Freight Elevator Suppliers in the Philippines: What to Specify and What to Verify

A freight elevator supplier for a Philippine project has to answer three questions in writing before commercial terms are worth discussing: whether the unit is goods-only or goods-passenger under the rules that will inspect it, whether the drive and electrical package are built for a 60 Hz grid, and whether the shaft the building is pouring matches the machine being quoted. A supplier that cannot answer those three is offering a catalogue entry rather than a project package.

That is a different exercise from buying a passenger lift. A freight unit is specified around a load, a loading method and a duty cycle, and inspected under a labour-safety rule that treats it as its own category. Buyers who arrive with passenger-lift assumptions usually find the gap after the pit is cast, when the fix is structural.

Start with the classification, not the tonnage

Philippine labour standards define a freight elevator narrowly: an elevator primarily used for carrying freight, in which only the operator and the persons necessary for loading and unloading are permitted to ride. That definition drives signage, door arrangement and the standard the equipment is built to. The same rule requires signs at every landing and inside the car prohibiting passengers wherever the installation does not conform to passenger-elevator requirements.

So the first question is not capacity but who is expected to ride. If warehouse staff will ride between floors daily, the building needs a goods-passenger unit and the specification changes. Industry practice separates the two: goods-only lifts are built against BS EN 81-31 and are not designed for passenger travel, while combination units are built against BS EN 81-20.

Two clarifications belong in the conversation. The Philippine Occupational Safety and Health Standards reference the ASME elevator code and the PSME code without naming an edition year, and EN 81 has no legal standing in the country — European standards describe what the equipment is built to, not what it complies with locally. And freight units are not exempt from permitting: no passenger or freight elevator may be installed or operated in a place of employment without a written permit from the Regional Labor Office, with the certificate after final inspection valid for one year and renewed at least thirty days before expiry.

The speed limit that quotations quietly exceed

Rated speed is capped by rule. Where an operator rides, a power-driven elevator may not exceed 3.66 km/h. For an electric freight elevator under continuous-pressure operation the cap is 2.76 km/h — about 0.77 m/s. Belt- or chain-driven freight units are limited to 1.1 km/h, and units operating through hatchway covers to 0.91 km/h. Higher speeds need approval from the enforcing authority.

Compare published product ranges. A European hydraulic freight range is documented at 0.2–0.63 m/s over 2.5–6.0 m for direct-acting units and to 16 m for indirect; the traction range in the same document runs 0.6–1.0 m/s to 30 m. The hydraulic figures sit inside the cap. A traction unit quoted at 1.0 m/s sits at 3.6 km/h — above the continuous-pressure limit, and within a fraction of the operator limit.

That does not make the faster unit wrong. It makes control mode a question to settle before speed is written into the order, since automatic operation or a variance changes the answer. A quotation stating speed without stating control mode leaves the constraint to be found at inspection.

Drive choice is a shaft decision before it is a price decision

Hydraulic and traction freight elevators occupy different buildings, and the difference shows up in concrete. Hydraulic units load a ram from a power unit at the bottom beside the shaft; traction units run ropes over a sheave with a counterweight, machine room above.

• Travel. Published hydraulic ranges reach 6 m direct-acting and 16 m indirect; the traction range reaches 30 m. A basement, ground floor and four upper floors already pushes the hydraulic option near the top of its documented range.
• Machine room. Bottom beside the shaft for hydraulic; above the shaft for traction. On tight urban lots this often ends the discussion, because the room has to exist before the drive is chosen.
• Pit depth. Documented minimums start at 1,050 mm for lower-capacity hydraulic units, rise to 1,150–1,200 mm at 4,000–6,000 kg, and reach 1,450–1,650 mm on the traction range.
• Headroom. Published minimums are expressed as car height plus 1,650 to 1,900 mm depending on type and capacity, not as one number.
• Loading method. Where forklifts enter the car, the same documentation states that hydraulic locking devices are generally required — a car detail driven by traffic, not tonnage.

The 60 Hz question every Philippine buyer should ask

The Philippine grid operates at a nominal 60 Hz, with continuous operation required between 59.4 and 60.6 Hz. Equipment built for the Chinese domestic market is normally designed around 50 Hz — a recurring mismatch in imported freight lifts.

An induction motor designed for 50 Hz, connected to a 60 Hz supply at the same voltage, runs about 20% faster; because the voltage-to-frequency ratio falls, the torque it can deliver falls with it. A pump motor sized at 50 Hz is then asked to move hydraulic oil faster with less torque available. Door operators, brake supplies, control transformers and contactor coils inherit the same question in smaller form.

Variable-frequency drives soften the problem rather than erase it: the drive rectifies incoming power and synthesises its own output, but the drive, its cooling fan and its input components still have to be rated for 60 Hz, and the parameters have to suit the motor actually supplied. The test costs a minute: ask for photographs of the motor and drive nameplates and read the frequency field, plus the electrical schedule — rated frequency, site voltage and phase arrangement, full-load current, transformer tap setting.

Loading method defines the car, not the tonnage

Two freight elevators rated at the same load can be different machines depending on what enters them. A pallet truck, a hand cart and a counterbalance forklift impose different point loads, different impact and different requirements at the sill.

Where forklifts enter, three details decide whether the unit survives its first year: the floor plate and its support, the bumper and skirting that absorb impact, and levelling accuracy at the landing. Industry guidance is explicit that levelling tolerance is tighter on heavy-load goods lifts because forklift entry will not tolerate a step. Door width and height follow the largest thing that has to pass — published freight ranges run from 800 mm to 3,000 mm wide and 2,000–2,500 mm high, which is wide enough that the dimension has to come from the load.

Rope arrangement deserves a check on any cable-suspended freight unit. The rule requires at least two hoisting and two counterweight cables, and prohibits operation on a single hoisting cable unless its diameter and material give a safety factor of at least 12. A specification that lists rope count is easier to verify than one that lists only load.

Pit, headroom and the dimensions to freeze before fabrication

The pit is where imported packages most often fail, because the rule and the product pull in different directions. Product documentation states a minimum pit depth; the regulation states a clearance — with the car on fully compressed buffers, at least 610 mm between the pit floor and the lowest part beneath the car platform. Both must hold at once, and neither can be adjusted after the concrete sets.

The pit also carries equipment the building team forgets to coordinate: permanent lighting of at least 54 lux at the pit floor; a fixed ladder where the pit extends more than 914 mm below the access-door sill; a stop switch accessible from the access door, with a second switch where the pit exceeds 2,010 mm. Where the hoistway serves more than three floors, smoke and hot-gas venting of at least 3.5% of hoistway area or 0.28 m² per car, whichever is greater, with a third of that area permanently open through a damper.

None of that is elevator equipment, but it belongs on the elevator drawing, because the builder works from it. The general arrangement drawing — shaft plan, pit depth, headroom, load points — decides whether the installation fits. Freeze it before fabrication and make it the contractual reference, not an attachment.

Seismic provisions: ask for the design acceleration, not the word

The useful question is not whether a supplier offers "seismic" equipment, but what design acceleration the installation was calculated for and which measures that value triggers.

EN 81-77 supplies the vocabulary even where it is not the governing code. It derives design acceleration from ground acceleration, soil factor, importance factor and a behaviour factor of 2 for lifts, then sorts installations into categories: category 1 between 1 and 2.5, category 2 between 2.5 and 4, category 3 above 4. Category 1 brings counterweight retaining devices top and bottom, rope retainers at traction and diverting pulleys, snag-point protection and a rupture valve on hydraulic units. Category 2 adds car retaining devices, a car door locking device tested to EN 81-50, and movement to the nearest landing on power failure. Category 3 adds three-axis seismic detection with response within three seconds, 24-hour power backup, manual-only reset, and travel to the nearest landing at no more than 0.3 m/s.

The failure modes are not theoretical. Post-earthquake surveys of buildings that stayed standing have recorded counterweight frames off their guide rails, suspension ropes off sheaves and damaged travelling cables — the equipment survived the building and still went out of service. The sequence is straightforward: the structural engineer supplies the design acceleration for the site, and the supplier responds in those terms with measures included. A supplier who answers "seismic available" without a value has answered nothing.

What the supplier should hand over, and what it cannot

A freight package is judged on documents as much as on steel. Before an order, the file should carry a datasheet with values rather than adjectives — load, speed, travel, car and door dimensions, pit and headroom requirements, the code edition the unit is built to. At handover it should carry arrangement and wiring drawings, factory test records, component certificates with scope pages, the maintenance manual, the rescue procedure and a spares list with part numbers.

Two limits are worth stating. Brochures are not specifications: manufacturer documentation typically warrants individual specifications only where expressly confirmed in writing for each case. And a distributor cannot certify what it did not design: a manufacturer issues type-examination certificates for its own product, while a distributor passes on factory documents and carries commercial responsibility.

Service and spares in an archipelago

Freight elevators stop goods movement when they stop, so maintenance carries more weight than on a passenger unit. Pin down three things before the order: the local entity that attends callouts, the spare-parts holding arrangement, and whether the door operator, controller and boards are proprietary to one brand. Proprietary components narrow the owner's options after handover, because parts and service both run through one channel. A spares list with real part numbers is the simplest test of whether a supplier expects the equipment to be maintained locally.

A vetting checklist for a Philippine freight package

• Goods-only or goods-passenger duty stated in writing, with the matching standard and the signage that follows from it.
• Control mode named alongside rated speed, checked against the 2.76 km/h continuous-pressure limit and the 3.66 km/h operator limit.
• Motor and drive nameplates photographed, showing 60 Hz.
• Pit depth and headroom confirmed against both the product minimum and the 610 mm buffer clearance.
• Pit lighting, ladder, stop switches and hoistway venting listed as builder's work on the elevator drawing.
• Design acceleration stated, with the seismic category and the measures included at that category.
• Rope count stated for cable-suspended units.
• Loading method named — forklift, pallet truck or hand cart — with the floor plate and levelling tolerance it implies.
• Scope boundary written out: what the supplier supplies, what the builder supplies, where delivery ends.
• Local service entity, spares list and warranty start date at handover, not shipment.

Where ElevApex fits

ElevApex is a China-based multi-brand elevator distributor and supplier, not a manufacturer. For a Philippine freight project that means selecting equipment across brands to match the duty, coordinating the technical file with the factory, aligning configuration with destination requirements, and acting as a single commercial counterparty. The company holds an A2-class installation licence (TS3351339-2026) and a China AAA credit rating; both describe the contracting entity, and neither certifies that a particular unit is approved in the Philippines.

What we cannot do is issue a manufacturer's type-examination certificate in our own name, or a Philippine Certificate of Operation, which belongs to the local Building Official after a Professional Mechanical Engineer's inspection. Equipment ranges are on the product catalogue, and a project enquiry can be raised through the contact page with shaft drawings, the load and the loading method attached rather than described.

Frequently asked questions

Is a freight elevator the same as a goods lift in the Philippines?

The terms overlap in ordinary use, but the regulatory definition is specific: a freight elevator is used primarily for carrying freight, with only the operator and the persons needed for loading and unloading permitted to ride. A dumbwaiter sits below that category, limited to 220 kg and to materials only. Ask which standard the unit is built to and whether passengers may ride.

Can staff ride in a freight elevator?

Only the operator and those necessary for loading and unloading, and the installation must carry signs at every landing and in the car prohibiting other passengers. If the building depends on staff riding routinely, the correct specification is a goods-passenger unit built to the passenger standard.

Will a 50 Hz unit work on a 60 Hz supply?

It will usually run, and that is the problem — a 50 Hz motor on a 60 Hz supply turns about 20% faster with less torque available, so pumps, door operators and controls work outside their design point. Specify 60 Hz equipment, or a drive arrangement rated and configured for 60 Hz, and confirm it from nameplates rather than a datasheet line.

How deep does the pit have to be?

It depends on drive and capacity. Published planning data for freight ranges starts at 1,050 mm for lower-capacity hydraulic units, rises to 1,150–1,200 mm at 4,000–6,000 kg, and reaches 1,450–1,650 mm on the traction range. Those figures then have to be reconciled with the 610 mm clearance beneath the car with buffers compressed. Settle it before the pit is cast.

What should I send a supplier to get a usable proposal?

Shaft drawings with plan dimensions, pit depth and headroom; the load and what will carry it; floors served and travel; the site's electrical supply; the seismic basis from the structural engineer; and the scope split expected between supplier and builder. With those, a supplier can respond with a configuration and a boundary. The catalogue is a starting point for the equipment discussion, not a substitute for it.