Elevator and escalator inspections

Elevators and escalators in Canada must be inspected and permitted under provincial programs, and that inspection is done by the province or its designated safety authority, not by us. What we offer is an independent condition assessment for owners: a clear view of how your equipment is doing, whether your maintenance contract is being delivered, and what to plan for next.

Most owners rely entirely on their elevator maintenance contractor for information about the equipment. That works until there is a dispute about a repair quote, a pattern of shutdowns, or a modernization proposal with a large price. An independent assessment gives you a second set of eyes that answers to you.

It helps to be clear about who does what. The designated authority inspects and permits the equipment. The licensed contractor maintains it, makes repairs and responds to the authority's deficiencies. The owner holds the contract and pays for the work. An independent assessment sits beside the owner: it reads the same reports and logs, looks at the equipment from the places it can be observed safely, and tells the owner what the information means.

What we look at

• Condition of what owners and inspectors can safely observe: machine rooms, controller spaces, pits where safe access is arranged, cabs, doors, landings and escalator comb plates and handrails.
• Ride quality, levelling, door operation and noise, observed from the cab and landings.
• Maintenance records: the log kept on site, callback history, and whether scheduled maintenance tasks are being recorded.
• Outstanding deficiencies from the most recent mandated inspection and the status of each.
• Machine room conditions: temperature, cleanliness, access, lighting and storage of unrelated material.
• Age and obsolescence of major components, and whether parts support is a concern.
• The maintenance contract: what it covers, what it excludes and how response times are defined.

How it works

1. We start with why. Frequent shutdowns, a modernization quote, a contract renewal, a building purchase or open deficiencies each call for a different focus.
2. Document review. We review inspection reports, permits, maintenance logs, callback records and your contract.
3. Site visit. We observe the equipment with your elevator contractor present for any access to machine rooms, hoistways or pits, which is arranged and controlled by them.
4. Analysis. We compare what we see with the records and the contract, and identify gaps.
5. Report and follow-up. You receive a written report and a walkthrough, and we can help you work through deficiencies with your contractor.

What to have ready

• The most recent inspection reports and operating permits for each unit.
• The maintenance contract, including any schedules or appendices listing what is covered.
• Callback and shutdown records for at least the last year, from the contractor's portal or your own logs.
• Any modernization or major repair proposals you have received.
• A contact at the elevator contractor, so access to machine rooms and pits can be arranged with them.

What you get

A written report on each unit's observed condition, maintenance record quality, open deficiencies and likely upcoming needs. It gives you plain-language questions to put to your contractor and a basis for comparing modernization or repair proposals. It is not a certificate or permit, and it does not replace the mandated inspection.

For owners with several buildings, the same format across sites makes it easier to compare equipment and contractors and to plan capital spending in a sensible order.

A typical case

A condominium board receives a modernization proposal for its two passenger elevators along with a note that parts for the current controller are becoming hard to find. At the same time, residents complain that one car is out of service every few weeks.

An assessment in a case like this starts with the records. Callback logs show whether the shutdowns cluster around the same component, such as door equipment, or are spread across the system. The on-site maintenance log shows whether scheduled maintenance tasks are being recorded as the contract requires. The last mandated inspection report shows which deficiencies are still open. On site, the assessor observes ride quality, levelling and door operation, and with the contractor present looks at the machine room and controller.

The board then gets answers to practical questions: is the outage pattern a maintenance problem the contract should already cover, or a sign of components at the end of their life; which parts of the proposal are needed now and which could be phased; and what to ask the contractor before signing. Those answers also feed into the building's reserve fund planning.

Who it's for

• Property managers and condominium boards who want independent advice on their elevators.
• Owners facing a large modernization proposal.
• Buyers doing due diligence on a building with elevators or escalators.
• Facility managers dealing with repeated outages or open inspection deficiencies.

Read more in our guides to elevator maintenance and inspections and escalator safety for building owners. For a broader look at a property, see commercial building inspections.

Common questions