As the saying goes, ‘what goes up, must come down’. Due to advances in technology, platform lifts are extremely reliable these days. However, there may be a time where the equipment fails or there is a power cut to the building. In these instances, you may have to Emergency Lower the lift in order to release the user. Emergency Lowering methods vary greatly depending upon the lift type and the drive method. Some lifts will have battery backed emergency lowering, meaning that you just press the regular down button. Others will have a valve handle at the pump which you open like a tap and some will need to be wound down by hand. When considering which platform lift is most suitable for the intended use and environment, it is important to understand how the emergency lowering procedure works. If you are not sure, then ask the originator of the quotation.
As the name suggests, Emergency Lowering is designed to get you down to the lowest landing in the event of a power or product failure, but what if your lift is serving a basement? In this instance, you might not want the lift to Emergency Lower but instead to Emergency raise (back up to the ground floor). In this instance, some lifts can be supplied with a UPS (uninterrupted power supply) which means that the lift can be powered upwards by using batteries.
