I’m a quality reviewer for KONE. My job is to look at completed elevator and escalator work before it is signed off—roughly 150 maintenance and modernization jobs a year. In 2024, I sent back about 6% of first submissions. Most were not catastrophic failures. Most were missing documents, unclear asset numbers, or a small visual defect that should have been caught before the customer saw it.
That’s why I use a checklist that starts before I even walk into the lobby. It is not a repair manual. It is for anyone who has to verify finished work: an admin buyer checking a service report, a property manager reviewing a handover, or a site lead standing beside a new installation.
There are seven checks here. Together, they take about ten minutes once you’re on site.
1. Confirm what “the machine” actually is
This sounds like basic admin, but it causes more missed appointments than most mechanical problems. If a work order says “KONE machine down,” find the asset ID first. A KONE elevator, a KONE escalator, and an unrelated machine can look similar on a written ticket.
Last year, I saw a request for a “king kone machine” routed to an elevator team because someone saw “kone” in the name. It was not KONE equipment. The asset ID matched an appliance service vendor. No elevator technician was dispatched. Labels matter. Sort it before you schedule anything.
2. Walk the elevator landing before opening the machine room
When I check elevator work, I start where the passenger starts. The machine room and controller are important, but a passenger never sees them. The visible handover should be clean and correct before I go further.
- Door leaves open and close fully, without scraping the sill.
- The car is level with the landing. A step up or down is a rework item, not a minor note.
- Landing door gap looks even. If you can see light from the hoistway around the doors, stop and report it.
- Emergency alarm or phone is labeled and reachable.
- Cab lighting, buttons, and floor indicators are secure.
I do not open the controller or operate safety circuits. The authorized maintainer does that and documents it. My job is to verify that the visible finish and the supporting records agree.
3. Check the escalator entry zone
For KONE escalators, I start at the step-to-comb transition. That is the place where small setting errors become visible. Broken comb teeth, packed step slots, or a comb that no longer aligns with the step grooves are easier to find when you look down before you ride.
Then I ride slowly and watch the handrail. It should keep up with the steps and not feel like it is dragging. I confirm the emergency stop devices are visible and not blocked. That is it for the ride. All technical tests happen under controlled shutdown, not while the unit is carrying passengers.
4. Treat a Dutch door as two doors
This is the most commonly missed door item in my audits. A Dutch door looks like a standard door when it is closed. The problem shows when you open the top and bottom halves separately. The top half should latch without lifting the bottom half. If it only catches when the whole door is forced shut, the hinges, latch alignment, or frame are out of adjustment.
Check both halves for independent hinges, stops, and weatherstripping. A Dutch door is two leaves sharing one frame, and that changes how you evaluate it.
5. Look closely at door hinges
Door hinges are easy to ignore because they sit on the side of the opening. I open the door to about 90 degrees and see whether it stays there. A door that drifts or settles is a sign that the frame, hinge, or latch is pulling tension.
Then I look at the hinge screws. Stripped screws cause the same sag over and over. A coat of lubricant can hide it for one inspection, then the door drags again. Door hinges usually need alignment or fastener repair, not another round of oil.
6. Photograph, date, and identify every finding
I have rejected work that passed functionally but failed documentation. In 2024, the biggest group of rejected first submissions was not equipment breakdowns. It was reports without a clear date, a clear location, or an asset number.
A photo without a timestamp is a nice photo, but it does not prove when a condition existed. I take three things for each finding: asset label, wide shot of the location, and close-up of the defect. Then I record the date and time before I leave the area.
7. Know where your expertise stops
This is the least technical item on the list, and also the most important. Every trade has a boundary. An elevator technician is not a door installer. A door installer is not a pest control specialist. Pretending otherwise causes more damage than admitting a limit.
Search queries make that point obvious. A tenant does not type “how to get rid of fleas in house” because they think it is an elevator maintenance problem. They type it because they want the problem solved. The professional response is to direct them to someone licensed to handle the conditions inside that specific space.
When I do not have the experience to answer a question safely, I say so. The vendor who says “this isn’t our strength—here is who does it better” earns trust for everything else. I would rather work with a specialist who knows their limits than a generalist who overpromises.
If this checklist has a theme, it is that careful verification does not require acting like an expert in everything. Confirm the asset. Inspect the visible points. Document what you saw. Then send the rest to the right person. That is how you deliver quality without crossing a boundary.
