The malfunctioning of several elevators on campus has caused frustration among those frequently impacted and posed accessibility and safety concerns.
While it is easy to only see the negative side of the issue, light has to be shed on the many variables causing the elevator malfunctions, as well as the consistent efforts of the Office of Facility Management at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in searching for solutions to improve the issue.
Scott Hebert, the director of facility management, spoke on this matter and provided the latest information regarding the elevator repair works that the Office is working on.
At the current moment, the buildings with faulty elevators that are in the works of getting repaired include Coronna Hall, Baker Hall, Olivier Parking Tower, Moncus Hall and the Student Union.
According to Hebert, some of the main causes of operational failures in the elevators are hardware malfunctions, system glitches, weather elements and age.
The first problem, hardware malfunctions, is an issue that requires time to resolve. Hebert said, “If it’s a circuit board or if it’s a major hardware malfunction, those parts are not readily accessible.” Due to the intricacy in the process of acquiring new parts for repairs, faulty elevators may not be able to get a quick fix.
Next, while system glitches in the elevators may be a quicker fix with just a system reset, these problems occur frequently. Hebert said, “We go, we reset it. It operates perfectly fine. We’ll stay there for an hour, two hours, it’s working fine. As soon as we walk away, it seems like we get a call, like, within 10 minutes, saying the elevator broke.”
“We just don’t know. It’s a sporadic thing,” he added.
With regards to this issue, Hebert ensured that the elevator company, TKE, the contractor working together with the Office, is identifying deeper underlying issues within the software of the elevators.
In terms of weather elements, Hebert shared that the elevators in Olivier Parking Tower and Taft St. Parking Garage are especially vulnerable. He said, “Those are really difficult to keep up and running because they’re located outdoors. They’re open to the elements.”
Hebert explained that the electronic system in those elevators often gets fried from moisture droplets accumulating inside the elevator shafts from condensation due to humid weather. The droplets drip onto the electronics, rusting and corroding the circuitry connectors.
Finally, the problem of age. Hebert pointed out that the Office is working on getting elevators in the Student Union and Agnes Edwards replaced entirely due to old age. Commenting on the freight elevator in the Student Union, he said, “It’s been there for, probably since the Student Union was built, renovated back in 2010 so it’s past its lifetime.”
Commenting on the elevators in Agnes Edwards Hall, Hebert shared that with deferred maintenance funding from the State, the Office is planning to bid on a project to have them replaced. He said, “The intention is to go ahead and completely replace all of the elevators in Agnes.”
Reporting on the latest elevator maintenance activities, Hebert ensured that the Office is continuously working on getting all faulty elevators fixed. He stated, “Our intention is to always have at least one elevator functioning in a building.”
Meanwhile, Hebert stressed the importance of students putting in work orders. “The more that we have everybody report the issues to us, the better we’re going to be at being able to solve them and fix those problems,” he said.
Dr. Patricia Cottonham, Vice President for the Office of Student Affairs, shared about a recent case where a student had reported the elevator issue to the University’s staff with the intention of bringing attention to the matter. She shared that the student reported the matter not just for herself or her friends, but also for everyone else who are frequently inconvenienced by the breaking down of elevators, especially those with physical ailments or disabilities, temporary or permanent.
“The student was advocating for herself and advocating for other students,” Cottonham said.
In response to the impact of elevator malfunctions on students, Cottonham commented, “There is a reasonable expectation that if there are elevators, then they should be operable.” She added, “I don’t think it’s unreasonable that the students are frustrated. I do think that they have a right to have their questions answered.”
Tariq Yarbrough is a junior majoring in biology. In response to the problems caused by the elevators breaking down, he said, “The time, […] waiting, […] trying to get to class, sometimes people are late because the elevators don’t work.”
Amarion Venzant, a junior majoring in psychology, also faced issues with the elevators in Agnes Edwards Hall. He shared, “The most consistent issue would be just the scanner not working all the time, that, and the elevator taking a very long time to come up and down.”
With elevator malfunctions, there are also safety issues posed. Yarbrough shared about his experience with an elevator in Agnes Edwards Hall dropping down a floor. He said, “I was just going down the elevator to go to class. And I think it […], it felt like it kind of glitched out a little bit, and it slipped and fell down to the third and, like, reset, and then went back up to the fourth and opened.”
From accessibility and safety concerns, to inconveniences caused in the daily lives of students, faculty and staff, the elevator malfunctions remain a persistent problem that impacts the campus community.
Cottonham shared that Student Affairs focuses on creating a positive living and learning experience for the overall wellbeing of students. Hence, they acknowledge that the problem with the elevators is indeed affecting that.
She stated, “We want students to know that they have a right to let us know when something is not up to the standard that they think that it should be and that their voice will be heard.”
According to Hebert, besides an immediate-response maintenance crew on-call 24/7 and an elevator technician on-campus during the day, the Office of Facility Management has also requested additional support by bringing in more technicians so that work orders can be resolved quicker.
Students are highly encouraged to put in work orders as soon as a facility like the elevators are not operating normally so that the Office can be made aware of problems that require fixing. To do so, students should visit the Office of Facility Management website or ULink.