Elevator Doors That Close on People
By Jay Romano
Q: The elevators in my co-op building close after a certain amount of time regardless of whether someone is in the way. The doors reopen only if someone inside the elevator presses the open-door button. Since I have two children and use a double stroller, I am worried about one of us getting injured. I called the management company several times to complain, but the problem has not been fixed. At one time, they told us they do not think the doors can be programmed to remain open if something or someone is in the way. Is this legal? . . . Aryela Lattin, Manhattan.
A: Tony Szabo, chief engineer at RAND Engineering in Manhattan, said that elevators in New York are required to be outfitted with a device that opens a closing door if someone or something is in the way.
“The standard device is known as the retractable door edge,” Mr. Szabo said, referring to the parts of the door—usually encased in rubber—that extend beyond the doors themselves. And while retractable-edge doors can be adjusted to respond to varying degrees of pressure, if they are working correctly they will indeed reverse direction when they encounter an obstacle, such as an individual standing in the doorway.
“Retractable-edge doors can be a little annoying,” he said, adding that the only way to prevent the doors from coming in contact with a person or object getting into or out of the elevator is for someone inside the elevator to hold the open-door button.
A more modern device can be used that will prevent the doors from starting to close. Or it will reverse the direction if they have already started closing—if someone or something is in the way.
“You can install an infrared sensor,” Mr. Szabo said, explaining that the device directs a beam of light across the opening. If the beam is broken, the doors do not close.
While an elevator with a retractable-edge door can be retrofitted with an infrared sensor, the cost of the retrofit, about $2,250, might make some boards hesitant. At the same time, however, Mr. Szabo said, the letter writer’s co-op should adjust or repair the doors so that they operate properly.
If the co-op does not do so, the writer can contact the New York City Department of Buildings’ Call Center, at (212) 227-7000.
From The New York Times, September 15, 2002