Control of evacuation lifts...

[Fishy]

Here's an interesting one...

When programming the controller for an evacuation lift (evacuation only - not a fire-fighting lift) for a building that has a fire detection and alarm system, what should the lift be programmed to do, upon activation of the fire alarm?  Does it...

- act like a fire-fighting lift - returning automatically to final access/egress level and staying there until it is taken under staff control, or...

- does it keep responding to lift calls, until staff throw the 'evacuation lift' switch referred to in BS5588-8, whereupon it comes under lift-car override or;

- is some other mode appropriate?

The first would seem safest - if anyone's in the lift at the time they will get taken straight back to the level from which they can most easily escape.  Staff then go to this level and take the lift under control - they are therefore confirming that the escape route is available and safe to use.  However...

The second might speed up evacuation, because the disabled can self-evacuate, or anyone helping with a PEEP can operate the lift themselves.

BS 5588-8 doesn't appear to preclude either mode of operation, and BS EN 81-73 (Safety rules for the construction and installation of lifts — Particular applications for passenger and goods passenger lifts —
Part 73: Behaviour of lifts in the event of fire) excludes evacuation lifts from its scope.

You might say "it should do whatever the fire safety strategy requires", and to a certain extent that's fine, but in the development of the Strategy we should understand what represents 'best practice' in this respect.  In the absence of any BS / EN or other guidance (there's nothing in the RR(FS)O guides, either), this appears to be completely unknown.

Any feedback...?

[Pip]

Quite often I have found that the 'evacuation lifts' have been wired up as for a 'firefighting lift' i.e. it returns to ground floor on AFA activation and then require the use of a switch to obtain control of the Cab (not too much problem in a 2 storey care home).Also this switch is quite often marked 'FB' thus causing confusion with the occupiers because they don't think they are allowed to use the lift-thus mucking up the evacuation strategy-especially so in the care homes I have found this situation..It is not only the strategy that is important but also the staff training.BS5588 part 12 annex 'o' gives a little more info on strategies.

[Fishy]

Come on... surely everyone else isn't as confused about this as I am!  Where's all the 'Gurus' gone...?

[kurnal]

I dont think theres a pat answer to this fishy- it depends on the strategy for the building and lets face it not many of us will have experience of them from the sharp end as they are not common place yet.

Did you see the article in last months FEJ that described the lift in the writers new HQ? Worth a look, it illustrates the point that its horses for courses and made an argument that no special controls are needed because the non ambulant user needing the lift is  the most likely person to press the button and summon it when the alarm sounds and presumably will know where the fire is to avoid that floor.

If I have grossly misrepresented the article I would be happy to be corrected but thats how I read it.