You've decided to switch elevator companies. The decision is easy. The transition is where things go wrong.
When your outgoing vendor walks out, they take institutional knowledge: equipment codes, troubleshooting procedures, maintenance history. Your incoming vendor arrives blind. Poor handoffs mean repeated service calls, downtime, and finger-pointing.
This checklist keeps your elevators running through a vendor switch.
The Transition Timeline
90 Days Before Switch
1. Review Termination Requirements
Most contracts require 30-90 days written notice. Some auto-renew if you miss the window. Use the Contract Scanner to identify termination requirements before announcing anything.
2. Collect Documentation
Before your vendor knows they're leaving, get:
- Equipment manuals and wiring diagrams
- 3 years of maintenance logs
- Serial numbers and installation dates
- Controller software versions
- Custom settings and programming notes
- Emergency contacts and callback procedures
3. Request All Access Codes
Controllers, phone lines, monitoring systems all have codes. Request them now. If they say "we'll provide those later," get it in writing with a deadline.
4. Document Custom Equipment
Non-standard setups (custom cabs, specialized operators, modified controllers) need documentation. Your new vendor must know what's different before the first callback.
60 Days Before Switch
1. Contract Your New Vendor
Get the new contract signed before terminating the old one. Independent companies often handle transitions better than OEMs.
2. Send Written Termination
Follow your contract's exact procedure. Certified mail. Proof of delivery. See our Termination Guide for the process.
3. Schedule Three-Way Meeting
Walk through equipment access, monitoring transfer, controller codes, pending repairs, and warranty status with both vendors. If your outgoing vendor refuses, document it.
4. Request Final Inspection
Have your outgoing vendor document current equipment condition. This baseline matters if your incoming vendor reports major issues two weeks later.
5. Transfer Monitoring Services
Remote monitoring and emergency phone services take 2-4 weeks to transfer. Start early.
30 Days Before Switch
1. Confirm Documentation Delivery
By now you should have manuals, maintenance history, access codes, pending quotes, and warranty docs. If anything is missing, escalate immediately.
2. Incoming Vendor Site Walk
Your new vendor inspects equipment, verifies model numbers, photographs controllers, tests codes, and meets building staff. This is transition prep, not a billable call.
3. Notify Tenants
Explain the switch date, new contact info, and who to call. Introduce your new vendor's service manager by name.
4. Update Emergency Procedures
Revise building manuals, fire department instructions, and property management software.
5. Verify Insurance
Confirm liability coverage ($1-2M minimum), workers' comp, state licenses, and required certifications.
Switch Day
1. Key and Code Handoff
Transfer keys, controller codes, monitoring logins, and phone access. Test everything before your outgoing vendor leaves.
2. Baseline Inspection
New vendor documents equipment condition, safety concerns, and pending maintenance. This protects both parties.
3. Update All Contacts
Emergency lists, cab signage, management systems: everything showing your elevator company needs updating.
4. Monitor First 48 Hours
Problems surface in the first two days. Be available. Competent vendors call within 24 hours to report observations.
What to Demand from Your Outgoing Vendor
- Complete maintenance logs in electronic format. PDFs or Excel, not paper files you have to scan.
- All equipment access codes verified working. Test them before the vendor leaves.
- Pending work orders and quotes with detailed scope. Don't let half-finished projects fall into a black hole.
- Written confirmation of any equipment warranties still in effect. Transfer those warranties to the new vendor if possible.
- Final invoice with all charges itemized. Some vendors try to sneak in "transition fees" or unbilled service calls.
What to Verify with Your Incoming Vendor
- They've reviewed all equipment documentation before day one. Not learning your building during the first callback.
- They have 24/7 callback coverage with guaranteed response times. And you have the actual phone number that gets answered.
- They understand any custom or non-standard equipment in your building. Documented in writing before the switch.
- They've tested all access codes and keys. On switch day, not two weeks later when the first callback happens.
- They have a written 90-day transition plan. What they'll inspect, when, and how they'll report to you.
Common Transition Mistakes
1. Announcing the Switch Before You've Terminated Properly
Your current vendor finds out you're switching because a competitor rep was spotted in the building. Now they're upset, and you still have 60 days left on the contract. Termination requirements come first. New vendor negotiations second.
2. Not Getting Equipment Codes Until Switch Day
It's switch day. Your new vendor can't access the controller. Your old vendor says "we'll get you those codes" and then... doesn't. Now you're stuck. Demand codes at least 30 days before transition.
3. Skipping the Three-Way Transition Meeting
Some outgoing vendors refuse to meet with the incoming competitor. That's a red flag. Professional vendors understand that elevator service is a collaborative industry. If your current vendor won't participate in a clean handoff, document that refusal. It protects you if equipment issues arise.
4. Assuming Warranties Transfer Automatically
They don't. If your outgoing vendor replaced a motor 6 months ago with a 2-year parts warranty, that warranty is often tied to the servicing vendor, not the equipment owner. Confirm warranty status and transfer process in writing.
5. Not Updating Emergency Contact Signage in Cabs
State law requires current service provider contact information posted inside elevator cabs. If you don't update those placards, tenants will call the wrong company, and your new vendor won't know there's a callback.
The Bottom Line
Switching elevator companies is a 90-day process, not a single event. The property managers who execute clean transitions start early, document everything, and treat the handoff as a project with defined milestones.
The ones who struggle announce the switch on 30 days notice, assume both vendors will "figure it out," and then spend six months dealing with repeated service calls because critical information never transferred.
Before you announce anything to anyone, run your current contract through the Contract Scanner to verify termination requirements, notice periods, and any clauses that could complicate a switch.
Then follow this checklist. Your elevators and your tenants will thank you.