The UK Government issues comprehensive safety guidelines and pieces of legislation, designed to keep your business premises and the people who use it safe at all times. As a building owner or manager, there a lot of issues you must consider, but employee safety should always be a priority.
Nobody likes to imagine the worst, but if something bad does happen, it is vital that staff can be evacuated quickly and, more importantly, safely.
WHAT EXACTLY IS EMERGENCY LIGHTING?
Emergency lighting is generally comprised of 2 types of lighting.
Standby Lighting
These systems are designed to kick in should your regular lighting fail for any reason.
Escape Lighting
These lights are designed to come alive and light up emergency exits and escape routes in the event of an emergency.
EMERGENCY LIGHTING REGULATION
In the UK, emergency lighting is regulated by the British Standard 5266 Emergency Lighting Code of Conduct.
Every place of work has to provide sufficient and suitable lighting for use in emergency situations.
Emergency lighting must be installed in any areas where individuals may be at risk should traditional lights fail.
Somebody within your company must be designated to carry out a Fire Risk Assessment. This is then assessed itself by the Fire & Rescue Service to ensure it complies with British Standard 5266-1. Your designated employee must be able to prove that regular maintenance is carried out.
T Walsh Contracts will work with you to ensure that your designated fire safety employee is full yup to speed with what is required of them.
EMERGENCY LIGHT PLACEMENT
Emergency lighting must be placed in all areas required to allow safe and quick evacuation in the event of an incident. Areas you should consider include:
- Stairs, lifts and escalators
- Intersections and exit doors
- First aid areas
- Fire extinguishers and alarm activation points
- Flooring which is uneven or damaged
- Rooms without windows
- Plant and heavy machinery
- Sizeable open areas
- Areas with a degree of physical risk
EMERGENCY LIGHTING LOGBOOKS
Once a new emergency lighting system is installed you will need to provide a copy of the certificate of completion that we give you so that you remain compliant with British Standard 5266. All businesses must also keep a logbook documenting the level of compliance and regularity of maintenance and testing.
TESTING & MAINTENANCE
Monthly testing is required to ensure your emergency lighting system is legally compliant and ready for action.
Manual Testing
Quite simply, simulate power failure by turning off mains power and ensure your emergency lighting works as designed.
Automatic Testing
Some emergency lighting products feature automatic testing. You simply access and record the results of these automatic tests.
Central Battery Back-Up
If your system features battery back-up, you must examine the battery and inspect the mains power supply daily to ensure everything is running correctly.
Monthly Testing
Standard systems feature self-contained battery elements. You must simulate a mains power failure monthly to ensure the emergency lighting systems functions as expected.
Annual Testing
Once a year you must simulate mains failure over a longer period, specifically the length of time that your emergency lighting system is designed to work for. This ensures that not only does your system work but that it works as long as it’s supposed to.
