Adding CCTV to your society's lifts: what to ask the lift AMC company
For managing committees and facility managers — the five questions that decide whether the lift camera works next year.
Most housing societies add lift cameras after an incident, in a hurry, through whichever CCTV vendor is already on site. The camera is the easy part; the cable that travels with the car is what decides whether the system still works in a year. These questions get you a proper job.
1. Which cable will travel with the car?
The answer should be a flat, stranded, FRLS travelling cable — for example Channeltech CAT6 Flat 4 Pair (CC-8251G-90) for IP cameras or 2+2 Flat (CC-9511K-90) for HD cameras. If the answer is "CAT6" or "3+1 cable" with no mention of flat or travelling, ask again. Round cable in the shaft fails within months.
2. Who fixes it in the shaft?
The lift AMC company must be involved — they control shaft access and the bracket the cable hangs from. Get the CCTV vendor and the lift company on one visit.
3. Where is the power coming from?
IP cameras take power over the same cable (PoE). HD cameras need 12 V DC, which should come from a supply on the car controller or via the 2+2 cable's power cores — not from a long thin wire from the machine room.
4. Is the emergency phone on its own cable?
It should be. A camera fault must never take out the intercom. Channeltech makes a separate 2-pair flat cable (CC-4251G-90) for exactly this.
5. What does the maintenance card say?
Ask for the part code, cable length and fixing point to be written on the lift's maintenance record. When the next vendor comes, they will know what is in the shaft.
What it should cost
Cable is a small part of the job — the shaft visit, the camera and the NVR port cost more. Saving on the cable buys a second shaft visit. Ask for the cable by part code and datasheet, and compare vendors on the same specification.
