Montgomery Elevator Service for Legacy Equipment
Montgomery Elevator Company built elevators and escalators in Moline, Illinois for most of the twentieth century, and its equipment still runs in mid-century office buildings, department stores, courthouses, and schools across Texas. The brand itself is gone — KONE acquired Montgomery in 1994 — but the installed base did not go anywhere, and much of it is still earning its keep.
Prime Elevator Corp maintains, repairs, and modernizes this legacy equipment as an independent elevator contractor licensed by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (license #20478). We are based in Spring, dispatch emergency service 24/7 across the Houston metro, and handle scheduled work in Dallas–Fort Worth.
Does Prime Elevator service Montgomery equipment?
Yes — Prime Elevator Corp services Montgomery elevators and escalators as an independent, TDLR-licensed elevator contractor (Elevator Contractor License #20478). We are not affiliated with the original manufacturer or its corporate successor; we service the equipment on its own merits, from 1950s relay-logic traction machines to the microprocessor-controlled units built in the brand's final years. That covers preventive maintenance, repair, annual test support, parts sourcing, and full or partial modernization.
- TDLR Elevator Contractor License
- #20478Expires 01/16/2027
- Emergency dispatch
- 24/7, Houston metro onlyOn site in under 60 minutes inside the Houston metro
- Scheduled service
- Houston and Dallas–Fort WorthScheduled work only in DFW
- Office hours
- Mon–Fri, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
What Montgomery systems are common in Texas buildings?
The Montgomery equipment found in Texas is mostly hydraulic passenger elevators in low-rise commercial buildings, geared traction units in mid-rise offices and institutional buildings, and escalators in retail and public spaces, installed from the 1950s through the 1990s. Montgomery, headquartered in Moline, Illinois, was one of the largest American-owned elevator manufacturers at the time of its sale, and a major escalator builder in its own right. KONE acquired the company in 1994; equipment sold under the Montgomery KONE name for several years before the brand was retired around 2000. The newest Montgomery-branded unit in service is therefore roughly a quarter century old.
| Era | Typical equipment | Control technology |
|---|---|---|
| 1950s–1960s | Geared traction passenger and freight elevators; escalators | Relay logic |
| 1970s–1980s | Hydraulic passenger elevators in low-rise offices, medical, retail | Relay logic, early solid-state |
| Late 1980s–1990s | Hydraulic and geared traction; Montgomery KONE badging after 1994 | Miprom-family microprocessor controllers |
Where a nameplate is ambiguous — common after decades of partial upgrades — we identify the platform from the machine, valve, and wiring prints rather than the badge.
What typically fails on Montgomery equipment?
Failures on Montgomery equipment cluster in four subsystems: aging controllers, hydraulic power units and in-ground cylinders, door equipment, and escalator drive components. None of these is unusual for equipment of this age, and all are serviceable — the practical question is parts lead time, which is why we pre-stage common wear items for the Montgomery units we maintain.
| Subsystem | What fails | What it looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Relay controllers | Pitted contacts, burned coils, loose connections | Intermittent shutdowns, missed calls |
| Microprocessor controllers | Board-level failures on out-of-production electronics | Faults that clear on reset, dead car |
| Hydraulic power unit | Valve wear, packing and seal leaks, degraded oil | Rough leveling, oil in the pit |
| In-ground cylinder | Corrosion on cylinders set before modern protection | Unexplained oil loss, car settling |
| Door equipment | Operator clutch and linkage wear, worn gibs and rollers | Nuisance stalls, harsh closing, reopens |
| Traction machine and drive | Bearing wear, brake drift, motor-generator brush wear | Noise, poor floor stops |
| Escalators | Step chain stretch, handrail drive wear, combplate damage | Handrail lag, step judder, safety shutdowns |
- Controller
- The cabinet that dispatches the car, sequences the doors, and runs the safety logic — relay-based on older Montgomery units, microprocessor-based on later ones.
- Motor-generator set
- A rotating power converter on older traction elevators that supplies DC to the hoist motor; a common modernization target because it is inefficient and maintenance-heavy.
Can an independent contractor service Montgomery elevators?
Yes — any elevator contractor licensed under Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 754 may service Montgomery equipment, and the platform is well suited to independent service. Most of the installed base predates locked, dealer-only diagnostic tools: relay controllers are fully serviceable by any mechanic who can read the wiring prints, and the later microprocessor systems are supported by an established third-party ecosystem. The license is not brand-restricted, and neither is the equipment.
Parts follow the same pattern. Commodity wear items — door rollers and gibs, contacts and coils, packings, belts, valve components — are available from independent elevator parts suppliers. Out-of-production circuit boards can usually be repaired at component level, sourced refurbished, or replaced with compatible non-proprietary controls. Where a component is genuinely unobtainable, the remedy is a targeted modernization of that subsystem rather than abandoning the unit.
Source: Tex. Health & Safety Code ch. 754 (Elevators, Escalators, and Related Equipment)
When does Montgomery equipment need modernization?
Montgomery equipment needs modernization when parts scarcity, repeat shutdowns, or a code or accessibility trigger makes continued repair the more expensive path — and on this platform the tipping point is usually the controller. Because no Montgomery equipment has been manufactured since the brand was retired, every unit in the field runs on hardware at least a generation out of production. That is manageable for mechanical components, which independent suppliers still cover well, but electronics age out faster than iron.
- Controller faults that clear on reset and resist troubleshooting, or boards that have already been through repair once
- Repeat entrapments or shutdowns on the same unit within a short span
- An in-ground hydraulic cylinder losing oil with no visible leak
- Door equipment that will not hold adjustment between maintenance visits
- Inspection findings tied to older-code items, or a planned accessibility upgrade
- Lead times on critical spares stretching from days to months
Modernization does not have to mean full replacement. On sound Montgomery machines and rails, a controller-and-drive modernization with new door operators keeps the heavy iron and replaces the parts that actually fail. Texas requires annual inspection and a current certificate of compliance regardless of equipment age, so inspection findings are often the natural trigger for scoping this work.
- Entrapment
- A passenger stuck in a stalled car between floors or behind closed doors; treated as an emergency call, not a scheduled repair.
- Modernization
- Replacing the control, drive, door, and fixture systems of an existing elevator while reusing structural components — rails, and often the machine — that still meet code.
What does it cost to maintain Montgomery equipment versus replacing it?
There is no honest single number — the maintain-versus-modernize decision turns on parts availability, callback frequency, downtime tolerance, and code exposure, not on the equipment's age alone. We do not publish flat prices because scope varies too much between a clean two-stop hydraulic and a relay-controlled traction group in a 1960s tower. What we can tell you is what moves the number in each direction.
| Keeping it running | Modernizing |
|---|---|
| Scarce-parts premiums and long lead times on obsolete electronics | Scope: controller-only versus full car, door, and fixture replacement |
| Troubleshooting hours on intermittent relay faults | Condition of machine, rails, and hoistway — reusable iron lowers scope |
| Callback frequency and after-hours calls | In-ground cylinder replacement, which adds shaft work |
| Tenant downtime and lost use of the car | Code-triggered additions identified at permit and inspection |
Our recommendation on any Montgomery unit starts with a controller and machine-room survey, current inspection reports, and twelve months of callback history. From there the comparison is itemized, not guessed.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Montgomery Elevator the same company as KONE?
- Montgomery Elevator Company was acquired by KONE in 1994, and equipment carried the Montgomery KONE name for several years before the brand was retired around 2000. The company no longer exists as a separate manufacturer, but equipment in the field is still commonly called Montgomery. Independent contractors, including Prime, service it routinely.
- Are parts still available for Montgomery elevators?
- Mechanical wear parts — door hardware, contacts, coils, packings, valve components — remain available through independent elevator parts suppliers. Out-of-production circuit boards can typically be repaired, sourced refurbished, or replaced with compatible controls. When a component truly cannot be sourced, we quote a targeted modernization of that subsystem instead.
- Does Prime service Montgomery escalators?
- Yes. Escalators were a major part of Montgomery's business, and units survive in Texas retail, transit, and institutional buildings. We handle step chain, handrail drive, combplate, and safety-circuit work, along with scheduled maintenance and inspection support.
- Can a Montgomery relay controller be kept in service, or must it be replaced?
- It can be kept in service — relay logic is fully documented in the wiring prints, and individual contacts and coils are replaceable. The real cost is troubleshooting time once faults turn intermittent, which is when controller modernization usually becomes the cheaper path over a few years of callbacks.
- Do you service Montgomery equipment in Dallas–Fort Worth?
- Yes, on a scheduled basis — maintenance, repair, inspection support, and modernization. Emergency dispatch with our under-60-minute response applies in the Houston metro only.
- Is a Montgomery elevator from the 1960s still legal to operate in Texas?
- Age alone does not make an elevator non-compliant. Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 754 requires an annual inspection and a current certificate of compliance for equipment in service, whatever its vintage. If your inspections are current and findings are addressed, an older Montgomery unit can remain in service.
- What should I have ready when I call about a Montgomery unit?
- The machine-room data plate information, the controller type if known, your latest TDLR inspection report, and a short history of recent faults or callbacks. Photos of the controller and data plate speed up parts identification considerably.
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Talk to a person who works on this equipment
Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Emergency service dispatched 24/7, including weekends and holidays.
(832) 391-8514