It’s been another week of success stories here at Ascendant Lifts & Escalators, and we’ve achieved a fantastic GOAL of our own! (pardon the pun!!) as we have recently acquired the lift maintenance contract for Sunderland AFC Fans Museum.

Based in Sunderland City Centre, this is a renowned and unique museum with a huge collection of football memorabilia for fans from all around the world to see and even try on! The museum support all aspects of disabilities young and old. They also support Alzheimer’s and Dementia, Veterans and so much more.

Sunderland AFC Fans Museum have chosen us as the provider of their lift maintenance due to our local ties and fantastic reputation throughout Sunderland and the North East. The museum can get extremely busy on match days in peak times of the season, so they require a highly reliable and efficient service which of course, we can easily provide.

We are thrilled to be a chosen supplier of such a fantastic, community driven centre which is loved by so many in the wonderful city of Sunderland. I’m sure there will be more than a few members of the Ascendant team who will happily volunteer to take on any callouts they may require here – as we house some huge die-hard Sunderland fans in the Ascendant office. (Free tour please, hint hint!!)

This is just one of the several maintenance contracts we’ve taken on so far this month as we grow and expand our customer portfolio across the UK, and we cant wait to see what’s in store for the rest of August! 

Ascendant Lifts & Escalators are absolutely delighted to have completed the first modernisation project at one of the Northeast’s most famous and luxury hotels. Having had the hotel on our maintenance portfolio for several years we attended a routine breakdown to the main reception lift.

Our engineers quickly diagnosed an issue with the main drive unit. We looked at all the options to have this lift repaired. Due to the age of the lift and cost of the drive unit we felt that this repair would not be cost effective for the client. The only option left was to have this lift modernised with a new control system so that we could bring back long-term reliability to the unit.

Our modernisation sales team quickly attended site and carried out a full detailed survey of the equipment. Given that this was a prestigious site we felt that the Schneider Lift Control package would be the best solution utilising the market leading Lisa 20 technology. The control system chosen would give long term reliability coupled with high end quality a hotel of this stature requires.

We liaised with the client and submitted our modernisation proposals – we held a face-to-face meeting with our customer to talk through every aspect of the works we have recommended so that they had a clear understanding of what would be replaced and upgraded.

From receipt of order, we turned the whole project around with an incredibly short lead time give the extensive nature and complexity of the work involved. From our engineers starting on site, we completed all works in 7 days including full testing and commissioning of the newly installed equipment.

We handed the lift back over to the client who was absolutely delighted with the finished product.

Should Ascendant Lifts & Escalators be able to assist with any lift modernisation, lift repairs or lift maintenance works then please do not hesitate to contact us on 0800 599 9177 or alternatively e-mail head.office@ascendantlifts.co.uk where one of our team will be happy to assist.

As the country sees some of the hottest days on record, we’d like to highlight the important of our services in the warmer weather…….

Did you know that your lift is more likely to breakdown in higher temperatures due to the increase in operating temperatures? Here at Ascendant Lifts, we recognise the importance of this and the need for a quick response time. The breakdown of your lift can affect your footfall making it more difficult for those with mobility issues to get around your venue and in turn this may stop them visiting and affect your revenue.

A lift kept in good working order is very much part of the customer experience. As we’ve previously stated, It allows companies to forge a reputation for offering accessibility and to be recognised as a business which cares about the needs of those with mobility issues.   As our sales manager Justine highlighted in a previous news story ‘we live in a world where social media is a major influence, negative feedback spreads rapidly and if you have a lift which is prone to breakdowns, and not being maintained correctly, it only takes one bad review to impact on a companies reputation’. That’s why we are here to help YOU, as our customer!

Passenger-carrying lifts should have an examination carried out; after substantial and significant changes have been made; at least every six months. If your building has a lift then you need to understand LOLER Regulations and how often your lift should be managed. You as a business owner or employer have a legal responsibility to make sure that lifts being used on your premises are maintained and are kept in safe working order. LOLER stands for Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations (1998).  It outlines the requirements and regulations for anyone who owns or is ‘responsible for the safe operation of a lift used at work’. It states three separate types of actions that should be carried out on your passenger lift; preventative maintenance, inspections and thorough examinations. A LOLER is something we can offer you as part of our service at Ascendant Lifts. Having your lift service regularly can prevent unnecessary, lengthy, costly call outs which impact that all important customer experience.

Despite having all of the above in place, unfortunately, things can go wrong from time to time – which is where we’re here to help! Our 24/7 engineers are on hand to take your call and get with you as quickly as possible. Entrapment? We’ll get to you as quickly as possible to release the trapped passengers! Breakdown? We can work through the night to get your lift working as quickly as possible. From our North-East & North-West offices, we have some of the countries most experienced engineers on call for our customers. The customer experience is very much at the centre of what we do here at Ascendant Lifts and we strive for no less than 100% satisfaction – if you’re not satisfied, neither are we & we guarantee to put it right!

If your business has lift(s) which aren’t currently being maintained or if you’re not as happy with your current supplier (as your would be with us!), then get  in touch with us here at Ascendant Lifts & Escalators and we can help you out with a tailored plan to suit your needs. You can contact our friendly staff at our Gateshead office on 0800 599 1977 or give our North-West office a call on 0161 355 2292

We look forward to welcoming you onboard and another happy customer with a well maintained lift that keeps rising even when the heat does!

We’re recruiting for two positions in our Gateshead office. This is a great opportunity to work as part of our friendly, results driven Accounts team! Both positions are full time, if you’d like further information please email lisa.scanlin@ascendantlifts.co.uk

“As a fresh face in the lift industry, its not been simple to get up to speed with the in’s and out’s of how this sector works. I’ve had a lot of learning and research to do when it comes to everything I need to know regarding lifts. In just short of 6 months, one of the main things I’ve learned a lot about is how important it is to keep a lift maintained.

The installation of a lift is, of course, a major investment for most businesses. Once a lift is up and running, it can draw in a whole new line of custom, your building(s) become more accessible to a wider range of the community around you. But what about after that?

Regular good-quality maintenance is vital to ensure that those same customers keep coming back.

A lift kept in good working order is a hugely useful tool for good customer service. It allows companies to forge a reputation for offering excellent all-round accessibility and to be recognised as a business which cares about the needs of those with mobility issues.  With all customers having access to the full range of facilities and services, a business will find itself in a far better position to expand its customer base and grow accordingly. As we live in a world where social media is a major influence, negative feedback spreads rapidly and if you have a lift which is prone to breakdowns, and not being maintained correctly, it only takes one bad review to impact on a companies reputation.

This begs the question, what is the point in investing a lot of money into lift(s) if they aren’t going to be maintained correctly?

The easiest thing to compare it to when I speak to clients, is a car. Cars have parts which are costly to replace if they are left to wear and tear without regular upkeep. That’s the reason we all get MOT’s and servicing done once a year isn’t it? To prevent any annoying, expensive bills coming our way! When it comes to lifts, its not too different.

Like a car, a lift generally features:

• a motor (machine)
• brakes
• electronic controller
• user controls
• doors

All of the above are expensive to replace. So, keeping to this analogy, a lift, just like a car, should require regular servicing throughout its life, receive routine inspections and have a programme of planned preventative maintenance in place as standard, this should never be overlooked.

Here at Ascendant Lifts & Escalators, we specialise in just that. Regular service visits will keep lifts in perfect working order, allowing a business to concentrate on the vital task of providing excellent service to its customers.

When lifts are regularly maintained and inspected, even the smallest of issues can be addressed efficiently before they cause problems at a later date. That’s why on each PPM visit we provide all customers with a full report on their equipment, detailing the items that require attention, either now or in the future. This allows our customers to plan ahead with regards to remedial works and budget for anything that may be required in the future. Basically an MOT for your lift!

For a lot of businesses, to be hit with surprise repair costs on facilities could be seriously damaging, especially when it could have been totally preventable if the right actions had been taken to intercept it beforehand.

Regular lift maintenance also covers important safety and regulatory issues that you are required to by law to comply with. This is in order to satisfy your legal obligations as a building operator or owner.

Regulations can apply to residential blocks as well as office buildings, including:

• the Health and Safety at Work Act
• the Lift Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations
• the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations

Making sure that your lift is in a good and safe working order is essential to ensuring compliance. It will also make sure you’re keeping your customers, your staff and yourself safer from potential accidents caused by neglect.

Taking everything mentioned above into consideration, and on the short video included in this article, it will hopefully give you a better understanding of the importance of lift maintenance.

If your business has lift(s) which aren’t currently being maintained or your current supplier isn’t performing servicing as they should, Get in touch with us here at Ascendant Lifts & Escalators and we can help you out with a bespoke plan to suit your needs. Contact me personally justine.bland@ascendantlifts.co.uk”

Head Office: head.office@ascendantlifts.co.uk

Telephone: 0800 599 9177

Ascendant Lifts & Escalators – Lift Maintenance Win in Ipswich.

Ascendant Lifts & Escalators are absolutely delighted to bring to our latest news story. Following a competitive tender process, we are thrilled to announce we have been awarded the ongoing lift and escalator maintenance and repair agreement for the leading shopping centre in Ipswich.

Our agreement is to look after the shopping centres 3 escalators and 5 lifts on a 24/7 basis for all reactive and PPM works.

We were awarded the lift maintenance agreement not solely on price but our fantastic and unique service we can offer our clients. As our engineers are highly experienced and competent, we have the necessary skillset to work on a wide variety of equipment which makes us the ideal contractor to take on any lift maintenance portfolio.

As our business was formed in 2003, we have built an outstanding reputation based on delivering first class customer service coupled with cost effective lift engineering expertise. This stands us out from the crowd and makes us an idea partner for clients across the UK.

Operating from our head office in Newcastle supported by regional offices in Manchester and the Midlands are we have engineers strategically placed to be deliver on our promises.

We offer traditional lift and escalator maintenance which means our engineers typically spend more time on site resulting in better value for money for our clients as well as less down time for the lifts and escalators that we maintain.

Why not contact Ascendant Lifts & Escalators today to see how we can help. We not only provide lift maintenance services we can help by providing support for lift repairs, lift modernisation or lift upgrades as well as new lift installations.

We can be contacted 24/7 on 0800 599 9177 or alternatively via e-mail head.office@ascendantlifts.co.uk

Ascendant Lifts & Escalators are delighted to announce the completion of a further modernisation project on behalf of one of our long-standing clients in the care sector.

We originally attended site for a routine breakdown to the main lift within the home – our technicians diagnosed a fault with the main controller processor so unfortunately the lift had to be left out of service.

The information was fed back to our repair sales team back at our head office in Gateshead. After an extensive search via our trade partners, it was found that the original Spanish manufacturer had ceased trading and we were unable to get a replacement processor board.

We informed our client of the situation and advised that the only realistic option would be to carry out a control panel modernisation which would guarantee long term reliability.

Our surveyor re-attended site and carried out a detailed survey which we sent to our trade suppliers. We then submitted our proposal to the client for the complete modernisation package which included an open protocol energy efficient control system with built in fault logger, new car operating panel, complete rewire, new landing operating panels and indicators as well as several health and safety upgrades.

All the equipment we proposed was from UK suppliers with dedicated technical support that have spare parts readily available – this is vitally important for our clients in the care sector as it is vital that when lifts are isolated parts can be sourced quickly and easily.

From receipt of order, we turned around this project quickly and we were on site within 2 weeks to carry out the works contained within our lift modernisation tender. Our Technical Manager then attended and carried out his testing and commissioning works before it was handed back over to the client.

The works were completed ahead of schedule and within budget to the delight of the client.

Should you require any lift modernisation or upgrade works or if you need any lift repairs then please contact Ascendant Lifts today. We operate through out the UK from our head office in Gateshead supported by regional offices in Manchester and the Midlands.

You can get in touch via our website www.ascendantlifts.co.uk or via e-mail head.office@ascendantlifts.co.uk alternatively on 0800 599 9177 where a member of our dedicated team will be on hand to support.

Ascendant Lifts & Escalators – New Maintenance Win – Liverpool.

Ascendant Lifts & Escalators are pleased to announce they have been awarded a prestigious lift maintenance agreement for a new client in the heart of the world-famous City of Liverpool.

Prior to the contract being awarded we attended site and carried out a comprehensive free of charge survey of the lift equipment – this allowed us to advise the client exactly which type of maintenance agreement would be most beneficial to them.

Once we had submitted our tender the client was delighted as not only was our proposal better for them economically, but it also gave them exactly the right type of lift maintenance regime that suited their site.

This lift maintenance agreement will see us once again offering our traditional lift maintenance contract for the passenger lift on site, which will help cut down on callouts and repairs.

Our highly skilled and qualified team of engineers spend a longer time on site servicing each individual piece of equipment – the longer we spend on site the less likely it will be that the client will have to call us out for a lift breakdown.

Our traditional lift maintenance coupled with our first-time fix policy sets us apart from the crowd and allows us to deliver exceptional customer service across the UK.

Once we have carried out a lift maintenance visit, our dedicated after sales team provide a report to each client in a “traffic light” format which details items that require urgent attention and items that can be budgeted for.

Why not see whether Ascendant Lifts & Escalators can assist with any of your lift engineering needs. Please contact us via e-mail head.office@ascendantlifts.co.uk or on 0800 599 9177 or alternatively visit the website at www.ascendantlifts.co.uk

This weeks sees her majesty the Queen become the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee after 70 years’ service!

Both our North East & North West office decided to mark this fabulous occasion with some very royal celebrations! Dressed in our finest red, white & blue attire we all contributed to a Royal buffet, fit for a Queen!

See our social media pages for photos from both offices….you may notice a few royal faces!

Pictured above: Staff from our Gateshead office

Ascendant Lifts & Escalators are delighted to bring you news of another successful lift modernisation for a well-known high street retailer at one of their stores in North Wales.

We were approached by our client as they were looking to take over a new store in Mold, North Wales. Whenever our client is looking to increase their store portfolio, they involve us at a very early stage. We liaise with the managing agent on behalf of our customer and attend the stores to carry out a detailed survey of the existing lift equipment.

This is invaluable for our customer as it ensures that they do not take on new properties and then discover the lift is old, unreliable, and non-compliant to modern standards. Our upfront survey allows them to budget accordingly and often they get a contribution from the landlord to have the lift upgraded or modernised.

Following our survey in Mold we discovered that the lift was a goods only lift installed in the 1960’s and totally unsuitable for my client going forward as it would not give the reliability needed to open a new store. This was fed back to our client, and we discussed a modernisation package which would give the lift another 15 years reliability.

After we did our survey, we contacted our control panel manufacturer to obtain costs for the upgrade works. We then provided our modernisation proposal which included a modern UK supported control system which was open protocol and included a built-in fault logger. The new control system also had a number of energy saving options which added further benefit to the customer.

Once we presented our proposal, we were instructed to carry out all the works we recommended to make the lift safe, reliable, and up to a modern standard.

From receipt of order, we were on site within 3 weeks and completed all works on time and within budget.

Following completion of the works the client moved into their new premises and experienced zero problems with the lift whilst moving in and fitting out the new store.

The customer has now been in their new store 3 months without a single issue with their lift to the delight of the staff in store and the property team at head office.

Should you need any assistance for any modernisation project of if you are thinking about taking on a new premises that has a lift installed why not contact Ascendant Lifts & Escalators who will be happy to assist – we may help you avoid costly repair bills moving forward.

Why not contact us today via head.office@ascendantlifts.co.uk or on 0800 599 9177 or alternatively visit our website www.ascendantlifts.co.uk