One of our most frequently asked questions as a lift maintenance provider is ‘do I need an autodialler in my lift, and what are my legal obligations’
In the event of a passenger lift breaking down and trapping passengers, emergency communication devices are vital to allow trapped passengers to communicate with the outside world to ensure their swift release and provide reassurance that their situation has been recognised. All lifts installed from 1998 onwards are required to have a means of two way emergency communication. All lifts in a place of work or with public access, no matter what the lifts age, are required to have two way emergency communication, a ‘place of work’ being inclusive of any building where people are working, including cleaners and concierge workers in residential buildings. All passenger carrying lifts installed before 1998 regardless of their use or location, are to have carried out a risk assessment and are subject to upgrades to EN81-80.
An autodialler is designed to provide lift users with a line of communication in the event of an emergency to a rescue centre. Anybody who travels in lifts regularly would note that mobile phone signal is not always most reliable whilst inside the cabin. If a lift user were to become trapped in a lift with no form of communication, then there would be a chance of them being completely unable to communicate with the outside world. They would only be found once someone noticed the lift wasn’t working, and if the building was ‘unmanned’ this could be a very long time indeed! It is, therefore, important that your autodialler is tested regularly, and if it is found to be inoperative, Nordic Lifts would advise that the lift is removed from service until communication has been reinstated.
How Nordic Lifts Can Help
What is important to remember is that preference should always be to meet with the latest standards wherever possible, whatever the age and whatever the frequency of use of your lift. What you as a lift owner should understand is that you are bound under health and safety legislation to take all reasonable steps to ensure the health and safety of your lifts passengers.
We operate without a call centre so that when an emergency call is placed, the passenger is always talking directly to us, a staff member of Nordic Lifts who knows your lift, your building, and where necessary, the managing agent. This not only provides enhanced reassurance to trapped passengers in comparison to a call centre who are unable to answer any questions they may have, but it also speeds up the process of contacting building managers and getting an engineer to site, as there is never a middle man.
There are many laws and standards relating to auto-diallers which can appear somewhat disjointed, making it difficult for lift owners to understand their obligations. Nordic Lifts understand that owners need to be able to clearly see the requirements in order to select the correct equipment to comply with these standards.
Below is a breakdown of the guidance for lift owners in relation to lift autodiallers. If you have any questions regarding your specific installation, lift maintenance, the regulations in regards to goods lifts, passenger lifts or car lifts, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
The Codes and Standards
• BS EN 81-28 covers the safety requirements of the system and the information that must be provided.
• BS EN 81-1 and EN 81-2 cover the safety rules for construction and installation of electric traction and hydraulic lifts respectively. This covers the majority of lifts installed in the last 20 + years. Clause 14.2.3 covers the emergency alarm device.
• BS EN 81-80 highlights the rules for the improvement of safety for existing passenger and goods/passenger lifts. Clause 5.14.3 stating the requirements for emergency alarm devices.
• BS EN 81-70 covers the requirements for accessibility to lifts for persons including persons with disabilities.
• BS 7255 provides recommendations for the safe working on lifts.
• BS EN-20 is the applicable code for all new lifts. Clause 5.12.3 covers the emergency alarm device.
Compliance
From the various standards the following key requirements should be noted:
• There should be a clearly recognisable and accessible 2-way communication device between passengers trapped in the lift and a rescue service
• There should be communication between the car and the machine room (this should be an intercom system if direct communication is not possible)
• There should be communication/ability to alert a rescue service from persons working on the car top
• There should be communication/ability to alert a rescue service from persons working in the pit
• The emergency communication device must have an emergency power supply
• After initiation of the communication system, no further action from the trapped passengers should be required. The system should alert the rescue service of the address of the installation, identification of the car and any site instructions.
System Features
A fully compliant system installation should include the following:
• Indicators; alarm and intercom buttons mounted in an easily visible and accessible position
• Alarm Speaker; to sound an alarm when the alarm button is pressed
• Autodialler Unit; to automatically call the rescue service when the alarm button is pressed and allow the trapped passenger/engineer to communicate with a rescue service
• Car Station; mounted within the lift car and including the required pictograms and buttons
• Voice Stations; for the car top and the lift pit and easily accessible from these positions. These can use the same phone line as the in car system and be connected via a MultiPoint Station (MPS) These should include: a keypad, a back-lit LCD display and a built in
microphone
• Integral battery; required to sustain the system for up to eight hours in the event of mains failure
• Programming tools; tools to programme the autodialler. These should be provided by the service provider and mounted either on top of or in the car but not accessible to passengers.
Connectivity
It is recommended that there should be a separate phone line provided for each lift to ensure that in the event of multiple lifts breaking down, each lift is able to communicate with the rescue service.
There are several options for connectivity:
• A traditional analogue network which is very stable
• An analogue line which allows multiple communication points from a single phone line
• GSM: An additional unit which uses a mobile network contract or prepay sim card. These are stable networks and can be beneficial as they do not require the installation of phone lines
• VOIP (analogue device) This uses an analogue converter to convert analogue signal into packet data and send this via the internet or a digital cable such as fibre optic.
Some further information regarding the use of GSM units as an alternative to a telephone line can be found by clicking here.
Owner Obligations
The owner must provide the following:
• The installation of suitable phone line or GSM system for each lift allowing two way communication from all the positions described.
