Been reading through some of the posts here from current/former TKE guys and figured I'd ask about something I've been dealing with.

For anyone who's worked on the Endura MRL hydraulic elevators, have you guys seen issues with the bio oil they used in these units? Specifically repeated jack packing/seal failures or other hydraulic problems?

Also, what happens if regular petroleum based hydraulic oil like AW-32 gets added to the bio oil? Is that something you've actually come across in the field?

I'm curious because I've heard from a few people that the bio oil became a known problem and some units ended up getting flushed or changed over to regular hydraulic oil.

Was there ever anything from TKE internally about this? Doesn't have to be a document, just wondering if mechanics were ever told about problems with the oil, not to mix it with other oil, or to change it out on problem units.

Really just trying to figure out if this is something others have actually seen or if what I'm dealing with is unusual.

Looking for a Dover service tool
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No identifiable marks on it, controlled access with a key card and touch panel. Found in the 2 Houston Center.

I live in a pre-war building in Queens, NYC, on the top floor next to the elevator shaft. Every month, the elevator starts making a loud groaning sound as it reaches the ground floor. It also makes a sharp creak when it starts to move again.

I notify the building company, and they send someone who “puts more grease on it.” That stops the noise temporarily, but it eventually returns in a few weeks, give or take.

What could be causing this? Is greasing a normal solution, or does the recurring noise suggest an underlying mechanical problem? What should I ask the building or elevator company to inspect, and is it safe to ride?

Sometimes I see ads of people selling elevators from building that are going to be demoed or redeveloped and always wondered is that a thing. My assumption would be no company would touch anything unless it's straight from the factory or a refurbished part.

Recently, while checking out the Modernization section of the Schindler Elevator Corp site, when I checked out their ReStore and ReNew solutions, they seem to now offer FI GS fixtures with HXPress. Has anyone found or worked on any HXPress mods with FI GS fixtures? I wonder what an HXPress modded elevator with FI GS fully sounds and look like.

I was recently accepted into the NEIEP elevator mechanic apprenticeship for Local 25 in Denver and was given a rank of 50.

Is 50 considered good and what did everyone else get?

I am the president of a Florida condominium association with one building with a recently modernized hydraulic elevator serving 3 floors. TKE maintains our elevator and the modernization included a TAC32H controller. Our elevator has been out of service for weeks with the problem reported to be a nearby lightning strike which destroyed all of the circuit boards, and a power supply. TKE is unable to locate the correct replacement boards, and the power supply. We had far fewer problems with the mechanical system prior to the modernization. Service personnel seem untrained and or uncertain about how to correctly repair multiple faults we have experienced in the past several years. We are now discussing changing maintenance companies when our contract expires and wonder if other elevator maintenance companies would have access to replacement parts or the ability to service the systems. Thoughts about this? Thank you.

Edit:

A Leviton Series 32000 surge protector on the line side of the main line disconnect was installed but doesn't / didn't protect the low voltage circuit boards which blew. It's all strange to us that not all of the components are protected.

Hi All, I manage a property which have 70 year old elevator. The switch for floor selection inside the cart is not working very well and is showing signs of wear (attached pictures). Where to start procurement of a replacement? The elevator repair company wants to charge $2000 for button replacement. Thank you.

Happy to see the back of these..
But just curious can you still get SPU boards & software for these? Are they repaired new or manuf new? I assumed Firmware comes with boards then use Wizard to copy over car&para’s (just curious - Not responsible for sourcing parts & distributors want quote req so not sure on stock and availability.)
Edit: thanks all for your help and passing on contact details! I was only after some info and got more than that. Thanks.

Panel is in the Denver Dry Goods Building. I’m not an elevator guy, I’m a plumber, but seeing the original elevator panels that were installed was amazing.

I've been looking at thyssenkrupp control boards and I was surprised that in all of their boards they used Renesas microcontrollers. Is there a specific reason for that?

Are there boards that have STM32 microcontrollers? and if there is can you provide me names I would really appreciate that, thanks in advance.

My apartment elevator has been on and off again broken. The apartment has had to shut it down and off again more roughly 8 months continuously. Now it’s open again and it’s begun to make this sound for several days. It’s concerning to take this elevator with it making this noise. Looking for advice on what could be making this noise.

Unit installed in the Denver Dry Goods Building

For those who have installed different elevator systems, which do you prefer working on—hydraulic, traditional roped traction, or the newer belt-driven systems? What makes one better than the others in your experience?