On Jan. 15, renovations began on the south elevator in the Administration Building, with plans to update the north elevator immediately after. In an effort to limit inconvenience and to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act’s standards for accessible design throughout the duration of project, the updates will be completed in two phases, permitting maintenance on one elevator shaft at a time.
Updates to the south elevator have tentatively been scheduled for completion in April, allowing the north elevator updates beginning immediately after. Updates to the north elevator should be completed by mid-June, according to Jim Rathbun, a Facilities Engineer for Michigan Tech. The elevators were originally installed at the time of the Administration Building’s construction in 1969. Until now, the elevators have only undergone routine maintenance and cosmetic updates. “The existing controls and motors are outdated. You can’t find parts for them anymore. A lot of times the manufacturer has to actually manufacture a part to fix it,” said Gregg Richards, Director of Engineering Services.
The elevator modernization project is part of a series of updates across campus that were funded by a $25 million bond approved in May 2015 by the Michigan Tech Board of Trustees, formerly the Board of Control. “The bid for the elevator work itself is $305,000,” said Rathbun, “We have $350,000 for the overall budget to account for additional electrical work and modifications required in the elevator mechanical room.”
In addition to holding an elevator contract with Michigan Tech, ThyssenKrupp, an elevator supply contractor, also won the bid for the modernization project. The entire elevator assembly will be replaced, including the motor, cables, and all controls. “Just about everything you don’t see in the elevator will be updated: the controls, the interfaces with the riders,” said Rathbun. “There will also be different up and down buttons, and there will be floor indicators on each floor now.”
Although still in the planning stages, the Academic Office Building elevator, as well as the Memorial Union Building freight elevator may also see upgrades in the future. Both elevators are manually operated at this time. While the AOB elevator, installed in 1931, is grandfathered in to the codes of the building, and is not legally required to be updated, it fails to meet current ADA codes so the University may choose to update it. “We’re still studying the AOB. We’re trying to figure out the best solution there,” said Rathbun. “We have some different options to look at.”
The aforementioned $350,000 elevator budget will not cover the modifications to the MUB or the AOB elevators as neither of these elevator projects has been approved yet.
