When to Get Commercial Lift Servicing | Commercial Lift Maintenance

Commercial lifts come in a range of shapes and sizes. Whether you rely on yours for public access to your shop or business, for back of house movement of goods between floors, logistics planning in warehouses or one of the many other reasons you may have a lift, keeping it running smoothly is good business practice.

It is also a legal requirement for safety reasons. Keeping your staff, visitors or customers safe at your premises is your responsibility, and the law is very clear on this.

Commercial lift servicing can also save you money in the long term. From reducing unnecessary problems due to worn or damaged parts, to preventing loss of business due to lack of access or safety, you can save money by investing in your lift.

Commercial lift servicing levels will depend on how often your lift is used.

Generally, for low use lifts (such as an office), 2 service visits a year will be ample. For high use lifts (such as those in retail locations) 4 or more visits for your platform lift would be recommended.

Take a look at our servicing packages, and get in touch with our expert lift servicing team to discuss your requirements.

If you aren’t keen on an annual package, then you can just contact a servicing company ad hoc, but it may help with remembering bookings and keeping costs down to consider a package deal.

There are a few legal requirements which are important for business owners to keep in mind.

LOLER stands for Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations. LOLER applies to any equipment which lifts items – from platform lifts to forklifts. The number of annual checks depends on the equipment, and your servicing provider can probably help with this, and it is as well as the servicing requirements.

This details the requirements for business owners to have regular checks made on their lifts by a trained and competent LOLER inspector. Following the inspection, a certificate is issued where there are no problems found.

Insurance providers will often require proof of safety elements for lifts at businesses, especially where the public use your lift.

The Equality Act may also be relevant where all visitors must be able to access all areas of the business.

Find out more about regulations and platform lifts by clicking here.

Ensure that your commercial lift servicing covers a comprehensive check of your lift and all the components. For example, commercial lift servicing for Gartec platform lifts covers the following items (and more!):

• Signs, locks and keys
• Lighting
• Cables, belts and motor and drives
• Electrical systems
• Doors, buttons and controls
• Shaft structure and alignment
• Emergency backup system
• Safety edges, alarms and communication devices
• Screw and nut mechanism
• Lubrication and smooth operation

Remember, the more complex your lift, the more items should be tested. For hydraulic lifts, the oil system must be checked, and for traction lifts ensure the belt and chain checks are comprehensive.

Following the service a full breakdown of checks and test results should be provided for your records.