Electrical Contracting News (ECN) September 2016 | Page 29
EMERGENCY LIGHTING
EXIT STRATEGY
In the main, emergency lighting
systems consist of self-contained
emergency luminaires.
The digitisation of the modern workplace has paved the way for offices to become some of the
most energy efficient buildings operating within the UK. Yet, in the event of a power cut during an
emergency it is often ageing electrical infrastructure which is responsible for the safe evacuation of
the building. With the UK’s commercial sector firmly focused on future proofing its building stock,
Steve Marr at Legrand UK warns of the risks linked to archaic emergency lighting practice.
W
e are fortunate in
the UK that we
have excellent
emergency
services teams
on hand to
support us in
times of crisis.
However, despite fast response times,
if disaster strikes in the workplace then
employees must be able to quickly and
safely exit the building, often well before
the emergency services can arrive.
Shedding a light on
emergency systems
Given how disorientated you can find
yourself in total darkness or smoke filled
corridors, an effective emergency lighting
system is key to establishing familiarity and
also highlighting the safest exit in the event
of a fire or other emergency scenario.
Emergency lighting systems are a
legal requirement in any public building,
in line with BS5266-1:2011, and
employers that fail to maintain their
buildings to this standard will quickly find
themselves facing hefty criminal charges.
However, businesses and landlords risk
complacency if they feel that such a
system, which only just meets the minimum
requirements, renders employees fully safe
in the event of an emergency.
Given the ageing nature of much of the
UK’s commercial building stock, many – as
much as 80 per cent – of these emergency
lighting systems are often examined and
tested manually, generally during the
middle of the night or when the building
isn’t operational. Whilst such systems
may have been installed in line with the
requirements outlined by the British
Standards, in the current age of advanced
Building Management Systems (BMS), the
maintenance practice has serious room
for improvement given the potential risk for
error it represents.
Maintenance matters
In the main, emergency lighting systems
consist of self-contained emergency
lumi