As buildings become higher in search of new space, needed so much in a small country such as Malta, lifts become a necessity more than ever. Maurice Mizzi, director of Mizzi Organisation, tells David Lindsay about his concern about the overall safety of lifts in Malta and speaks of a legislation that is taking too long to be enacted

After having first introduced solar energy to Malta back in the 1970s, perhaps somewhat ahead of the times, Titan International – a Mizzi Organisation holding – is revisiting the area of environmental responsibility with renewed impetus given the ever-growing threat presented by the prospects of global warming.

The company, which also operates in the areas of air conditioning and lifts and escalators, is seriously concerned over the lack of legislation regulating the general safety of lifts and is dismayed by the delay in Malta’s implementation of European Union regulations in the area.

While the lift business is an important commercial area for the company, it is one that company director Maurice Mizzi stresses is undertaken with a great sense of responsibility over safety issues related to lift installations and maintenance – a conscience Mr Mizzi does not see as necessarily being shared by the sector across the board.

“We are very concerned about the overall safety of lifts in Malta. We are not convinced there are adequate safety precautions being taken with respect to both old and new lifts being installed. As such, we are rather anxious about the lack of safety measures being taken in certain lifts.”

Legislation aimed at aligning Malta with EU regulations on lift safety has been on the table since 2002 and the company is clearly perturbed over the stalling of its implementation, given the fact that the current enforcement system in place leaves much to be desired. Only lifts installed in public places are controlled by the Occupational Health and Safety Authority, while those installed in blocks of flats basically vanish from the grid and do not fall under any way, shape or form of control.

“This is a weakness that was supposed to have been addressed by new legislation,” Mr Mizzi commented. “There is a white paper that was meant to have been transposed some months back, but so far we have seen nothing and following the conclusion of the consultation process, we are still waiting for the implementation of EU regulations into Maltese law.”

Mr Mizzi estimates the number of lifts installed throughout the Islands at over 9,000, with some 60 per cent being located in blocks of flats or condominiums, which are neither recorded nor controlled.

“But as we await the legislation, I am increasingly concerned about the safety of both old and new lifts. Lifts need to be maintained. So far we have not had any accidents, but we cannot simply wait for one to happen and then decide to carry out maintenance. This aspect of maintenance is very important and is one of the things that should be forthcoming with the law.

“The biggest problem, in a business sense, is that there is not a level playing field. As a company with an ISO9000 certification, entailing onerous checks and balances, we are deeply involved in safety measures and do not engage in any practice that could prove dangerous to the end user. Others, however, are not so prudent.”

Titan, which employs 120 people, deals with Otis Lifts, one of the largest brands in the world, and Carrier and Haier in terms of its air-conditioning business. The company has carried out a plethora of major projects across the islands in both lines of business. Among recent contracts, the company counts installations at Middlesea, Lufthansa Technik, Mater Dei Hospital - one of the largest air conditioning contracts ever carried out in Malta – and one the biggest lift contracts to date through the installation of 36 lifts at MIDI’s Tigne Point development. The company, meanwhile, is also eyeing the Valletta vertical lift contract.

The air-conditioning market, Mr Mizzi explained, is also riddled with cowboys. The company’s experience has revealed activities such as rogue traders changing BTU badges on air conditioning units to reflect falsely high outputs, and other traders recommending cheaper, lower BTU units inadequate for the proper cooling of the rooms in question with the simple aim of offering a more palatable price so as to close a quick sale.

Mr Mizzi also has strong views on the environment and it is certainly heartening to hear one of the country’s leading businesspeople speaking of a dedication to fight against global warming. The company has, in fact, been active in the environmental sector since the 1970s, when it had started out in solar heating systems, perhaps somewhat ahead of the times.

The idea was eventually shelved, until recently, as consumer concern about the environment, not to mention a hefty electricity surcharge, has sparked renewed interest in the area.

“We are now at a stage where it makes sense, but unfortunately still not enough,” he commented. “We believe the government incentives in this regard should be improved upon.”

Mr Mizzi said the company is now “very bullish” on solar energy’s domestic application in the form of solar water heaters, and the more efficient yet more expensive photovoltaic (PV) systems.

Payback times on such investments, however, vary greatly. Solar water heaters generally pay for themselves, through electricity savings, in approximately five years, while payback periods for photovoltaic systems, which also feed electricity into the national power grid, are much longer at some 18 to 20 years.

“We need the government to help,” Mr Mizzi stresses. “If the government wants to encourage people to take up such environmentally-friendly systems, it has to help out in areas such as removing VAT on these products. Such a measure would not cost the government much. If we retain VAT, people would buy less, but if removed it people would buy more and help to reduce the burden of energy on the government – a win-win situation for all parties concerned.”

Another measure that would be welcome relates to PV systems, which generate surplus electricity that can be sold to Enemalta at a certain rate. At present, as announced in Budget 2006, consumers benefit from a 25 per cent refund, up to a maximum of Lm100 when purchasing solar water heaters.

Buyers of the more expensive PV systems, meanwhile, benefit the same 25 per cent refund up to a maximum of Lm500. Enemalta has additionally waived the Lm20 fee for the installation of meters measuring the system’s output into the national grid, while surplus electricity generated by such systems is purchased by Enemalta at 3cents/kWH.

But to see a real take-up of PV systems, and to cut down on the somewhat lengthy payback period, Malta needs incentives such as those enjoyed in the rest of Europe such as purchasing power from PV systems at prices higher than the going market rate. In Germany, for example, PV-generated power is purchased at 45 euro cents per unit.

Overall, Mr Mizzi sees Malta improving on both the economic and environmental fronts.

“Thanks to EU membership, we are gradually bringing things up to European standards – both environmentally, through the enforcement of standards, and economically through Malta’s EU budget allocation of EUR800 million.

“Of course we need to increase the tempo. If it had anything to do with me I would increase that tempo substantially. We are, however, moving forward in many fields and I am very satisfied with what has been happening.”