34 Pa. Code Ch. 7 — Elevators, Lifts, Escalators, Dumbwaiters, Hoists and Tramways

§ 7.195. Suspension means. (a) Suspension means shall be wire ropes or suspension chains. There shall not be less than two such ropes or chains. (b) Steel tape or tiller rope as suspension means is prohibited. (c) On elevators operating at a contract speed of less than 30 feet pe…

§ 7.2. Scope. This chapter sets forth rules to safeguard the lives, limbs, maintenance and health of workers involved in the installation, operation and maintenance of elevators, lifts, escalators, dumbwaiters, hoists and tramways in this Commonwealth, and places the responsibili…

§ 7.211. Applicability. This subchapter applies only to new manlifts installed in parking garages and industrial buildings, such as grain and feed mills, chemical and alcohol distilleries, cement storage towers and similar industries, for the exclusive use of certain designated o…

§ 7.212. Removal from service. Manlifts shall be removed or sealed out of service upon the termination of the service for which they were originally installed.

§ 7.213. Approval and operation. Plans and specifications for manlifts shall be filed with the Department and an erection permit secured in accordance with § 7.31 (relating to submission and approval of plans) and section 11 of the act of May 2, 1929 (P. L. 1518, No. 452) (35 P. …

§ 7.221. Locked doors. When manlifts are located in buildings, such as parking garages, to which the public has access, they shall be located in an enclosure protected by self-closing, spring-locked doors, at all floors to which the public has access. Keys to the doors shall be l…

§ 7.222. Floor openings. (a) Floor openings for a manlift shall be uniform in size, be approximately circular and be located vertically above the opening below it. (b) Floor openings for both up and down runs shall conform to the following: Belt(in inches)Floor Opening Width(in i…

§ 7.223. Landings. (a) The clearance between the floor or mounting platform and the lower edge of the conical guard required by § 7.224 (relating to landing guards) shall be not less than 7 feet, 6 inches. When such clearance cannot be obtained, no access to the manlifts shall be…

§ 7.224. Landing guards. (a) On the ascending side of a manlift, landings shall be provided with a bevel guard or cone meeting the following requirements: (1) The cone shall make an angle of not less than 45 degrees with the horizontal. An angle of 60° or greater shall be used wh…

§ 7.225. Floor opening guards. (a) The floor opening at each landing shall be guarded on sides not used for entrance or exit by a standard railing and toeboard or by panels or wire mesh of not less than No. 10 U.S. gage, expanded metal of not less than No. 13 U.S. gage or sheet m…

§ 7.226. Protection of entrances and exits. (a) The entrances and exits at all floors or landings affording access to a manlift shall be guarded by a maze (staggered railing) or a handrail equipped with self-closing gates. (b) Such rails shall be standard guardrails with toeboard…

§ 7.227. Bottom arrangement. (a) At the bottom landing the clear area shall not be smaller than the area enclosed by the guardrails on the floors above, and any wall in front of the down-running side of the belt shall be not less than 48 inches from the face of the belt. Such spa…

§ 7.228. Top clearances. (a) A top clearance shall be provided of at least 11 feet above the top terminal landing. Such clearance shall be maintained from a plane through each face of the belt to a vertical cylindrical plane having a diameter of 2 feet greater than the diameter o…

§ 7.229. Emergency exit ladders. A fixed metal ladder accessible from both the up and down-run of the manlift shall be provided when the vertical distance between landings exceeds 20 feet, and be in accordance with existing laws governing ladders. An enclosing cage shall not be p…

§ 7.230. Illumination. Both runs of a manlift shall be illuminated at all times when it is in operation. An intensity of not less than 1 foot-candle shall be maintained at all points. Landings shall be illuminated as provided in § 7.223 (relating to landings).

§ 7.231. Machines. (a) Types. Machines shall be of the direct-connected type or shall be driven by multiple V-belts. Cast iron gears shall not be used. (b) Brake. A mechanically-applied, electrically released brake shall be applied to the motor shaft for direct connected units or…

§ 7.232. Exhibits—safety diagrams. The following diagrams identified as Exhibits A—C show safety standards for manlifts:

§ 7.233. Speed. No manlift designed for a speed in excess of 80 feet per minute shall be installed.

§ 7.234. Steps. (a) Steps or platforms shall be not less than 12 inches nor more than 14 inches deep, measured from the belt to the edge of the step or platform. (b) The width of a step or platform shall be not less than the width of the belt to which it is attached. (c) The dist…

§ 7.235. Handholds. (a) Handholds attached to a belt shall be provided and so installed that they are not less than four feet nor more than 4 feet 8 inches, above the step tread, and shall be so located as to be available on both the up and down-run of the belt. (b) The grab surf…

§ 7.236. Stops. (a) Up limit stop. Two separate automatic stop devices shall be provided to cut off the power and supply the brake when a loaded step passes the upper terminal landing, in accordance with the following: (1) One automatic stop device shall consist of a switch mecha…

§ 7.237. Safety. All parts of the machine shall have a factor of safety of six based on a load of 200 pounds on each horizontal step on the up and down-runs. Any stresses set up during acceleration or stopping are presumed to be taken care of in such factor of safety.

§ 7.238. Signs required. (a) Instruction signs. Signs of conspicuous and easily read style giving instructions for the use of the manlift shall be posted at each landing or stenciled on the belt. Such signs shall be of letters not less than one inch in height and of a color havin…

§ 7.239. Carriage of materials and tools. (a) No freight or packaged goods shall be carried on a manlift. (b) No pipe, lumber or other construction material shall be carried on a manlift. (c) No tools, except those which fit entirely within a pocket in usual working clothes, shal…

§ 7.240. Acceptance tests. (a) Up capacity. A manlift with 200 pounds on each horizontal step of the up-run shall show no appreciable slip of the belt when standing or running at rated speed. (b) Down capacity. A manlift with 200 pounds on each horizontal step of the down-run sha…

§ 7.251. General. The installation of stairway inclined lifts in buildings other than private residences is prohibited, except when all of the following are complied with, as well as the specifications set forth in the remainder of this Subchapter: (1) The lift shall not be insta…

§ 7.252. Capacity, load and speed. (a) The capacity of stairway inclined lifts in buildings other than private residences shall not exceed two persons. (b) The rated load shall be not less than 250 pounds for a single seat lift and not less than 400 pounds for a lift having two s…

§ 7.253. Carriages. (a) Specifications. The carriage or chair shall have a foot platform with a seat or seats and an outer arm rest and a back so arranged as to provide safe support for passengers, provided they are of the self-locking type. Swivel-type seats are permitted. (b) T…

§ 7.254. Free passageway on stairway. Equipment shall be so constructed as to permit a free passageway width of not less than 32 inches throughout the length of the stairway. If the seat and platform fold automatically when not in use, this clearance may be measured from the fold…

§ 7.255. Power unit. The power unit may be mounted on the carriage or placed at a remote location. If remotely located, all intervening sheaves or sprockets shall be placed so that the rope or chain travels in proper alignment. All sheaves shall be enclosed or guarded.

§ 7.256. Operating device. Operating shall be by continuous-pressure, key-operated switches, at the terminal landings only. Switches shall be so arranged that they do not remain in the ‘‘run’’ position unless forcibly held in such position, and automatically return to the ‘‘off’’…

§ 7.257. Winding drums, sheaves and rope grooves. Winding drums and sheaves shall be composed of cast iron or steel. The diameter of drums or sheaves shall be not less than 30 times the diameter of the wire hoist-ropes and shall have machined rope-grooves. An exception exists whe…

§ 7.258. Connecting means. (a) When the carriage is connected to the driving machine by a rope, cable or chain, any one of the following connecting means may be used: (1) Steel or iron elevator wire rope. (2) Steel aircraft cable. (3) Roller chain. (b) The diameter of ropes or ca…

§ 7.259. Terminal stopping devices. Upper and lower normal terminal stopping switches operated by the carriage shall be provided and set to stop it at the normal top and bottom terminals of travel. A final terminal stopping switch, operated by the carriage, shall be provided and …

§ 7.260. Machine brake and driving machine. (a) A machine brake of the electrically-released, spring-applied type shall be provided. Self-locking drives utilizing a lead-screw or other positive gearing which will stop and hold the carriage with rated load within four inches of do…

§ 7.261. Electric wiring. Electric wiring shall comply with Chapter 39, Subchapter B (relating to electric safety).

§ 7.271. Applicability. This Subchapter applies to all types of freight elevators. Cross References This section cited in 34 Pa. Code § 7.291 (relating to general).

§ 7.272. Shaftway construction. (a) New shaftways—general. Shaftways of freight elevators erected in buildings over two stories in height shall be constructed of fire-resistive material, except when overhead loads are carried on a steel or angle iron tower, or by the structural p…

§ 7.273. Shaftway equipment. (a) Bumpers. Power-driven freight elevators, except those of the sidewalk type, shall be constructed with solid, spring, air, or oil bumpers, or equivalent devices. Such bumpers or equivalent devices, except solid bumpers, shall be capable of reducing…

§ 7.274. Shaftway clearances. Shaftway clearances shall conform to the following: (1) New freight elevators, except handpower, sidewalk, plunger, hydraulic or plunger hydrosteam types, shall be so constructed that the minimum clearance between the highest point of the elevator ca…

§ 7.275. Landing doors. Landing doors shall be provided in conformance with the following: (1) All installations. The shaftways of freight elevators, where required to be of fire-resistive construction, shall be equipped at floor landings with approved fire-resistive landings doo…

§ 7.276. Latches. Latches shall be provided on the shaftway side of all landing doors for power-driven freight elevators, except automatic conrol elevators, which effectively lock the doors when they are in a closed position. This requirement does not apply when the landing doors…

§ 7.277. Locking devices. (a) When the landing doors of power-driven freight elevators, except automatic control elevators, are of the manually operating type, an approved automatic locking device shall be placed on, or attached to, such doors. This requirement does not apply whe…

§ 7.278. Landing gates. (a) Where required. Landing gates shall be provided at the landings of all freight elevator shaftways not required to be constructed of fire-resistive materials. Gates shall also be provided at each landing of freight elevator shaftways constructed of fire…

§ 7.279. Machinery. (a) Overhead machinery for freight elevators in new installations shall be securely fastened or cleated to its supports to prevent movement. Cleats are not required where the ropes lead perpendicularly from both sides of the driving shaft. Overhead bearings, e…

§ 7.280. Cables. (a) Number required. At least two hoisting and two counterweight cables shall be provided on all new freight elevators raised and lowered by cables. At least three hoisting cables shall be used on new traction-type freight elevators. The operation of existing ele…

§ 7.281. Elevator cars. (a) The cars of new power-driven freight elevators shall have all sides not used as a means of ingress or egress solidly enclosed. Grille, perforated or solid metal may be used from a point 6 feet above the car floor to the underside of the car top. The to…