Developers push for local assembly of escalators, elevators

The race to the skies by developers has now seen engineers lobby for local assembly of escalators and elevators.

The push has also been informed by the thousands of units under the affordable housing programme (AHP) being constructed by the government across the country, which will also require this critical infrastructure.

Through their professional bodies, the engineers who congregated at the International Sourcing Exposition for Elevators and Escalators (ISEE) held in Nairobi argue that they have the expertise and personnel to run the industry that is currently dependent on imports.

The push by the Institution of Engineers of Kenya (IEK) and the Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) is meant to complement the government’s AHP and the real estate sector, which has been pushed to do vertical structures due to the cost of land and population pressure in the urban areas.

Kenya Property Developers Association (KPDA) General Manager Rose Kananu notes that the vertical structures have informed an increased demand for elevators and escalators.

She says that, with densification and a growing number of high-rise buildings, demand for elevators has increased. In the past, she adds, buildings were about 10 floors. Today, not only has the number of floors increased, but also the pace at which these structures are being built.

“When you look at the affordable housing units across the country, they are vertical. Where true urbanisation is taking shape, we are seeing buildings all over the skyline, which means the rate of demand has gone up. That is good for business,” said the civil engineer at the sidelines of the exhibition.

But as demand increases, Kananu pointed out, so should safety structures.

“We need to be at the forefront of knowledge, safety standards, so we do not start having big issues around accidents,” she said, adding that regulators and approval processes should also be in tandem with the pace at which developers are building.

Inferencing on the stated demand, Margaret Ogayi, Registrar and Chief Executive Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) said it is time the country develops its own assembly or manufacturing of escalators and elevators.

She said there are 28,000 engineers in the country, a sufficient number for the industry to thrive.

“We do not have a manufacturing plant for any of this equipment. We are now making a pitch to all those international players,” she said. “We already have a big affordable housing program ongoing, and you have seen the size of the houses. They all need escalators and elevators.”

She said the industry has the appropriate personnel to deliver the infrastructure from design to maintenance.

“I think it's time we say we want a manufacturing plant set up. This is one of the partnerships we are hoping we will develop,” she said. “Our engineers are up to scratch. We have many who have travelled out of the country and are doing well.”

Ogayi said the country’s curriculum matches the global standards, noting that recently, Kenya joined the Washington Accord as a provisional signatory.

“This means our qualifications are recognised globally. We gave a number of engineers working out of the country to do the same complex works. What we need is to have local production. It will create the jobs we need and save on foreign exchange,” she said.

Tak Mathews, the organiser of the exhibition, and a chartered engineer (India), noted the importance of elevators and escalators in today’s-built environment saying even a two-storey building would pose a challenge to a person living with disability.

“Unfortunately, worldwide, there is an apathy towards elevators. In most cases,s it is an afterthought. It is not seen as a necessity but a luxury,” he said.

Part XXII of the National Building Code 2024, prepared by the National Construction Authority (NCA), which took effect early in the year, notes that a building which exceed six storeys needs at least one lift.

A lift is also to be installed in a residential or public building where a floor exceeds 14 metres above the adjacent ground level.

The lift shall be wholly enclosed in fire-resistant material that has a notional fire resistance equal to that of the walls of the building in which the lift is installed.

“A lift and a hoist shall be installed and maintained in accordance with the Occupational Safety and Health Act, 2007. A building comprising of at least six storeys above the ground level shall have at least one passenger lift,” the code reads in part.

The code further specifies the minimum dimensions of a lift well, entrance pit, machine room or headroom, adding that each lift well shall meet the structural design requirements to carry the lift car and the maximum load safely.

“A lift well shall be suitably ventilated. The ventilation of a lift well shall not be used to provide ventilation to another room other than a room used for the service of the lift,” the code says.