Events

The Roundtable on the implementation of the Rulebook on lifts safety has been held

The Ministry of Finance and Economy, on 17 October 2012. year, held a Round table on the implementation of the Rulebook on lifts safety, with the presence of designated conformity assessment body for lifts, designated CA bodies for control of lifts, public utility companies and other organisation for lift maintenance producers of component and installers of lifts,economy operators that are owners of buildings where elevators are in use, members of the Working group that have prepared the text of the Rulebook, as well as representatives of ministries and other institutions that are relevant for the implementation of the legislation (Ministry of foreign and domestic trade and Telecommunications, the Ministry of Finance and Economy, the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social policy-Occupational Safety and Health Directorate, the Ministry of Interior, the Accreditation Body of Serbia, Serbian Institute for Standardization).

The round table discussed the issues that arise in everyday practice, relating to the implementation of the Rulebook on the lifts safety, which came into force on January 2011.

It was noted that so far, three conformity assessment bodies for lifts have been designated. These bodies were also designated for the control of lifts that are in use.

As regards to the sertification of safety components for lifts, the problem that was emphasised by the representative of conformity assessment bodies is that mentioned procedures requires the purchase of very expensive equipement, and that there is no economically sustainable plan that could allow the procurement of such equipement.

The representatives of Ministry of Finance and Economy have stressed that the problem councurning the sertification of lifts safety components, would be overcome in cooperation with the Accreditacion Body of Serbia, by the specification of conditions and procedures for implementation of EA MLA Agreement (signed in may this year between Acreditation Body of Serbia and the members of EA) in the concrete field. The implementation of EA MLA Agreement in the field of certification of safety of lifts component, could refere on article 10. paragraph 2. of the Regulation of manner of performing the conformity assessment, content of the document of conformity, and shape, appeariance, and content of mark of conformity (Official Journal of RS no. 98/09) that stipulates, in the case of such agreements, domestic designated body could issue the domestic document on conformity based on a document of conformity issued by accredited body in the EA MLA signatory agreement, without following stipulated conformity assessment procedure.

The discussion is further elaborated the question of extended date for implementation of Rulebook requirements for control of existing lifts, ie. lifts that are installed in buildings under the old legislation (deadline for beginning of its implementation of the Rulebook: 1.January 2014.). It was concluded that it is necessary that all participants of the meeting should communicate to the Ministry of Finance and Economy all relevant information they have disposed, in order to reconsider question from the practice view point.

In further discussion, the issues related to the competence for control of lifts in use have been considered. As a special question, regarding competence for control of lits installed in buildings used in working process to has been discussed, ie. issue of licenses issued by the Ministry of Employment and Social Affairs - Occupational Safety and Health Directorate. It was concluded that a comparative analysis of the reports on control, issued by designated bodies should be made, as well as the analyses on expert findings issued by licensed entities. Designeted conformity assessment bodies and licensed entities should communicate copies of reports and expert findigs to the competent authority.

Further, the inspection survelliance in this field has been considered.

Delegates of maintenance and bodies designated for control of lifts have stressed the problem that are no inspections in the field of lifts used in residential buildings, leading to a serious blockage in the implementation of prescribed requirements for lifts.

At the end of the meeting the implementation of regulations in the field of fire protection in lifts installations has been discused, with the conclusion that further analysis of all existing requirements for fire resistance of lift and its components, in order to allow proper implementation of legislation.

It is concluded that in future such meetings and round tables will be periodically organized in this field as well as in other fields of implementation of technical regulations, because this way allows the analysis of the implementation and effects of the legislation in practice and their optimal use.