Eliminating escalator breakdowns in malls

Rohit Kaul, Operations Head – North Region, Embassy Services takes us through the process from problem identification to impact of solutions.

The facility

● Name: Indiabulls Mega Mall, Jodhpur, Rajasthan

● Type of building: Mall with retail and commercial space

● Total area: 1 million sq ft

● Parts of the facility: 5 blocks, 7 floors, 263 office space units, 653 shops, 1,019 parking slots, lobby, escalators, restrooms, cafeteria, external landscape, high ceiling, etc.

● Services: Housekeeping, technical services, security, landscaping and horticulture, pest control, facade cleaning, waste management, and parking management.

Housekeeping requirements

Areas: Mall upkeep, basement cleaning, material store, lift lobby, reception area, mall management office, utility area, parking area

Services: Consumables procurement, mechanised cleaning, sanitisation, deep cleaning, cleaning high-ceilings, escalator cleaning, cleaning light fixtures, washroom cleaning, cafeteria/food court cleaning, etc.

Problem statement: Frequent breakdown of escalators due to ineffective cleaning process

Impact of problem: Created dissatisfaction and inconvenience for the customers. A broken-down escalator can also create a negative perception of the mall's services.

Root cause analysis

● There was no possibility of overload causing the escalators to trip

● Escalator preventive maintenance was completed on time and in accordance with the OEM schedule

● The escalator speed suddenly decreases due to dust

● Stain marks were noticed because of inadequate manual cleaning

● The escalator motor pit's dust particles were visible

● Every time there is a breakdown, the sensors need to be cleaned

● According to the breakdown history, weekends were the days when breakdowns were most prevalent.

● Upon examining the cleaning schedule of the escalator, it was discovered that weekend breakdowns continued to occur even with daily cleaning frequency.

Mitigation plan

● Controlling the tiny dust particles at the footstep level.

● Because manual cleaning proved ineffective, a machine cleaning procedure was to be explored. The correct machine needed to be identified, especially for trapping and removing minute dust particles.

Corrective actions

●?The escalator cleaning machine was purchased to clean escalators.

●?The vacuum cleaner for escalators has a wet and dry mode vacuum wand attachment.

●?One escalator had a daily cleaning frequency at first with the machine, one at a time. After closely observing the cleaning and analysing the results, it was found that the tripping of escalators and slowing down of machinery had been reduced.

●?Later, the frequency of escalator machine-cleaning was changed to once per week for all eight escalators, particularly before the weekend.

Impact analysis

●?Escalator downtime has decreased.

● Decrease in the escalator's operating expenses

●?People’s confidence in using escalators has increased

●?As a result of machine cleaning, the sensor and spare part aging on escalators improved.

●?Escalators were made more hygienic for users.

●?Presenting a spotless and orderly escalator to consumers as a best practice

●?Had a positive impact on business and attracted footfall.

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