COVID-19: 7 Valuable Tips You Need to Know While Using an Elevator

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered virus called the Coronavirus. This disease spreads from one person to another through small droplets from the nose or mouth which are spread when a person with COVID-19 coughs or exhales. It can stay on the surfaces of elevator buttons and escalator handrails for about 8 hours. As and when people return back to their normal life, one of the questions that arises in people’s mind is: “Is it safe to use the elevator”? For most people working in skyscrapers, using an elevator with safety precautions becomes a necessity. It is always better to be safe than sorry.

Here are the 7 safety tips you must know before using an elevator.

1. Avoid direct contact with the Elevator buttons

An Elevator button is one of the mediums where we can find traces of the virus. This means that there is a high risk of getting infected, just by touching the buttons. To restrict the spread of virus in elevators, refrain from touching the elevator buttons with your bare hands.

If in case you use your hands, it is best advised to avoid touching your face. You can still contain the spread of the virus if you do not touch your face. Remember to sanitize your hands / wash it immediately with an alcohol-based sanitizer or soap.

2. Maintain Social Distance in Elevators

Another safety net that can be used for minimizing the spread of the infection, is by maintaining social distance inside the elevator. Maintaining a safe distance between yourself and the other person eliminates the risk of being affected by the virus.

If an elevator car is full, it is essential that you pace yourself and wait for the next one. It is best to travel in an elevator by your own or with a very few people to limit the spread of respiratory diseases. The best solution is to consider taking the stairs whenever possible, as it also aids to your fitness goals. These measures will not only keep you safe but also prioritizes the usage of the elevators by the elderly and the disabled.

3. Regular cleaning of Elevators

It is a good practice to have your elevators sanitized at regular intervals. Coronavirus can stay in the air or surfaces like buttons and doors for a considerable period of time. Most elevators do not have a mechanical ventilation system except for the natural ventilation occurring during the opening and closing of doors. This can increase the risk of the virus spread, as the infection in the air tends to stay for a longer duration.

Instruct your facility management team to increase their cleaning on the buttons, handrails, walls, doors, and the touch-screen panels with the right amount of disinfectant.

4. Elevator Etiquette

In order to maintain safety and security, it is essential that we go back to basics. Adhering to a list of protocols will help you as well as the opposite person stay disease free.

When entering an elevator,

One or two, the passenger occupies one side of a wall.
Three or four, each one of them takes a corner.
Five or six, all of them turn to face the door, get taller and thinner, hands and purses and briefcases are used to create a barrier.

It is ideal to maintain a distance of 1.2 – 3.6m space between two people. Below this distance you might be stepping on to someone’s personal space.

Now, what is the behavioral code to follow in an elevator?

Stay clear of the doors
Avoid placing your belongings from the elevator openings
The passenger near the door needs to exit first, paving the way for the others to leave
Place your elevator call and wait patiently. Constantly pressing the buttons doesn’t make your elevator come to your floor any sooner.
Avoid selecting your destination yourself, if there is a passenger standing before you. Be polite and courteous to your fellow passenger to select your floor.
Do not try to stop a closing door, patiently wait for the next car.

5. Precautions to take if you are stuck in an elevator during Covid-19

Have you ever thought of getting stuck in an elevator, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic? Even the sound of this idea in a normal scenario could be traumatizing. If in case, you come across a scenario like this, here are the steps to follow.

Do not panic. Panicking worsens the situation.
Avoid trying to exit the elevator on your own. All elevators are wired with an emergency alarm button that is audible to those in the vicinity.
Use the elevator phone to get help.

Remaining calm and adhering to the necessary precautions reduces the risk of getting infected. And, do not forget to sanitize your hands after the ride and avoid touching your face.

6. Make the most of Technology

The novel coronavirus has created new challenges for the facility management and elevator companies to come up with new technologies that adhere to the safety of the individuals. Touchless technologies like destination dispatch (passengers register their destination at an input device at the elevator landing) have spiked the sudden interest of the consumers.

Other elevator products that are being developed by various companies are.

Mobile phones to call elevators.
Antiviral stickers on buttons.
Lobby concierge-run elevators
Fast service for elevator rides
UV-light HVAC purification systems
Customized buttons to aid passengers to select their destination with either their feet, voice or hand gestures.

7. Safety first

“A stitch in time saves nine”,

Taking precautions like wearing masks, remaining quiet, not leaning on the walls can make your elevator rides safe for you and others. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends every elevator user to face the walls to reduce the spread and eliminate the risk of being infected.

We, Professional Elevators, are an ISO 9001:2015 certified company with the motto of continuous development and pacing with modern technology globally. Our highly skilled and experienced engineers have come up with “Professional Instinct”, an innovative and truly touchless solution for safe elevator travel. Our technology has been developed around three major crucial pillars.

1. Truly Touchless system

The truly touchless system does not require the usage of any card, mobile or Bluetooth system to operate the elevator. This system is designed in such a way that you can access the elevator by pointing your fingers 3 centimeters away from the button. This will activate the button and your elevator call will be placed. Upon entering the elevator, aim your finger 3 centimeters away from the button to make your selection. Since this system does not require any device mechanism, it is easy and hassle-free to use.

2. Non-Fidgeting system

The engineers at Professional Elevators have designed a foolproof intelligent system called the Non-Fidgeting System. It has been built in such a way that pointing multiple fingers or hand gestures will not make a selection. The call will be placed only when one finger is placed in the vicinity. A change in color of the button indicates the acceptance of the selection.

This intelligent system gives the illusion of pressing the button, but without actually touching it.

3. Can be integrated with any Elevator

The good news is that this system can be integrated with your existing elevators. All you have to do is, install our intelligent touchless system and our engineers will help you with the integration.

4. Speed

This is by far the fastest calling mechanism, as there is no need for a mobile phone or Bluetooth or a swipe card. You can access the elevator by pointing your finger at a distance away from the button and your call is placed.

Thus, the Professional Instinct system saves time and cost for everyone who uses the elevator. This makes your journey in the elevator completely safe and easy.

With the risk of diseases being spread from one person to another, continuing to maintain a clean and safe elevator system is crucial to help people return back to their work and have a safe living.

Here are the 7 safety tips you must know before using an elevator.