SAFESWITCH ELECTRICAL SERVICES LTD

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At Safeswitch we can oversee all your emergency lighting requirements making sure your premises meets all the latest regulations conforming to BS 5266. We also guarantee to advise on the best quality products that adhere to British Standards.

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EMERGENCY LIGHTING TESTING, MAINTENANCE AND REPAIRS - WHY SO IMPORTANT

• Emergency Lighting is critical in the event of a fire or power failure, and enables general public, staff and visitors to find emergency escape routes and exits should the need arise 

• You probably had your Emergency Lighting installed after the necessity was identified during a Fire Risk Assessment – where you have larger premises, corridors and stairwells that need to be kept illuminated in the event of an evacuation. For this reason, it’s essential to ensure that your Emergency Lighting system is Fully Maintained and operational. Additionally, as a business, you’ll also have legal obligations to maintain effective Fire Alarm and Lighting systems to protect your staff and visitors.

• We can test and maintain current emergency lighting installations for commercial properties, services offices, retail outlets and communal areas in residential blocks/apartments. 

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LEGISLATION

• Legislation and common law impose duties of care upon those responsible for buildings, generally building owners, tenants and employers but also managers and those responsible for organizing events etc. These  persons are generally called 'dutyholders' as they have obligations or duties to provide for the safety of persons using a building or facility. Some persons may not consider that they are dutyholders but if there is an accident the courts will look closely at the circumstances and identify responsibilities.

• If precautions and provisions are put in place such that persons are not harmed, problems will not arise. This must be the prime objective, to determine what is necessary for the safety of persons using the facility for building and to implement the requirements. In this context persons include employees, the self employed, visitors or guests who are in the building or facility and any grounds.

• BS EN 1838 specifies escape and standby lighting requirements for businesses in the event of a power failure. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005,  states that businesses need to install emergency lighting in their premises by law

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FREQUENCY OF EMERGENCY LIGHTING TESTS

• Daily:  This test only applies to emergency lighting systems with a central back-up battery system. In this case, there is a daily visual inspection of indicators on the central power supply to identify that the system is operational. No operation test is required. This test does not apply to emergency lighting with self-contained back-up batteries in each unit (standard emergency lighting). 

• Monthly:   All emergency lighting systems must be tested monthly and is a short functional test in accordance with BS EN 50172:2004 / BS 5266-8:2004. The period of simulated failure should be sufficient for the purpose of this test while minimising damage to the lighting components, e.g. lamps. During the test time all luminaires and signs shall be checked to ensure that they are present, clean and working correctly. The monthly test will be a quick ‘flick’ test just to ensure that the emergency lighting switches on correctly.

• Annually:  Your annual emergency lighting test follows a similar process as the monthly test, with the difference that it should last for either 1 hour or 3 hours, dependant on the type of batteries you have in your light fittings. It’s called a ‘full discharge’ test and it tests that your batteries last as long as they should and meet the minimum legal requirement.  Any faulty batteries or lighting tubes should be replaced as soon as possible following the test, and any more serious faults should be immediately investigated and rectified. 

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If your emergency lighting system needs testing and maintenance then get in touch using our contact page today.

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