Manufacturer’s Instructions, Data Tags, and Data Plates

This directive is being issued by a provincial safety manager pursuant to section 30 of the Safety Standards Act.

Part 1: Background

This directive clarifies the requirements for adhering to manufacturer’s instructions regarding installation, maintenance, and testing of elevators, escalators, moving walks, dumbwaiters, and material lifts, specifically when those requirements are not identified in the Code or Regulation. The ASME A17.1-2016/CSA B44-16 Code (the Code) mandates the use of various tags and plates to provide certain key information on-site and outline the required instructions for elevator personnel and inspectors. These include data tags, test tags, data plates, capacity plates, marking plates, and code data plates.

Sections 8.10 and 8.6 of the Code outline the requirements for inspection, testing, and regular maintenance of elevator equipment. For any device not covered in section 8.10 or 8.6, the manufacturer’s instructions are key to define the requirements for installation, maintenance, and testing of the device.

Part 2: General Details

When passengers’ safety is dependent on a device that is not specifically covered in section 8.10 (inspection and testing) or section 8.6 (maintenance), the device shall be inspected and tested in accordance with the requirements of the manufacturer or the altering company’s procedures (see 8.10.1.7 and 8.6.1.7.5), regardless of whether the safety concern is immediate or long-term.

Similarly, for backup systems, the presence of a hazard or risk is not dependent on its immediacy or the level of redundancy of the installed devices. The devices must still be inspected and tested in accordance with the manufacturer’s procedures, even if a redundancy or backup system is in place, unless otherwise specified in sections 8.10 or 8.6.

Note: Any removal or disabling of these devices is classified as an alteration and must comply with section 8.7.1.2 and any relevant regulatory notices.

Unique or product-specific procedures or methods provided by the manufacturer or installer must be followed, as they have been regarded critical for maintenance, repair, replacement, inspection, or testing of equipment by the manufacturer or installer (See 8.10.1.5).

All manufacturer’s instructions and methods provided on data tags, marking plates, data plates, etc., shall be followed during installation, maintenance, repair, alteration, testing, and inspection of devices, unless sections 8.10 or 8.6 specify otherwise.

The manufacturer or installer must provide all required unique or product-specific procedures or methods (see 8.10.1.5 and 8.6.1.2.2(b)).

Manufacturer’s procedures for the devices that are not detailed in sections 8.6 or 8.10 are considered part of the manufacturer’s instructions as referenced in clauses 8.10.1.7 and 8.6.1.7.5 and shall be adhered to. When tags are provided, this information must be verified during installation to ensure compliance with the manufacturer’s or altering company’s procedures.

Note: Data tags supplied by the manufacturer must be installed intact and without modification.

Summary Table: Interaction between the Code and the Manufacturer’s Instructions for Installation, Testing, Maintenance, or Specifications

* Note: If there is any conflict between the manufacturer’s instructions and the ASME A17.1-2016/CSA B44-16 code requirements, the Code shall prevail.

Note: If discrepancies exist between this document and the ASME A17.1-2016/CSA B44-16 Code, the Code prevails.

(1) Alterations
When there is an alteration to the elevator, a code data plate must be provided (see 8.7.1.8 and 8.6.1.5). The data plate must conform to 8.9.1 and shall include:
- the code and edition in effect at the time of alteration, and
- the applicable requirements in section 8.7.
(2) List of tags and plates required by the Code
The attached Excel spreadsheet provides a summary of code requirements on data tags, data plates, capacity plates, marking plates, code data plates, and test tags. For further details, refer to the Code.
(3) Damaged or missing signs and plates
Missing or damaged signs and data plates must be repaired or replaced during maintenance (see 8.6.1.6.7).

Part 3: Documentation

Any unique or product-specific procedures required to maintain, repair, replace, inspect, or test the equipment as well as procedures for inspections and tests not described in ASME A17.2 must be provided by the manufacturer or installer (see 8.10.1.5 and 8.6.1.2.2(b)), and must remain on-site, installed in full, and kept intact.

Documentation containing the testing procedures or maintenance requirements for the devices mentioned above shall remain with the equipment and be available with the on-site documentation (see 8.6.1.2.2, 8.10.1.7, and 8.6.1.7.5) for inspection and maintenance personnel.

This documentation and data tags must be maintained and be available on-site throughout the equipment's lifespan.

This directive is being issued by a provincial safety manager pursuant to section 30 of the Safety Standards Act.

Nav Chahal
Provincial Safety Manager – Elevating Devices

References:

Safety Standards Act
Elevating Devices Safety Regulation
Safety Standards General Regulation
ASME A17.1-2016/CSA B44-16

Appendix:

Data Plates and Tags - Summary of Code Requirements.xlsx