Academia Técnico Pro

Practical manual · Lifts

How to measure the lift shaft before installing

New builds and modernisations: why to measure before ordering material, which tools to use, how to do it safely, how to record each floor and how to notify the designer of anything that doesn’t add up. So that surprises turn up on paper and not during installation.

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PDF · 22 A4 pages · 7 illustrations · measurement sheets · Rev. 1 · October 2026 · Author: Ramón Uriepero

Cover of the manual How to measure the lift shaft before installing: the shaft on the drawing versus the real shaft

What’s inside

The shaft on the drawing is almost never the real shaft: walls out of plumb, offset floors, mismatched door openings, a pit or headroom that falls short. This manual explains how to find out before ordering the material, with an orderly method and no brands: valid for any installation.

  • Safety before entering the shaft: protected access points, fall arrest, lockout/tagout, pit and shaft head.
  • Tools and methods with their advantages and limits: tape measure and plumb lines, laser distance meter, laser plumb with targets, laser level, total station and 3D laser scanning.
  • New builds floor by floor: clear cross-section, out-of-plumb, door openings, finished floor level, pit, headroom and fixing surfaces.
  • Modernisation: measuring with the old car still in the shaft and deciding what is reused and what is replaced.
  • Measurement sheets ready to print and a template deviation report for the designer.
  • Common mistakes and a final checklist.

Who it’s for

Lift installers and technicians, improvers starting out and site managers who want to measure once and install without surprises. Structured according to the principles of ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 (quality, environment and occupational health and safety); it is not certified by any body. It does not replace the manufacturer’s instructions or current local regulations.

Contents

  1. Purpose and scope
  2. Reference regulatory framework
  3. Responsibilities and definitions
  4. Why measure before installing
  5. Safety before entering the shaft
  6. Measuring tools and methods
  7. Procedure for new builds
  8. Procedure for modernisations
  9. Records: measurement sheets
  10. Deviations: reporting to the designer
  11. Continual improvement and common mistakes
  12. Final checklist

A few illustrations from the manual

Technician measuring the distance from the plumb line to the wall from a protected access point
Tape measure and plumb lines, the tried-and-tested basics
Generic 3D laser scanner in the pit turning the shaft into a point cloud
3D scanning of the shaft
Measuring from the roof of the old car during a modernisation
Modernisation: measuring from the car roof

⚠️ Safety first

  • Shaft measurement is carried out only by qualified, authorised personnel, never alone and always with full PPE.
  • Never lean into the shaft without a harness clipped to a suitable anchorage point; door openings must always be protected.
  • In modernisations, lock out/tag out before entering the pit or climbing onto the car roof.
  • Permissible tolerances and dimensions are set by the manufacturer’s manual and the applicable standards: check current local regulations.

The academy’s content is indicative and does not replace the manufacturer’s instructions, local regulations, the documentation of each installation or official training.