The Big Island’s elevators are getting long-needed inspections, and rules set to go into effect this month provide more stringent reporting standards.
The Big Island’s elevators are getting long-needed inspections, and rules set to go into effect this month provide more stringent reporting standards.
Starting June 30, permits must be posted conspicuously inside elevators and each machine must have a written maintenance control program.
“It’s about public safety,” said state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations spokesman Bill Kunstman. “Elevator passengers will see the last time the elevator was given an annual permit. It allows for much greater transparency.”
Last year on the Big Island, 552 of 697 elevators received the annual inspection required by law. The boost in compliance efforts was spurred by a 2012 act that roughly doubled the number of state inspectors to 13. At the same time, inspection fees increased by an average of 40 percent and a special fund was created to bring self-sufficiency to the Boiler and Elevator Inspection Branch.
The move came after years of inspection backlogs, which the branch blamed on staff shortages.
Last year was the first time the branch was able to complete elevator inspections in a timely manner, District 1 Rep. Mark Nakashima said.
In 2011, 78 percent of the state’s 6,700 elevators had expired operating permits, and Oahu-based inspectors were having a tough time getting out to the neighbor islands. But the department has changed that, Kunstman said.
“We purposefully tried to focus on the neighbor islands,” he said. “In many cases they had not been inspected for a number of years.”
The new code also specifies that new elevators must comply with 2010 standards set by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and existing elevators are to be governed by the code that prevailed when the machine was installed. Previously, elevators fell under ASME standards from 1996, making it difficult to mesh new technology with the old rules. For instance, the 1996 rules required separate machine rooms, which newer elevator technology no longer needs.
The updates provide for more streamlined building design and construction, according to a DLIR press release.
“Making it clear what code is applicable and bringing Hawaii’s code up to date means building owners, elevator companies, architects, engineers and state inspectors will all know what is required of each elevator in Hawaii,” said consultant Michael Chung, of Elevator Consulting Services Inc., in a statement.
Thad Tomei, the state’s acting supervising elevator inspector, acknowledged in a press release that the requirement for a written maintenance control program and posting permits will have some costs up front.
“But the increased public safety and slower increase in insurance premiums will more than offset the costs in the long run,” he said.
Email Bret Yager at byager@westhawaiitoday.com.