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EN 81-28 Guide
– The European standards
What is EN 81-28?
In 2003, a European lift safety standard was
implemented called EN 81-28. It states that all
manufactured and installed lifts after the date of pub-
lication needs to have an alarm system that complies
with its listed lift safety standards in EN 81-28:2003
(with recent revision of this standard where clarifications
and adjustments have been done).

Having a lift safety system not up to standards can be

a costly mistake. Ultimately it is the building owner’s
responsibility to ensure the lift safety standards are
upheld. That’s why we have created this folder, so you
can make sure you invest in products that are up to date
with the requirements – meaning less downtime and
increased safety for your passengers.
SafeLine – more than
the standards
SafeLine is a company built upon making sure the safety
of passengers is guaranteed. When you choose SafeLine,
you never have to worry about our products not being in
compliance with current standards and regulations. We
keep track of the changes, so you don't have to.

But we don't settle there. It is our determination that

products should not just fulfill the standards, they should
also always be easy to install as well as user-friendly. We
are specialists in lift safety and have worked hard the last
three decades to provide our customers with the most
reliable and innovative solutions possible – surpassing
the necessary standards.

SafeLine – your partner in lift safety

Is your lift safety up to
standards?
The standards are regularly updated and in the
following pages you will find all the requirements with
the 2018 updates marked in red. The updated sections
are to be implemented in new lifts before May 2020.

All the following references refer to the standard

EN 81-28 2018.
 SafeLine installation in accordance
with EN 81-28

Machine room with main unit:

SL6+
Installed inaccessible to
unauthorized persons.
Establishes communication
through landline or GSM
SL6+ (available with redundancy).
2
Provides the unique identity of
the lift to the rescue service.

Voice station:
1 Initiates alarm when
button is pressed
and must be installed
where there is a risk of
entrapment, e.g: car,
lift pit.
EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

End of alarm notification

All emergency telephones must have an end of alarm

function. That means a notification is sent to the alarm
service that the rescue service have arrived to the right
location, ensuring that no one is still trapped in the lift.
The end of alarm must be initiated from the lift
installation, but the emergency telephone should also
have the possibility to be reset remotely from the
reception equipment on-site if not directly available.

Ref: §4.1.3
EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Automatic battery checks

Emergency telephones must perform automatic battery

checks, warning you if the battery level is below 1 hour of
functioning time, including 15 minutes of voice
communication. This is to ensure the telephones works at
all times.

They should also be equipped with an indicator on the

unit, signalling if there are low levels of battery. This also
applies to any GSM module that may be installed with
the unit.

Ref: §4.1.4
EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Pictograms with visual indication

All lift cars must be equipped with pictograms and

accompanying illuminated symbols, one green and one
yellow to inform passengers of the alarm status.

The yellow LED shall be lit when an alarm is recognised

as true by the telephone, accompanied by an audible
signal letting passengers know the call is being
connected.

Ref: §4.1.5
EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Adjustable volume

All emergency telephones must have an adjustable

speaker volume level between 35 and 65 dB (A) for the
audible signal, measuring one meter from the source
suited to the site conditions.

All of SafeLine's emergency telephones have an

adjustable volume control adapted to the exact
demands of dB levels, so all you have to do is set it to an
appropriate level.

Ref: §4.1.5
EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Intelligent alarm filtering

All emergency telephones must have a built-in alarm

filtering system. The alarm filter makes sure that if the car
doors are open or the car is runnning while someone is
pressing the alarm button, the filter will kick in and not
further transmit the call to the rescue service.

For manual testing, the filter should be bypassed when

the button is pressed for a set amount of time not
exceeding 30 seconds. If the button is pressed for a
shorter time than three seconds, however the filter may
discard the alarm.

Ref: §4.1.6
EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Identification

All emergency telephones must be able to identify

themselves to the recue service with an exact location of
the lift, even during alarm tests. This ensures
assistance to an entrapped passenger even if they do
not speak the same language or if the voice
communication fails.

Ref: §4.1.7
EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Communication

Entrapped passengers can be scared or even panic

during such stressful situations. To ensure
emergency communication, the passenger should
only have to initiate the alarm once without any further
actions. They should also not be able to interfere with
the alarm process, i.e. hang up, if a call has been initiat-
ed with the emergency telephone. During an alarm, the
telephone must also be able to emit alarms to
alternative reception equipment, for instance, have
several different telephone numbers stored.

Ref: §4.1.8, 4.2.1

EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Automatic self-tests

To ensure a lift emergency telehpones is not

dysfunctional in any way, all emergency telephones
must perform automatic self-tests, using the same way
of communication as a real alarm according to the
standards’ requirements. This must be done at least
every three days.

If an automatic self-test fails, the illuminated symbols

must flash in opposition (one sec off, one sec on) to in-
dicate failure not later than one hour from last failed test
until the next successful test.

Ref: §4.2.1
EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Installation requirements

The alarm initiation devices must be installed at places

where there is risk of entrapment. This is normally in
the lift car and the lift pit. In the car: the alarm initiation
device needs to be installed on or adjacent to the oper-
ating panel at a height between 850 mm and 1200 mm
from the car floor. The emergency telephone unit itself
needs to be installed inaccessible to the public. The
standards also require its functioning parameters to be
protected from unauthorised changes, by a password
for instance. The alarm button must be yellow and iden-
tified by the alarm symbol.

Ref: §4.2.3, 4.2.4, 4.2.5

EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Accessible technical documentation

Information on the alarm system must always be

provided with the system and be accessible to the lift
technician, as well as the building owner to share with
the rescue service.

With SafeLine for instance, all our technical documenta-

tion is available in physical form along with our products
and is accessible at all times digitally on our website by
anyone. This ensures that the relevant people can access
the correct documentation.

Ref: §5.2, 5.3

EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

Verification of the safety requirements

A technical compliance documentation shall be

provided to verify safety requirements and/or protective
measures. The documentation must contain the
necessary information to determine that the equipment
is correctly designed and in conformity with the
standards.

Ref: §6
EN 81-28 with changes marked in red

EN81-28

Examinations and tests before service

Before a lift safety system is in service, detailed tests

need to be performed to guarantee the safety of
passengers from the first moment the lift is in service.
These tests all relate to the subjects we have been
noting in this booklet.

The following tests should be carried out:

• Alarm
• End of alarm
• Emergency electrical power supply
• Information in the lift car (pictograms)
• Communication
Ref: §6.3
Your partner in
lift safety
SafeLine is a Swedish lift safety company founded
in 1995. We have provided our clients with over
250 000 installations of lift safety products, making
us the largest independent manufacturer of lift
safety products in Europe.

SafeLine SafeLine
Sweden Norway
Antennvägen 10 Solbråveien 49
135 48 Tyresö 1383 Asker
Sweden Norway
+46 (0)8 – 447 79 32 +47 94 14 14 49
info@safeline.se post@safeline.no

SafeLine SafeLine
Denmark Europe
Erhvervsvej 19 Industrieterrein 1-8
2600 Glostrup 3290 Diest
Denmark Belgium
+45 44 91 32 72 +32 (0) – 16 3948 66
info-dk@safeline.se info@safeline.eu

SafeLine SafeLine UK
Deutschland GmbH Unit 47 Acorn Industrial
Kurzgewannstraße 3 Park, Crayford, Kent,
68526 Ladenburg DA1 4AL
Germany United Kingdom
+49 (0) 6203 - 84060 03
sld@safeline.eu info@safeline-group.uk

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