When asked if their business premises are ‘fire safe’, most business owners will give a confident response. They will talk about how they have had a fire risk assessment in the last few years, how all employees know what to do in the unlikely event of a fire, how fire extinguishers are provided and clearly marked, how the fire alarm system works, and how the fire alarm goes off occasionally.
Likewise, they will point out how all exits are clearly marked and how they regularly check that everything is working as it should. The fact is, however, that for most businesses, this feeling of being fire safe is a long way from the reality, and often not until there has been a fire will this be appreciated. It is worth looking at the consequences of this misapprehension – and, frankly, it is worth examining honestly.
Fire risk assessments. The lifespan of these seems to be linked to that of businesses themselves. The Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order 2005 states that a fire risk assessment must be kept up to date and reviewed regularly. Important changes to a building’s layout, increases in occupancy, and the introduction of new materials all necessitate a fire risk assessment update. It is not enough to say that the assessment three years ago, no matter how complete, is a good indication of the current position of the building.
Fire doors. Often the most misunderstood element of a business’s fire safety regime, fire doors play a key role in reducing the spread of fire within a commercial building. By preventing the slow spread of fire and smoke through compartmentalising a building, fire doors give occupants valuable time to escape safely. It is, therefore, critical that they are maintained correctly. Disconnected fire door closers, damaged seals, gaps at the bottom, wide gaps, etc, all of these things can render a whole compartmentation strategy worthless. For a Fire Risk Assessment Bristol, contact //keloscape.co.uk/areas-we-cover/fire-safety-consultancy-bristol
Emergency lighting and signage. We often find failures in emergency lighting and signage that, on detailed fire safety inspections, are surprisingly common. This is not through any kind of careless attitude to safety but through a lack of awareness, because these types of systems aren’t usually ‘seen’ to fail. They fail over time, often with the majority of buildings failing on detailed inspections. Most people don’t really notice emergency lighting and signage unless it fails.
Fire extinguishers. It is all too easy for the fire extinguisher provided at the end of the corridor and not easily seen from management’s office, to be thought of as the business’s fire safety strategy. This, of course, is not the case. A fire extinguisher is not a business’s fire safety strategy. It is merely the last line of this strategy. A good fire safety strategy should go much earlier and much deeper.
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