a hard time keeping things in adjustment. Parts are harder to find. It is time to think about modernization. The maintenance contractor is happy to give you a quote. It is a lot of money, so you get a second quote, and maybe a third. You try to compare them, but they don't match. One thing they all have is an ominous-looking list of "work by others," with a mix of mechanical and electrical and maybe structural changes that may or may not apply to your building. Welcome to the world of Elevator Modernization. Experience with hundreds of modernizations in many jurisdictions has revealed common elements that occur in a high proportion of such projects. These can be grouped as a) changes to the elevator itself, b) changes to the associated mechanical, electrical, and fire protection systems, and c) changes to the architectural and structural elements. A major concern is the relationships between the modernization project and the maintenance contract. In full-service maintenance, the contractor provides all of the parts and labor to keep the machinery in service. |
WLEtter is a bimonthly publication for the clients and other friends of Wieland Lindgren Engineers. It is intended to help facility managers and architects with the design, construction, operation and maintenance of the many complex electromechanical systems included in modern buildings. The contractor can be responsible for some very expensive repairs, such as new hoist ropes or a rebuilt hydraulic control valve. By doing such improvements in a modernization project, the Owner can find himself paying for work that the contractor would have done (or should have done), and the savings don't always show up as lower monthly maintenance fees. An approach that works well is including a multiyear maintenance contract as an additive alternate to the modernization bid. This makes the elevator contractor address the first and recurring costs as a package. a) The Elevator |
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