Illuminating ideas

ON THE face of it, emergency lighting would appear to be a simple concept. When the power goes off in a building and the ‘normal’ lighting fails, the emergency lighting takes over and becomes a lifeline, guiding people to safety at a time when they’re vulnerable and in need of assistance.

In point of fact, emergency and exit lighting should be considered in much the same way as other life safety devices. For instance, a doctor using a defibrillator to restart someone’s heart or the RNLI using a life ring or a life jacket to prevent someone from drowning. In both these instances, the products involved are used to save a life. Emergency lighting is no different.

Why should you consider emergency lighting as the first element to be considered on your ‘To Do’ list? It’s still apparent that there are many cases where installed emergency lighting is not up to current regulatory standards. It’s often old, untested or otherwise failing.

It comes as no surprise to learn, then, that fines are being handed out by the authorities on a regular basis as and when safety audits are conducted, not necessarily just on emergency lighting, but on the full safety of the building.

Why does this happen? Most of the time it’s because buildings are not being kept up-to-date with the latest regulatory standards. The thought process for some is that, as their systems were compliant a decade ago, they’re probably still compliant to this day. In general, this is known as retrospective compliance.

Results of non-compliance

Non-compliance can result in some unpleasant consequences. For instance, an Alterations Notice may be served on the ‘Responsible Person’ if the inspecting authority is of the opinion that the premises constitute a serious risk to relevant persons or may constitute a serious risk if a change is made to the premises or the use to which it is put. Where an Alterations Notice has been served, the ‘Responsible Person’ must notify the enforcing authority of the proposed changes before any are actually set in motion.

Then there are Enforcement Notices. These are issued where the ‘Responsible Person’ has failed to comply with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and may detail corrective measures that the individual is legally obliged to complete within a set timescale in order to comply with the law.

Further, there’s the potential for a Prohibition Notice. A Prohibition Notice may be served on the ‘Responsible Person’ if the enforcing authority is of the opinion that the use of the premises involves – or will involve – a risk to relevant persons so serious that the use of the premises ought to be prohibited or restricted. The document may detail corrective measures required specific to the Prohibition Notice to enable corrective action to be taken.

Last, but by no means least, a prosecution process could well be set in motion if the hazard is more serious than can be covered by the above actions.

The reality of the situation is that buildings need to be compliant with the regulatory requirements. For emergency lighting, this means implementing BS 5266-1 to comply with the Fire Safety Order.

Taking the first steps

Understanding that there’s a need for an emergency lighting system in most buildings of public occupancy where rooms are used daily is only the first step towards compliance. Let’s not forget that the outside of a building is also bound by regulations. BS 5266-1:2016 requires that external lighting must be provided to guide evacuees from the point where they exit the building to a place of safety which also means there’s a need for the emergency and exit lighting used to be weatherproofed unless situated under a canopy.

The first step in any compliant scheme is identifying the ‘Responsible Person’ who holds responsibility for the well-being and safety of those using buildings excluding private dwellings, but covering public residential housing. Examples of ‘Responsible Persons’ could be the facility manager, the property manager, a Health and Safety officer or, ultimately, the building owner. All of these individuals should have the best interests of the building occupants in mind.

Once the right individual has been identified, there are some further steps to be followed that will help with compliance. It starts with the design of your lighting scheme and understanding that this is in line with the latest standards. You should be able to ask the organisations that are designing your buildings if all of the regulations have been followed and ascertain that what has been specified is up-to-date and compliant.

Don’t forget that different rooms have different response times, lux levels, duration and placement requirements in order to be compliant. It’s not as easy as ‘once size fits all’. A good point of reference for what’s needed and where is the ‘Points of Emphasis’ section in BS 5266-1.

Product selection

Selecting products to be used in your building is so important for the potential outcome of your design. Choosing the right products for the right situation is critical for compliance. The quality and pedigree of solution manufacturers should never be underestimated. In a world where the ‘value engineering’ of products is common terminology, this phrase should never be a consideration when it comes to life safety.

Look for reputable products from reputable manufacturers who have calibrated testing facilities and laboratories dedicated to emergency lighting and are part of industry bodies like the Fire Industry Association and specific certification schemes. By doing so, you can then rest assured that the products specified to save lives in a building meet the right standards.

Once the chosen products have been installed by a competent installer – and, yes, you should always use an installer that has expertise and a demonstrable history of working with emergency lighting – it must be recognised that the process doesn’t end there.

One of the most important steps towards full compliance is continual mandatory testing as covered in the Fire Safety Order under the given guidance of BS EN 50172. If you didn’t know already, a visual daily inspection is required of emergency lighting alarms and LED indicators for central power supply systems. Moreover, on top of this you must also devise and run regular monthly and annual testing regimes.

Each month, a function test must be completed wherein lamps should be switched on in the emergency mode to check each luminaire and each internally illuminated exit sign from its battery for a period sufficient to ensure that each lamp is illuminated. At the end of the test period, the supply to normal lighting should be restored and any indicator lamp or device checked to ensure that it’s showing the normal lighting to have been restored.

Every year, the same process must happen as in the monthly check, but this time for the full rated duration as dictated by the risk assessment.

Regular maintenance

The next couple of steps that should be implemented include regular maintenance of your system (as this is paramount for its performance and continued compliance) plus completing and recording the results of regular risk assessments. ‘Regular’ in this context is understood to be either yearly or when there has been a change in the relevant standards or use of the building. Without taking these steps you may fall foul of the law.

This may all seem like a daunting array of tasks to be completed, and especially so for large estates or in buildings where thousands of fittings may be installed. This may be true, but as is the case in many industries, innovation can play a big part in the upkeep of your life safety solutions and system compliance.

The Digital Application Lighting Interface is probably the most commonly used and implemented control system to date, but with it comes unnecessary complication, cost and hardware. Using wireless interfaces reduces the backbone hardware requirements to a single Radio Frequency controller which controls up to 1,000 luminaires and uses dynamic self-managed meshing technology that creates a network to make your emergency lighting simpler, faster and easier to use than ever before.

Battery choice is also one of the biggest decisions to make in your emergency lighting system. It’s important to understand the strengths and weaknesses of each battery type’s chemistry to ensure you realise maximum value from your product and solution. Older battery technology such as Sealed Lead Acid, Nickel Metal Hydride and Nickel Cadmium deliver inferior performance when compared to more powerful technology such as Lithium Iron Phosphate (ie LiFePO4) and Lithium Nanophosphate batteries. Lithium products far outperform the ‘old guard’, affording you three times the lifespan and over 80% maintenance savings when compared to older battery technologies.

Looking to the future

It’s well worth learning about the use of dynamic signage as part of your evacuation strategy. There are now exit sign solutions that provide increased visibility, audible cues and negative enforcement options. We’ve tested products with the Fire Safety Engineering Group (FSEG) at Greenwich University, developing a dynamic exit sign range that’s fit for purpose.

The FSEG and also the University of Leeds have provided the required research, experience and trials of dynamic exit signage and locatable sound technology. These particular products can be seen as tools for fire safety engineers to consider for use as fire performance solutions and also in designs where increased visibility exit signs are preferred.

Like it or not, emergency lighting is a legal requirement under the Fire Safety Order. Numerous guides have been produced alongside BS EN 5266-1 for emergency lighting to assist those who need to conduct risk assessments and point towards the safety equipment that’s needed.

Emergency and exit lighting should never be a seen as a grudge purchase or taken for granted. Providing a viable route to safety for all building occupants in an emergency evacuation scenario is absolutely essential and must always be the prime consideration.

Craig Stead is Country Manager for Clevertronics UK (www.clevertronics.co.uk)