TSSA Unexpectedly Rescinds Order

Ontario’s Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) has rescinded a sweeping three-year-old upgrade directive. According to CP 24, the industry has reacted with both surprise and anger. At issue are older single-speed elevators typically found in lower-rise buildings. In 2014, TSSA ordered all of them in the province (700-1,200) to be significantly upgraded by improving leveling accuracy to less than 1 cm. The deadline for compliance was the end of 2021. However, on the week of July 17, TSSA Director Roger Neate decided the mandate was no longer necessary, explaining, “TSSA has continued to monitor and review incident, maintenance and inspection order data. The outcome is that the data trends do not support the mandatory upgrade of single-speed elevator-motion controls.”

Doug Guderian, CEO of contractor Elevator One and Canadian Elevator Contractors Association vice-president/treasurer, commented that TSSA did float the idea of rescinding the order at an industry town-hall meeting in November 2016, but that was followed by silence. Speaking of the rescission, Guderian said objections raised were not addressed and added:

“Should I be advising my building owners to act right away on future director’s orders? Maybe you want to wait a few years and see if they rescind this one, too? That doesn’t help the industry in any way to be safer.”

Consultant Rob Isabelle said the decision raises questions about the quality of data the authority relied on in 2014 versus now. CP 24 reported that, also in July, TSSA “awarded consulting firm Deloitte a CAD300,000 (US$239,460) contract to carry out potentially groundbreaking research that aims to get at the causes of elevator outages or otherwise poor service and offer solutions.”

TSSA also said it is mandating risk-mitigating measures, including maintenance tasks to be done every two months and an annual requirement to take apart, examine and maintain elevator brake components. A government-ordered review is expected to be complete in the fall.

Stiltz Launches Website for Canada

Home elevator manufacturer Stiltz Lifts is now marketing in Canada with a new website (www.stiltzliftscanada.com). All sales of its residential elevators in Canada will continue to be delivered from Stiltz USA, based in Pennsylvania. Future objectives include expanding its dealer sales channel in Canada by appointing more partners, eventually providing full coverage across the country, which it enjoys in the U.S. and U.K. The company was founded in the U.K. in 2010 and opened the North American headquarters three years later.