The two cycles that matter
Massachusetts elevator inspections run on two cadences: an annual inspection and a five-year full load test. The five-year is the one most facility managers worry about, because it is the more involved of the two and frequently surfaces remediation items that the annual misses.
Both inspections are conducted by the Massachusetts Department of Public Safety (DPS), Elevator Section. They cannot be self-performed by your service contractor. But your contractor should be present at the inspection, walking the unit ahead of the inspector and coordinating any cited items.
What gets inspected on the annual
The annual inspection is essentially a safety verification. The inspector confirms:
- Door operation, including reversal, restrictor, and gibs
- Leveling accuracy at all floors
- Fire service Phase I and Phase II operation
- Pit and overhead clearances
- Hoistway condition (no debris, no trip hazards, no improper storage)
- Safety device function (governor, safeties, buffers)
- Controller fault history and basic dispatch logic
A good service contractor will walk every unit 30 to 60 days before the inspector arrives. Anything that would be cited gets corrected pre-inspection, so the certificate closes out cleanly the first time.
What changes in the five-year
The five-year inspection adds a full load test: the car is loaded to its capacity rating and run through full speed, full overspeed, and a buffer test. Hydraulic units add a pressure test on the cylinder. Traction units add a brake test under load.
The five-year is where older equipment frequently shows its age. A car that passes the annual without comment can fail a load test if the brake is glazed, the safeties are out of adjustment, or the governor is sluggish. This is one of the most common reasons buildings discover that their equipment is approaching modernization territory.
How to stay ahead of the calendar
The simplest answer is: have your service contractor manage it. Every unit in our system is tracked with a 90, 60, and 30 day alert window. We schedule the inspector, attend the inspection, fix any cited items, and deliver the closed-out certificate to the building.
If you are managing inspections in-house, the minimum hygiene is:
- Maintain a master list of every unit with its last inspection date
- Add the next-inspection date to a calendar 90 days out, not the day-of
- Pull the unit’s certificate of operation and keep it accessible (DPS asks for it)
- Pre-walk the unit two to four weeks before the inspection date
- Have the technician on-site for the inspection itself, not on call
Common citation categories
The most common citations on annual inspections in Massachusetts:
- Door restrictor or gibs. Wear-and-tear items that need adjustment.
- Leveling accuracy. Drift on traction equipment, or a worn check valve on hydraulics.
- Pit and overhead. Debris, improper storage, missing safety devices.
- Fixture and signal. Burned-out hall lanterns, non-functional Braille plates.
None of these are catastrophic. All of them are avoidable with a contractor who actually walks the equipment ahead of the inspector.
When in doubt, call
If you are not sure whether your equipment is current, when your next inspection is due, or what shape it is likely to be in, the easiest path is to ask. We will walk it for free as part of a service-agreement evaluation.