All elevator mechanics and contractors must be licensed as of October 1

September 30 is the last day an application can be submitted for an elevator mechanic or elevator contractor license under the grandfathering clause that allows qualified applicants to be licensed without taking the state examination.

Beginning October 1, 2004, any elevator contractor or elevator mechanic who does not have the appropriate license will not be legally able to work on elevators and other conveyances. L&I may deny application if the applicant owes any outstanding penalties. Any contractor or mechanic who has outstanding penalties at the time their application is reviewed will not receive a license and may not be allowed to continue working until the issue has been resolved. Multiple branch offices of corporations performing elevator work can apply for individual elevator contractor licenses provided that the branch office applies for a separate contractor registration and also meets bonding requirements. There is no requirement to provide separate insurance policies.

Mechanic and contractor examinations scheduled

October 9, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. (Saturday)
L&I Central Office, Tumwater

The examination will be an open book examination and will consist of 100-150 multiple-choice questions. A score of at least 80 percent is required to pass the exam. Applicants requiring an examination will be notified by L&I by mail.

Applicants who will be testing for the elevator mechanic exam may prepare for the exam by studying ASME A17.1-2000, A17.1a-2002, A17.1b-2003 Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators; ASME A18.1-1999 and ASME A18.1a-2001 addenda, Safety Standard for Platform Lifts and Stairway Chairlifts; The Revised Code of Washington chapter 70.87; the Washington Administrative Code section 296-96; the National Electrical Code 2003; the International Building Code 2003; the Elevator Industry Field Employees’ Safety Handbook; The Installation Manual and the Elevator Maintenance Manual.

Applicants who will be testing for the elevator contractor exam may prepare for the exam by studying the Revised Code of Washington chapters 70.87, 18.27 and 49.17 and the Washington Administrative Code sections 296-96 and 296-200A.

Applicants should also bring these materials with them to the examination. L&I will not supply reference materials for the exam.

September 2004

September 30: Grandfathering period for licensing ends.

October 2004

October 9: Elevator mechanic and contractor exam
9 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Location: L&I Central Office, Tumwater

October 20-21: Statewide elevator inspectors' meeting/training, L&I Tukwila office (not a public meeting, inspectors not available on these days).

Location: Tukwila L&I office

November 2004

November 16: Advisory Committee meeting, 9-11 a.m.

Location: Tukwila L&I office

November 16: Industry Meeting immediately following the Advisory Committee meeting, (industry participants only; not a public meeting)
11 a.m. - noon

Location: Tukwila L&I office

Lockboxes and keys

I have received numerous inquiries regarding where the required lockboxes equipped with a one-inch cylinder cam lock key #35904 can be purchased. After polling the inspectors, I am told that these lockboxes and keys may be purchased at Nyberg Lock in Seattle. It was also suggested that Chicago Lock and Key may have this item available as well.

Elevator Look-Up web service improved

The date feature on the Elevator Look-Up portion of our website that was discussed in our last newsletter has been corrected. If you would like to see what elevators were inspected during a particular time frame simply enter the to and from dates using the format dd/mm/yyyy. This will bring up all the units that were inspected by our department during that time frame.

Q: Is the State of Washington allowing installations without machine rooms?

A: Various manufacturers have applied for and been granted permission to install elevators without traditional machine rooms throughout Washington, and in Seattle and Spokane.

The State of Washington and the City of Seattle collaborated on approval for Otis’ GEN 2 product, ThyssenKrupp’s ISIS product and Fujitec’s Talon product. On all these products, the machine is located in the hoistway rather than in the traditional machine room. The collaborative effort will aid in maintaining consistency on installation requirements and help ease the process for manufacturers throughout the state.

Currently, machine rooms are required for all of these products to house the controller for the elevator equipment. The only exception in Washington is the KONE Monospace product, which has been approved by the State of Washington. This product has a controller closet instead of a machine room. Approval for this product was given on an experimental basis, was limited to a small number of installations and/or locations, and was installed under specific guidelines.

If you are a contractor or an architect and have questions regarding those specific guidelines,please contact our Tumwater office at 360-902-6128 for more information.

September 2004
Edition 14

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