"Today, it is becoming more and more important to know this safety knowledge, not only for yourselves but also for people around you," said Lydia Jin, communications director of the company.

"Currently one out of six employees is a volunteer and has taught a class of 45 minutes or longer－it seemed a mission impossible when we rolled out the program two years ago.

"But we did it. Our goal is that every employee will volunteer and teach at least one safety class each year."

In addition to its own employees, many outside partners have also signed up for the program. Technical supervision bureaus in cities such as Beijing, Tianjin and Guangzhou have jointly organized safety training sessions with Otis, according to Jin.

"People feel good about doing good things and once we have mechanisms in place to unlock that passion, the whole program will be growing on its own," she added.