Chicago Elevator Constructors Celebrate 125 Years & Look Forward to 125 More

International Union of Elevator Constructors (IUEC) Local 2 recently hosted its anniversary gala at the Westin Chicago Northwest. Elevator constructors, company representatives from Otis, TK Elevator, and Cabworks Custom Elevators, distinguished retirees, and others gathered to celebrate 125 remarkable years.

Chicago elevator constructors are the individuals who helped shape – and today, maintain – one of the world’s most extraordinary skylines. The Chicago Charter of the International Union of Elevator Constructors since March 12, 1897, today Local 2 proudly represents more than 1,300 members.

IUEC Local 2’s members are some of the most respected men and women in the industry. They are well known for working together to fight for the working people of Illinois. What’s more, they understand the importance of serving one’s community – and demonstrate their commitment to making the world a better place by hosting an annual golf outing to fund diabetes research and supporting Chicago-based nonprofit Toy Box Connection.

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Elevator Union Showcases World-Class Educational Program in Austin

NEIEP Austin

The International Union of Elevator Constructors (IUEC) recently joined the National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP) and IUEC Local 133 in Austin, Texas to highlight the central role the union’s education and training program plays in creating pathways to fulfilling careers in the elevator industry.

“In the elevator trade, there is no training in the same league as the National Elevator Industry Educational Program,” said Texas AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Leonard Aguilar. “Men and women enrolled in NEIEP have access to the industry’s premier apprenticeship program – which helps them become the safest, most highly-skilled apprentices and elevator constructors in vertical transportation.”

Attendees ranged from IUEC members and lawmakers – including members of the Austin City Council – to representatives from the Texas Building Trades Council and the Texas AFL-CIO. Companies like TK Elevator, Otis, and Schindler, as well as three independent companies, were also in attendance.

Texas House Member Gina Hinojosa (District 49) and newly elected U.S. House Representative Greg Casar (District 35) took time out of their hectic schedules to visit the fair, tour each station, and talk with instructors about hands-on training and education opportunities in the organized elevator trade.

“Union apprenticeship programs create meaningful opportunities for working people throughout the Lonestar State,” said Representative Hinojosa. “IUEC members are the safest, most talented workers in the elevator industry; their NEIEP training really sets them up for success.”

“Visiting the NEIEP fair was nothing short of impressive,” said Congressman-elect Greg Casar. “As I traveled from station to station, it was clear that IUEC members go through world-class, thorough training, making union elevator constructors the best and brightest in the industry.”

With a combination of hands-on classroom and computer-based instruction, along with 8,000 hours of on-the-job learning under the supervision of an experienced mechanic, the IUEC’s apprenticeship program gives workers new to the trade all the skills they need to be successful elevator constructors. Once they complete their apprenticeship and pass a capstone Mechanic Exam, they go on to build and maintain the complex and varied conveyance systems in our nation’s most striking skylines. And as mechanics, they keep their skills sharp through dozens of online and in-person continuing education courses they can enroll in through NEIEP.

“On behalf of the more than 1,800 union elevator constructors in Texas, the NEIEP event in Austin was a great success,” said IUEC Organizer Clarence Baker. “We wanted lawmakers, companies, and others to come in and witness what it takes to become a union elevator constructor – and we did just that. From safety to electrical, each course is critical and, frankly, invaluable. Attendees saw firsthand how the knowledge and skills IUEC members take away from their four years at NEIEP ensure they are the most talented and safest workforce, and when it comes to safety, our members not only prioritize the safety of themselves and their colleagues but also that of the men, women, and children who ride elevators and escalators every day.”

The all-day event took place at the Hilton Austin, a hotel whose employees were recently organized and are now members of UNITE HERE.

“At NEIEP’s core, we are all about safety. Everything we teach and everything we do is to help apprentices stay safe at work,” said NEIEP’s Head of Development, Lester White. “Without education and training, how can employers expect any worker to feel safe on the job? Graduates of NEIEP know this complex field inside and out. What’s more, they know that nothing comes before safety – their own safety and that of the riding public.”

 

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Why Is Periodic Elevator Maintenance Important

elevator maintenance

As a building owner, scheduling periodic elevator maintenance checks on your properties is crucial to ensuring a safe ride for your passengers. Simple, routine maintenance checks performed by professional elevator mechanics can prolong elevator life and reduce energy waste, providing a smoother, safer travel experience while saving you time and money.

Routine elevator maintenance will keep your equipment clean, minimizing the chance of fire hazards while alerting building owners to any components that need to be replaced or refurbished. Ultimately, these checks ensure safety for you and your passengers.

Preventative Elevator Maintenance

Elevator breakdowns can lead to unanticipated downtime, serious injury, or worse – a catastrophic event. Preventative maintenance aims to mitigate issues with machinery through regular upkeep.

The mechanics responsible for checking the elevators will look for any critical signs of wear and tear, faults, or other problems that could impede an elevator’s proper function. They will identify damaged or worn-out parts, lubricate machinery and make adjustments or tunings to the equipment.

Preventative elevator maintenance, if done correctly, improves elevator services by ensuring your equipment runs better and lasts longer – with fewer calls to elevator repair companies to fix issues that could have been prevented.

Prolonged Elevator Life

The life expectancy of an elevator installation depends mainly on its type and intended use. Generally speaking, if an elevator is more than 20 years old, it can be considered an appropriate candidate for elevator modernization. Elevators typically end their cost-effective lives somewhere after 20 to 25 years.

Several variables are involved regarding the life expectancy of an elevator install. At the top of the list are environmental factors, service type, and changes in technology. The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) recommends mandatory maintenance checks to increase your elevators’ lifespans. Elevators without regular checks may need to be modernized within their first decade of use. For building owners, this means that instead of modernizing elevator(s) based on investment, they will have to do so out of necessity.

Increased Cost Efficiency

Maintenance checks can also help optimize the energy consumption of your building’s elevator equipment. There is a range of cost-effective solutions you can choose from to optimize aging elevator equipment, ensuring energy efficiency and significantly reducing your building’s energy costs.

Probably the best time-saving, efficient method to improve the overall reduction of elevator energy costs (up to 70%) is installing regenerative drives. These can be added to existing systems, allowing the elevator’s generated energy to be fed back into the building’s power grid and used by other loads connected to the same network. Other ways to improve energy efficiency include replacing tube lights inside the elevator car with LEDs and adding modern, energy-efficient door operator systems and other equipment.

Ultimately, routine elevator maintenance checks by qualified, capable elevator mechanics can dramatically reduce your building’s electricity bills.

Improved Elevator Travel Times

Over time, elevator travel times can seem longer, which can slowly begin to inconvenience your tenants, employees, or customers. Routine elevator inspection and maintenance checks can improve travel speed and acceleration, allowing passengers to enjoy more comfortable and faster elevator travel.

An Elevator Inspection Will Save Time and Money

You can significantly extend your elevators’ lifespans by following scheduled maintenance checks. Failing to keep elevators adequately maintained and serviced will ultimately incur downtime and elevator repair costs.

Sticking to a schedule of regular elevator maintenance checks by qualified elevator mechanics can help you avoid costly losses, saving you time and money.

A Safer Ride for Your Passengers

You must keep your building’s elevators in excellent operating condition to ensure a safe ride for your tenants, employees, or customers. Safety is the primary reason for performing routine elevator maintenance for your properties – this should be a top priority for every building owner.

All elevator installation and maintenance checks must be done only by qualified elevator mechanics. Unqualified workers may cut corners during the job and fail to do a complete and thorough inspection.

If you are looking for exceptional maintenance for your building’s elevators, contact an International Union of Elevator Constructors (IUEC) affiliated elevator company and benefit from the best-qualified elevator union labor force in the industry.

Visit www.elevatorinfo.org/elevator-customers/ for assistance finding an elevator maintenance provider in your area.

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NEIEP: Increasing Elevator Mechanics’ Safety, Knowledge, and Value

Having started her career as a mechanic and National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP) instructor in the busy Metro Denver area, NEIEP Area Coordinator Kristi Savala knows how important it is to work safe.

The best way for someone coming into the elevator trade to establish a foundation of safe work practices begins with the hands-on safety training NEIEP students receive in the classroom. This is a distinction that sets NEIEP apart from other training programs in the industry, which are offered via correspondence course.

In this video, Kristi stresses how critical it is for apprentices to have the opportunity to practice using safety equipment in the classroom – this way, they can be sure they’re using it correctly and consistently on the job. “You’ve got to build that muscle memory. If they build safety into the muscle memory, and it builds habits every day, they’re not going to forget it. That’s going to save somebody’s life someday.”

NEIEP’s safety training doesn’t end when someone passes their mechanic exam and graduates to mechanic status – it’s at the heart of the program’s Continuing Education courses as well. Kristi emphasizes the importance of continuing to learn in a trade where technology and work processes are constantly being updated. “If you keep learning, you keep growing. You become that much more valuable to your coworkers, your bosses… to other people you can pass that knowledge onto. Really great skills that you can transfer (to) so many different pathways.”

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