How to Set Up Your Workspace for Lift Maintenance, PTO and Repairs

Lifts are the one area where a missed service or a lapsed Permit to Operate (PTO) becomes a safety and compliance problem. This guide shows you how to set up your lifts in Basementgrid once, so monthly servicing, annual PTO renewal and repairs all run through the same process, with a record you can pull up any time.

Who this is for: council members or building managers looking after lift maintenance in-house, and Managing Agents who want the same visibility across their estates.

Before you start

• You have admin access to your workspace.
• You have your lift contractor's company name and UEN.
• Each lift is set up as an asset (Part 1) and has compliance tracking turned on (Part 4).

For the regulatory background, see link to blog post.

Part 1: Set up each lift as an asset

Create one asset per lift by following Assets: How to Add and Set Up an Asset. For lifts:

1. Name each lift clearly (for example, "Block 5 Lift A").
2. Set Category to Lift & Escalator.
3. Choose the lift's Location.
4. Add the Commissioning Date and Warranty Expiry if you have them.
5. In Assign to, select your lift contractor, so work orders raised against this lift suggest that vendor automatically.

Each lift now has its own history page showing every work order raised against it.

Part 2: Invite your lift contractor

If your lift contractor isn't in your workspace yet, invite them following How to Invite a Vendor. The easiest way is from Create New WO: tap the Assignee field, switch to the Vendor tab and tap Invite vendor.

• Use the company name as registered with its UEN. Vendors are verified by UEN.
• Send the invite to the person who manages jobs (the Vendor Manager), not a shared inbox.
• You don't need to add individual technicians. Their Vendor Manager does that from their side.

Vendors are always free, so inviting your contractor costs your MCST nothing.

Part 3: Monthly maintenance

Set up the monthly service once as a recurring work order. Basementgrid then creates each month's job for you. For the full details, see Setting Up Recurring Work Orders (Preventive Maintenance).

1. Create a new work order, choose the lift as the asset and its location, and assign your lift contractor.
2. In the Schedule section, set the Due Date for the first monthly service.
3. Set Repeat Frequency to Every month (and a Repeat Day if you want a specific day).
4. Save. Basementgrid queues up the next work order automatically.

How each month works

1. On the day of the visit, the contractor clocks in at the property (GPS-verified), completes the service and uploads proof of work.
2. The building manager reviews the work and either accepts it or sends it back.
3. Once accepted, the contractor submits the invoice. The PayNow QR is matched to the work order amount and the vendor's UEN, so the amount paid is the amount agreed.

Close out each service. The next month's work order is only created after the current one is marked Completed. If a service is missed or never closed out, the next one won't appear, so make sure each month's job is completed or followed up.

Part 4: PTO and the annual inspection

Each lift's PTO is tracked as a certificate on the asset. You set it up once per lift, and Basementgrid keeps the expiry date current when the inspection work is completed.

1. Open each lift and turn on compliance tracking, choosing the PTO certificate. Follow Assets: How to Set Up Compliance Tracking.
2. When the PTO is due for renewal, raise a compliance work order for the annual inspection and test, linked to the lift and assigned to your lift contractor.
3. When the work order is completed, the lift's certificate updates automatically. If the PTO was renewed outside Basementgrid, use Log Certificate Renewal on the asset instead.

Make sure the work order is linked to the right lift. If it isn't, the certificate won't update.

Part 5: Repairs and breakdowns

1. Anyone with access (a resident using the app, a security guard on patrol or the building manager) reports the fault.
2. The building manager creates a work order following Creating a Work Order. Select the lift as the Asset so the repair is recorded in its history, assign your lift contractor, attach a photo of the fault, and set a Due Date if it's urgent. If you're not ready to issue it yet, use Save as Draft. For non-urgent repairs, you can ask for a quotation first (see How to Get a Vendor's Quotation Before You Issue a Work Order).
3. If there's a cost, select Billable to Estate so it goes through your financial approval workflow. If the amount is above your workspace's approval threshold, it goes to council members for approval before it's issued.
4. Once issued, the scope, amount and vendor are locked. The contractor is alerted, updates the status from Enroute to In Progress to Completed, uploads proof and submits the invoice.

Where to see the full history

Open the lift under Assets. Every monthly service, annual test and repair is listed with dates, amounts and proof. This is what you hand over to the next council or Managing Agent.

Related guides

• Assets: How to Set Up Compliance Tracking
• Assets: How to Add and Set Up an Asset
• Creating a Work Order
• Field Guide: Managing Recurring Monthly Maintenance as a Contractor