Chairs are named for standards committees, and a code goes into effect.

Committees Elect New Chairs

The National Elevator Industry, Inc. (NEII) announced the election of new chairs for its Architectural Standards Committee (ASC) and Performance Standards Committee (PSC) in February. Katie Risi of thyssenkrupp is the new chair of the ASC, and John Kleine of Otis is the new chair of the PSC. NEII thanked Ron Brun and Joe Busse, both of Fujitec, who served for many years as chairs of the ASC and PSC, respectively.

The committees work together to develop and update content for NEII-1 BUILDING TRANSPORTATION STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES (nationalelevatorindustry.org/neii-1-access) on a regular basis. They are made up of representatives from NEII member companies, the National Association of Elevator Contractors and the International Association of
Elevator Consultants.

Denver Imposes Entrapment Response Time Mandate

NEII reported in February that the 2019 Building and Fire Code for the City and County of Denver (bit.ly/2GTHN39) is now in effect. As part of it, following an elevator entrapment where fire crews have responded and require the assistance of elevator personnel, elevator contractors must dispatch an elevator mechanic to the location, and the elevator mechanic must arrive on site within 1 h. If this requirement is not met, the building owner, mechanic and elevator contractor all face enforcement penalties.

During the code’s final review and passage, the council removed language that would have allowed elevator mechanics to take longer than an hour as long as an estimated time of arrival was communicated to the incident commander. The specific provision is on page 332. Its other industry-related changes start on page 329. NEII said it “is collaborating with a broad coalition of stakeholders to address the city council’s concerns and work towards a more practical solution.”

Massachusetts Governor Seeks More Funds for Inspections

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker is calling for a $US16-million budget item for the office that oversees the state’s elevator inspections, a 7% increase from the previous year’s budget, Boston Business Journal reported in January. The source reported in June 2019 that more than 4,500 of the state’s roughly 42,000 elevators were not compliant with inspection requirements, and, from 2016 to 2018, nearly a dozen people were hurt on elevators with expired inspection certificates. Since then, the Baker administration has hired seven more inspectors, for a total of 69, plus one additional supervisor, and has plans to hire one more inspector. A spokeswoman said that the inspections backlog has been cut by 75%, to 1,134 units, since the June report. The budget proposal, which still must be approved by lawmakers, marks a 30% increase from three years ago.

PFlow Names Koppa Company President

PFlow Industries has named Pat Koppa company president, CEO Ted Ruehl has announced. Koppa, who started in this role on October 31, 2019, was previously president of Power Test, Inc., a designer, manufacturer and implementer of dynamometers and test control systems, where he served as president. At Power Test, he was “instrumental in the establishment of a highly collaborative, aligned and accountable leadership team,” according to PFlow. In his new role, Koppa “will provide strong leadership to the entire workforce, establish short- and long-term goal plans and strategies and manage budgets to ensure resources are properly allocated.”

Koppa holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA in Operations Management from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and served seven years in the U.S. Navy. He served in a variety of leadership roles over 16 years with Harley-Davidson Motor Co.