Nationwide review of lift operations, upkeep needed

The recent spate of reported lift incidents in Housing and Development Board (HDB) blocks is unfortunate (“Another lift accident leaves woman with a fracture”; June 10, and “Could China-made HDB lifts be less reliable?”; June 11).

It may thus be timely for the authorities to study these incidents in detail, and to perform a cause-and-effect analysis to arrest the problem, if these have not been carried out.

The age of the faulty lifts, their manufacturers, the maintenance contractors concerned, and the history of any breakdowns and repairs done should be duly documented. Any tell-tale symptoms before an incident, the nature of the incident itself and their probable causes, determined after an investigation, should be thoroughly examined.

The objective is to identify any possible common thread to these incidents so that pre-emptive actions can minimise such an occurrence.

More importantly, the useful lifespan of all HDB lifts should be reviewed as their “planned obsolescence” cycles may vary among the various lift manufacturers.

Furthermore, some manufacturers may have steadily shortened their “planned obsolescence” cycles over the years.