In 2026, elevator safety compliance is more scrutinized by insurers, more referenced in litigation, and more likely to surface during ownership transitions and building audits. For building owners and managers, that shift has put a spotlight on a document that most buildings are required to have, but that surprisingly few owners have ever reviewed: the Maintenance Control Program, or MCP.

Behind every service contract and inspection schedule, the MCP is the written framework that governs how elevator maintenance actually gets done: what work is required, how often, by whom, and how it gets recorded. Understanding what that program should contain, and whether yours is functioning the way it should, is one of the more practical risk management steps available to anyone responsible for a building with elevators.

Who Is Responsible for Elevator MCP Compliance in Your Building

Under the 2000 and later versions of ASME A17.1/CSA B44Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators, every elevator in a covered jurisdiction must be maintained according to a written, equipment-specific MCP. The program is developed by the manufacturer and/or service contractor, and executed by your elevator service contractor. But the operating certificates are specific to the conveyances in your building, and when an inspector, insurer, or attorney goes looking for documentation after an incident, they start with the building owner.

Many Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs) across the U.S. and Canada have adopted the 2000 or later editions of ASME A17.1/CSA B44, which requires an MCP for all conveyance equipment. Even where an older code edition is still in effect locally, the practical case for having a program in place doesn’t change. An elevator taken out of service for something preventable is a problem regardless of what the local code requires.

What an Elevator Maintenance Control Program Must Include

A compliant MCP is written around the specific equipment in your building – the make, model, age, and configuration of each conveyance – and is updated if that equipment is modernized, with the components it must address defined by code.

Translated to building owner terms, the core elements of a compliant MCP include:

Scheduled Maintenance Tasks

Every required maintenance activity must be mapped to defined intervals based on manufacturer specifications, code requirements, and the actual demands placed on the equipment. A high-traffic commercial elevator and a low-use residential lift won’t share the same schedule, and a sound MCP reflects that distinction.

Elevator Personnel

The code requires maintenance to be performed by elevator personnel. The MCP should reflect who is to work on the equipment and under what conditions. Contractors who employ IUEC Elevator Constructors bring training and safety standards among the most rigorous in the industry – a meaningful consideration when evaluating service agreements.

Maintenance Records

Every task performed under the MCP must be logged: dates, scope of work, parts replaced, observations. Under ASME A17.1/CSA B44, Section 8.6.1.4 requires those records must be retained for a minimum of five years and kept available on site either physically in the machine room or electronically, depending on local requirements.

Callbacks

A record of callbacks must be maintained and include the description of reported trouble, dates, time(s) and corrective actions taken.

What Equipment an Elevator MCP Covers

The scope of an MCP varies by equipment type, but for the elevators most common in commercial and residential buildings, the program touches nearly every system in the hoistway.

For electric (traction) elevators – suspended by ropes, belts, or other means – a typical MCP covers pit equipment (stop buttons, limit switches, buffers), hoistway equipment (door locks, lighting, rail systems, smoke detectors), machine room equipment (the elevator machine itself, brakes, governors, controllers), cab equipment (door operation, emergency communications, firefighters’ operation systems, ADA devices), and hall equipment (call buttons, position indicators, firefighters’ systems), among other components.

Hydraulic elevators carry all of the above plus the components specific to their operating system: valve assemblies, pumping units, pistons, tanks, and hydraulic-specific fire suppression equipment, among other components.

For buildings with escalators or moving walks, the MCP addresses safety switches, handrail systems, step and skirt alignment, lubrication, chain and sprocket systems, and brakes, among other components.

Liability Exposure

When something goes wrong with an elevator and litigation follows, maintenance records become evidence. A well-documented MCP consistently followed over time demonstrates reasonable care. Gaps in that record, whether they be missed service intervals, incomplete logs, or an outdated or absent program, tell a different story to a jury or an insurer.

Operating Certificates

Elevators in most jurisdictions can’t legally operate without a current certificate, and certificates depend on passing periodic inspections. Depending on the code adopted by the AHJ, an inspector who finds a non-compliant or missing MCP has grounds to withhold or suspend that certificate. A building with an elevator that has been removed from service has an operational and reputational problem that compounds quickly.

Insurance

Commercial property insurers scrutinize elevator maintenance practices during underwriting and at claims review. A documented, consistently followed MCP will help avoid unwanted insurance liability.

Occupant Safety and Asset Preservation

Elevators move people through buildings thousands of times a day. The conditions that lead to failures tend to develop gradually, and a program that identifies problems early, through scheduled maintenance and complete logging, protects both the people who rely on the equipment and the long-term value of the asset itself.

How Building Owners Can Verify Elevator MCP Compliance

Building owners and facilities managers don’t need to audit the technical details of an MCP, but confirming that a sound program exists and is being followed is a reasonable ask.

Ask Where Records are Stored

Code requires maintenance records to be available on site. Know whether your building keeps physical logs in the machine room, maintains them electronically, or both, and confirm what your AHJ requires for your jurisdiction.

Review Your Maintenance Logs Periodically

Not as a technical audit, but as a basic check that service visits are happening at the intervals the program specifies. Your elevator contractor should check in and check out with the building owner or manager every time they perform service on your conveyance systems. Building owners and managers should always verify service logs have been updated during service visits. Sustained gaps between service visits are worth a conversation with your contractor, as scheduled visits should be addressed in your service contract.

Know What Your Jurisdiction Requires

State and local elevator codes vary. Your AHJ can clarify which code edition applies in your area, and what inspectors look for during periodic inspections.

Elevator Safety Resources for Building Owners and Facility Managers

The questions that MCPs raise for building owners – around liability exposure, safety planning, audit frameworks, and modernization – are exactly the territory that ElevatorInfo and the Elevator Industry Work Preservation Fund will be covering at the 2026 BOMA International Conference & Expo. For building and facilities professionals looking to move from general awareness to practical strategy, the session is a useful next step.

The riding public relies on your equipment every day, and a well-maintained, well-documented program is what keeps that reliability from being left to chance.

To find an elevator company  in your area, visit elevatorinfo.org/elevator-customers/.

To reserve your spot at the BOMA 2026 session, visit 2026.bomaconvention.org/reg.