The Complementary Technical Instruction ITC AEM 1 for Lifts will come into force on 1 July.

In the middle of the summer, the government wanted to bring into force a change in the regulations that govern the safety of lifts. From 1 July next, the changes established in the reformed Complementary Technical Instruction ITC AEM 1 for Lifts must be complied with, as it was established in published in the Official State Gazette on 13 April last.. As detailed in the regulatory text, the regulations concerning lifts "regulate their commissioning, modification, maintenance and inspection, as well as the increase in safety". Among the most striking new features are some internal changes in the lifts themselves, an indication of the frequency of inspections and the documents that must be provided for the commissioning of a new lift. At NUWE you won't have problems with the new standards for liftsour team of Construction and Architecture will advise you perfectly.

Lift refurbishment

Lift replacements are booming. You only have to walk around any large city to see, in practically all neighbourhoods, how patio renovations are proliferating like mushrooms. The subsidies for lowering the elevation have been essential for neighbourhood communities to reduce stairs and try to facilitate direct access from the street to the lift. In new construction, these things no longer happen, so the renovation of old properties is an invitation to renovate, to a certain extent, as many of the internal elements as possible.

In other words, if we are going to do works in the courtyard and have to modify the  The budget for the refurbishment should be increased and a new cabin should be installed with all the current safety measures and the most modern systems. It is also true that the residents' associations have been modifying their lifts in accordance with current regulations, seeing old cabins with the most modern visual elements. Some of them even have a screen that informs about the weather and important news. So changes are on the way with the new standards for lifts from this summer onwards.

8 changes in lifts

As of 1 July, certain very specific renovations are established for lifts. There are actually 8 of them, the last of which is a very generic one that addresses compliance with all the safety measures established in previous directives and regulations. Of the rest, there are seven modifications that all existing lifts in Spain must comply with according to their initial date of installation and commissioning. And be careful because the regulation already published in the BOE establishes the criteria for considering the difference between modification, maintenance and repair of the lift.

1. Improved levelling. The standard stipulates that the stopping accuracy should be at least ± 10 mm and the levelling accuracy should be ± 20 mm.
2. Protection of the user against the closing of doors during entry or exit of the cab to avoid any entrapment.
3. Protection of the user against uncontrolled upward movements of the cab and uncontrolled movements of the cab at rest and open doors.
4. Installation of a two-way communication system in the cabin for rescue purposes. It must be adapted for people with physical disabilities.
5. Replacement of guideways and shall not have cabin or counterweight guideways incorporating parachute devices of cylindrical, rail or wooden types.
6. Installation of a load control device to avoid exceeding the cab limit.
7. Arrangements shall be made so that the counterweights and their guidance system can be inspected throughout their travel.
8. The most generic of all. Compliance with all security measures in place to date. In this point we find: Install in the pit a stop switch, a shaft lighting switch and a power socket, for use by maintenance personnel; modify the skirt under the cab threshold, making it as high as possible, compatible with the depth of the pit, up to a maximum of 75 cm; provide the cabs with doors, together with a positional indicator of the cab, visible from inside; provide lighting and an emergency alarm in the car; provide protection for the suspension, diverter, compensation and machine pulleys; provide a safety contact to prevent slackening of the limiting wire; provide a stop device that operates when the lift does not start or when the wire ropes slip; provide an easy check from the machine room if the car is in an unlocking zone; in motors supplied directly from a mains supply, the power supply must be cut off by two independent contactors; install a handrail on the car roof when the free space between the edge of the roof and the shaft wall is greater than 30 cm; remove asbestos from the mechanisms of the lift car; install a safety contact on the car roof when the free space between the edge of the roof and the shaft wall is greater than 30 cm; when replacing braking mechanisms, remove asbestos; when replacing a pump in the hydraulic equipment, the new equipment shall be fitted with a hand pump to move the cab upwards and when replacing the cab, handicapped-accessible controls shall be installed in the cab and on the landing.

Other changes since summer

In the new standards for liftswhich will apply from 1 July 2024, sets out how the commissioning of a new cabin must be carried out. Either the operator or the representative must submit the following documentation to the competent regional authority: technical data sheet of the installation, EC declaration of conformity, operating manual, maintenance contract and favourable initial inspection certificate.

In addition, it is established that periodic inspections will be carried out every two years in the case of lifts located in industrial or public buildings, every four years in the case of residential buildings with more than 20 dwellings or more than four floors, and every six years in all other cases.

Finally, it is indicated that a minor offence is one that does not pose a direct danger to the user, a serious offence is one that does not pose an immediate danger but may do so in the future, and a very serious offence is established for cases in which the risk to the user is imminent or may even cause harm.

Consult the BOE from the website of NUWE.

BOE: new lift standards