Posted By Mark McFarlane We were advised following a risk assessment from our lift maintainers to fit infra-red sensors. Previously the doors would reopen only on contact with an obstruction, such as a person, but having now done this it does help minimise the risk of injury. Also I understand that blocking the doors to keep them open, rather than using the key, is not good for the lift.

Posted By Frank Hallett Jon Marks response will not stop people throwing themselves into the ever-shrinking gap but it will reduce the consequences! If you can find a way of actually preventing any part of people getting caught in the lift doors 100% of the time you'd better take out a patent for it! It's mostly going to be down to behavioural rather than physical safety though - human nature will alsways out! Frank Hallett

Posted By Andy Petrie There are a couple of odd risks that have to be considered with lift doors. One is that a toggle on a childs coat or a child harness could get caught and get dragged up/down. (This is also a problem with dog leads). The second, and more subtle one occurs with glass door lifts. If someone presses there hand against the glass it can stick (due to the suction) and be draggged into the door mechanism when the door opens. Again, this is a particular problem with children. One solution to this is to have etched glass on the doors to reduce the chance of a hand sticking. The etched glass has to be on the side which can be touched.

Posted By jom Is there any record of persons being injured or killed by being caught in lift doors? The report I read last year was of a person in the US being beheaded. If it happens once, it'll happen again. The public acts with total confidence that placing a limb in the door will prevent it from leaving.

Posted By jom Thanks Eric. >been left with their hand jammed in the >landing door when the lift car has either >gone up or down And if their arm had extended through the lift door? Would it be torn off? >We all know we shouldn't stick our arms Really? I have never read or heard any warning about this hazard. J.

Posted By jom "No, the arm would not be torn off if it extended to the lift car door because the car doors would retract (and so would the landing doors). " Hi Eric. Surely it's the case that the doors would *probably* open. It all depends on the sensors and wiring and control logic being in perfect working order, doesn't it? The incident I mentioned before seems to be true. This is taken from the snopes website:- "Mike Lubben, vice president of Kone, said the company still was reviewing the state report but an internal investigation concluded that a wire in an electrical panel was incorrectly connected. "This contributed to a malfunction in the elevator doors," Lubben said. "Kone is deeply saddened by this incident. We offer our deepest condolences to the family of Dr. Nikaidoh." " They reported other elevator door deaths. J.

Posted By Chris Black Placing a part of your anatomy between the doors is definitely to be discouraged. Would you use an interlocked guard as a means of stopping fast-moving machinery? Would you lie down in the road to stop a bus? Extreme examples perhaps, but all are realy relying unnecessarily on a chain of people you dont know doing their jobs properly. every week I see pople stick a hand in between the sliding doors between the carriages of trains, some are clearly stuck whilst the door stops, resets and then opens. all the while there is pressure (albeit not particularly strong) on the person. They probably wont do it again. Even in "this country" there are signs in many lifts advising users not to stand or place any object between the doors as they close.