COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION of 8 June 1995 concerning improvement of safety of existing lifts (Text with the EEA relevance) (95/216/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 155, second indent, thereof,

Whereas it is incumbent upon the Member States to provide for the safety of persons on their territory;

Whereas the Member States have not all enacted regulations on the safety of lifts;

Whereas despite the differences in design and age of such lifts, it is possible to identify a minimum number of points to be checked in all such forms of equipment;

Whereas that modernization, in the interest of safety, may be spread over several years,

HEREBY RECOMMENDS THAT THE MEMBER STATES:

1. Take all necessary action, where existing laws are as yet inadequate to meet the requirements of this recommendation:

- ensure a satisfactory level of maintenance for existing lifts,

- improve the safety of these lifts based on the principles in the Annex to this recommendation.

2. Take measures beyond those mentioned in the Annex, if safety demands.

This recommendation is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 8 June 1995.

For the Commission

Martin BANGEMANN

Member of the Commission

ANNEX

PRINCIPLES RELATING TO IMPROVEMENT OF THE SAFETY OF EXISTING LIFTS

Preliminary remark

European standards EN 81-1 and EN 81-2 may be applied, whenever possible, in order to obtain numerical values relating, in particular, to dimensions, tolerances, speeds or acceleration rates.

1. Car doors to be fitted and a floor-level indicator to be fitted inside the car.

2. The car suspension cables to be inspected and possibly replaced.

3. The stop controls to be modified in order to achieve a high degree of precision in the stopping level of the car and a gradual deceleration.

4. Make the controls in both the cars and lift wells intelligible and usable by unaccompanied disabled persons.

5. Fit human- or animal-presence detectors to the automatic doors.

6. For lifts which travel faster than 0,6 m/s, fit a parachute system allowing them to decelerate smoothly when stopping.

7. Modify the alarm systems to establish a permanent link with a high-speed breakdown service.

8. Eliminate any asbestos in the braking systems, where this exists.

9. Fit a device preventing uncontrolled movements towards the top of the car.

10. Provide cars with emergency lighting that operates in the event of a main power supply failure. It must operate for long enough to enable the rescue services to intervene in a normal manner. The installation must also enable the alarm system provided for in item 7 to function.