Pneumatic Home Elevators are not currently allowed in Massachusetts. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is one of the only remaining States in the Nation that has not approved this elevator. The manufacturer, Pneumatic Vacuum Elevators, LLC (located in Florida), has approached the Massachusetts Elevator Safety Board a number of times, most recently earlier in 2015, and the Board of Elevator’s stance is that they are operating on the ASME A17.1 2004 version of the elevator code, which does not accept reference their ASME A17.7 certification. They have also stated the technology does not meet the MA specific 524 CMR requirements, which is not the case. Just like with the ASME A17.1 2007 code, it meets if not exceeds their safety requirements, but just do it in a different way. PVE has actually presented the MA Elevator Safety Board with all of the technical documentation showing how the product and technology meets, if not exceeds their code requirements where PVE may deviate from the code. The documentation of which has been generated with Liftinstituut, an American National Standards Institute approved by AECO.
On September 14, 2015, PVE along with Nationwide Lifts presented a demo of the PVE37 to the state inspectors and the Board of Elevator Regulations. Although the demo went very well and all of their questions were answered, we have been advised to wait for the code to be updated to version 2013 and re-apply for a product variance at that time.
To explain further, Mass follows the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME A17.1) version 2004 Safety Code for Elevators. We are hoping that the state updates the code to version 2013 by March 31, 2017, however there is still no guarantee that the DPS will allow the Pneumatic home elevator in this state. Although this elevator has proven to be a safe, economically priced solution for many homeowners throughout the United States and Internationally, the Massachusetts Department of Public Safety will be eliminating the section of the code (ASME A17.7) that would enable this product to be installed.
Pneumatic Vacuum Elevators, LLC (PVE) has been manufacturing Pneumatic Vacuum Elevators since 2002. PVE presently has over 8,000 elevators in 65+ countries worldwide, with a flawless safety record. This elevator is certified under the ASME A17.7 certification, which was obtained from our Accredited Elevator/ Escalator Certification Organization (AECO) Liftinstituut in 2010. It meets, if not exceeds, all of the safety requirements of the traditional ASME A17.1 Elevator Safety Code, except that the traditional ASME A17.1 code does not list “Pneumatics” as a means of conveyance in section 5.3 of the Residential Elevator Safety Code. With the industry realizing the need to identify and certify new technology products on the market, any version of the ASME A17.1 code from 2007 onward, references the compliance with the ASME A17.1 code can be achieved by conformance with the requirements in ASME A17.1, which PVE does.
We will attempt to apply for another product variance early in 2017 once the 2013 version of the code is in effect. Thank you for your continued interest. We will be sure to post any updates as they occur.
