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Elevator cab refinishing · elevator interior renovation with 3M DI-NOC architectural finishes

Refinish the cab. Keep the elevator running.

Elevator cab refinishing with 3M DI-NOC wraps the cab’s existing walls, return panels, door faces and ceiling in an architectural finish film that looks and feels like wood, stone or metal. Nothing is removed from the car, each cab is usually back in service the same day, and a straightforward refinish starts from $5,000 per cab.

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  • Usually back in service same day
  • From $5,000 per cab
  • Class A (ASTM E84) on most patterns
  • 3M-trained, certified Epic crews

Refinish vs replace, per cab

  • Time out of service: usually hours for a DI-NOC refinish; 1 to 2 days per cab for replacement panel systems, 3 to 4 for clip systems
  • Lead time: on your schedule for a refinish; 6 to 8 weeks for new interiors
  • Cost: from $5,000 for a straightforward refinish; $15,000 to $75,000 in published replacement cost guides
  • Weight: an 8-mil film over the existing panels, nothing removed
  • Permits: typically cosmetic resurfacing; your elevator contractor and AHJ confirm

Replacement figures are national ranges from published elevator-industry cost guides, not a quote. Full comparison →

Elevator cab refinishing, defined

Why refinish an elevator cab instead of replacing the panels?

Because the panels are usually fine. What is worn out is the finish. Replacing a cab interior means new panels, a 6 to 8 week lead time, a permit and days out of service per cab. Refinishing with DI-NOC changes the surface in place, and each cab is usually back in service the same day.

3M DI-NOC is a self-adhesive architectural finish film, 8 mil nominal, with more than 900 wood, metal, stone, solid and textile patterns. It is heat-formed around returns and reveals so the cab reads as new millwork, not a sticker. Owners pick an elevator cab remodel this way when the budget will not cover new interiors, when a single-car building cannot spare its only elevator for days, or when the brand standard changes faster than a capital plan. For the rest of the building, see 3M DI-NOC architectural finishes and wall coverings & glass finishes.

Every Epic DI-NOC installation specialist is 3M-trained and certified, and an Epic employee, never a subcontractor. How Epic trains and certifies →

The elevator visualizer

Put any DI-NOC finish on a cab.

Start inside the cab, then try the elevator lobby. Pick a surface (cab doors, return panels, side walls, hall doors, the wall around the bank), then choose from the full 3M DI-NOC catalog. Sample scenes are licensed stock photographs, not Epic projects.

Scene
Surface

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Tap a numbered dot on the photo to pick a surface · drag the handle to compare.

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BeforeWith Epic · 3M DI-NOC
Rendering…

This is a simulation. Patterns are the actual 3M DI-NOC swatches, rendered in perspective on the real surfaces in each photo and lit by the room’s own light. Screen color varies; Quick Ship marks patterns stocked for fast delivery, every other pattern ships from 3M. Epic brings the sample books and makes mockup panels on your actual wall before anything is ordered.

What gets refinished

Every surface in the cab, and the lobby around it.

Cab side and rear walls

The panels riders stand next to. Wood grain is the most-specified DI-NOC family for cabs. The film goes over the existing panels, so nothing is removed from the car.

Return panels and the inside of the doors

Usually brushed or hairline metal, or a wood that matches the walls. Fixtures and hardware stay as they are.

Ceilings, reveals and trim

Ceiling panels and reveal strips are finished to match or contrast, so the cab reads as one design instead of a new wall next to an old ceiling.

Hall-side doors and frames

The doors every guest sees from the lobby. Many hall doors are fire-rated, so they are reviewed with your elevator contractor and the Authority Having Jurisdiction before any film goes on.

The elevator lobby

Walls around the bank, call-station surrounds, columns and the reception desk nearby, in the same finish or a complementary one, on the same visit.

Field footage · coming soonElevator cab, before and afterReal Epic footage is added as projects complete.
Field footage · coming soonElevator bank, hall doors wrappedReal Epic footage is added as projects complete.
Field footage · coming soonCrew at work, after hoursReal Epic footage is added as projects complete.
Who refinishes cabs

Buildings that cannot wait two months for new cab interiors.

Hotels

Cabs refreshed one car at a time after hours, while the other cars keep running.

Property managers

A dated cab is the first thing a prospective tenant judges a building by. Refinish the bank before the next lease tour instead of waiting on a capital project.

Hospitals

Cleanable finishes on the cabs that move patients, staff and families around the clock, refinished one car at a time so the bank keeps moving.

Facility directors

Schools, municipal buildings and campuses where the budget will not cover new cab interiors and nobody wants to wait two months for them.

Completed Epic work is on the projects page.

Fire rating and code

The fire report is in the submittal, before work starts.

3M’s US technical data lists most DI-NOC products as Class A when tested to ASTM E84 for interior applications. Ratings are pattern by pattern, so Epic supplies the report for the exact pattern you choose.

Hall-side elevator doors are often fire-rated assemblies. A finish on a rated door is reviewed with your elevator contractor and the Authority Having Jurisdiction before any film goes on, and Epic does not describe a door wrap as code compliant until the AHJ does. Specifying for a renovation? Section 09 72 00 for DI-NOC is on the guide specifications page.

Free download · 2 pages

Elevator cab refinishing: refinish vs. replace, side by side

Cost, downtime, lead time, added weight, permits, fire rating and service life — 3M DI-NOC refinishing by Epic against a traditional cab interior replacement, with published industry figures and sources.

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FAQ

Elevator cab refinishing questions

What is elevator cab refinishing?
Elevator cab refinishing is renewing the inside of an elevator car without replacing its panels. With 3M DI-NOC, the existing walls, return panels, door faces and ceiling are wrapped in an architectural finish film that looks and feels like wood, stone or metal. It is the alternative to a full elevator interior renovation when the panels themselves are sound.
How long is an elevator out of service for a DI-NOC refinish?
Usually hours. Each cab is usually back in service the same day, and Epic works one cab at a time so the rest of the bank keeps running. A traditional replacement takes 1 to 4 days per cab out of service, after a 6 to 8 week lead time, by published elevator-industry figures.
How much does elevator cab refinishing cost?
A straightforward DI-NOC refinish starts from $5,000 per cab. The firm number comes after a free survey, because the number of surfaces, returns and reveals, the pattern and the condition of the panels all move it. Published cost guides put traditional cab interior replacement at $15,000 to $75,000 per cab. See the refinish vs replace comparison and Epic’s cost guide.
Do we need an elevator contractor or a permit?
A DI-NOC refinish over existing panels is typically treated as cosmetic resurfacing, with no structural, electrical or floor changes, but that is for your elevator contractor and the Authority Having Jurisdiction to confirm. Epic coordinates with both and supplies the pattern-specific fire report before work starts. Epic is not an elevator contractor.
Is a DI-NOC elevator wrap fire rated?
3M’s US technical data lists most DI-NOC products as Class A when tested to ASTM E84 for interior applications. Because the rating is pattern by pattern, Epic includes the report for the exact pattern you choose in the submittal.
Can you wrap elevator doors?
Yes, the inside faces of the cab doors and the hall-side doors and frames. Hall-side doors are often fire-rated, so a finish on a rated door is reviewed with your elevator contractor and the AHJ first. Epic does not call any door wrap code compliant until the AHJ does.
How long does a DI-NOC cab finish last?
3M publishes an expected performance life of 12 years for indoor, vertical DI-NOC applications. If a section is damaged, that section is re-wrapped on its own rather than replacing a whole panel.
Is an elevator wrap the same as refinishing?
Not always. “Elevator wrap” often means printed advertising vinyl on the doors that changes with a campaign. A DI-NOC refinish is a textured architectural finish meant to stay. Epic does both; branded door graphics are part of environmental graphics.

Get a number for your cabs

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