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Emergency lights are a core part of building safety. These systems not only come in handy during outages but can also save lives by helping people evacuate premises in the quickest way possible.
This is why there are strict rules for the installation and maintenance of these lighting systems. However, what happens when your emergency lighting is non-compliant?
Can you get by with a DIY, subpar, or non-compliant emergency lighting system in your building? Read below to learn more about the difference between compliant and non-compliant systems and how they can affect building safety:
Emergency lighting systems are part of fire safety and are designed to illuminate specific parts of a building. They are installed for one purpose only: to help people find the quickest way out of a building during a blackout that can be caused by natural or manmade disasters.
Whether it is fires, earthquakes, storms, or even floods, these lighting systems can show people the way out and help them maintain visibility.
Why is this important? Well, if you can’t see, then you can’t make decisions during high-stakes moments when disaster hits. Lighting is so important that there have also been unfortunate reports of stampedes during emergencies due to sheer panic and blackouts.
Emergency lighting systems may look unassuming, but they play an extremely vital role in safety when it matters the most.
Here are some places that you would commonly find these systems in:
All buildings that have an emergency lighting system follow strict regulations. These regulations outline various factors about the installation of the system and how often it should be serviced and maintained.
To enforce these regulations, buildings go through periodic inspections where an authorised person inspects the premises to determine the overall safety and effectiveness of the emergency lighting system.
Here’s what can happen if it fails inspections or doesn’t meet requirements:
Emergency lighting is part of fire safety as outlined by the British Standards and building regulations. Fire and Rescue services inspect buildings periodically and have the authority to take formal action if they notice a lack in the emergency lighting system, which includes the exit signage located around the premises.
Here are some of the most common and possible actions taken for non-compliant lighting:
This requires immediate improvements to the fire and safety arrangements in the building.
This notice requires specific repairs or upgrades within strict deadlines.
This requires closing the premises immediately, especially if the inspection reveals that there is a serious risk to life. This is a very serious notice and usually means that the building can not legally operate until the lighting issues are addressed.
Since emergency lights are part of building regulations and fire and safety laws, failing to comply with these regulations is a serious criminal offence.
Penalties include:
Insurance companies outline several conditions in their policy that dictate safety considerations as well.
For example, if an incident like a fire, power failure, or evacuation occurs and the emergency lighting doesn’t turn on due to non-compliant hardware, the insurance company may fully refuse to pay claims.
In this case, public liability insurance may be considered void, and you may have to cover all damages and injury claims from your pocket.
On top of fines that you will probably face, you can imagine how much financial strain the damages will put on you.
You can bet that occupants will also raise lawsuits, especially if people are injured during an evacuation due to poor lighting.
Businesses can face civil claims from employees or visitors, which can result in significant compensation and legal costs.
Some losses aren’t financial. When businesses use non-compliant hardware and run into problems during emergencies, they can face several types of issues.
The foremost issue would be related to the reputation of the building. This can hamper the value of the building and can even make people move out.
This type of negative publicity is difficult to navigate through and can linger on, potentially permanently, harming the reputation of the building and its stakeholders.
Now that you know the consequences of breaking the law, let’s highlight the details of the British Standard BS 5266-1, which provides the requirements for installing emergency lighting systems in buildings such as offices, schools, colleges, hospitals, nursing homes, hotels, shops, museums, and other multi-storey buildings.
These standards outline the following:
Emergency lights also include signage. According to The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, all emergency routes and exits must be indicated by signs, and the required illumination must be provided with emergency lighting systems with adequate intensity.
Building owners and stakeholders can elect a “responsible person” for internal inspections. This appointed individual will be tasked with conforming to the laws and even conducting daily visual inspections of these systems.
The appointed individual will typically ensure the following:
As mentioned above, the consequences of not following compliance can be severe. This is why the appointed individual must conduct their tasks dutifully and report back any issues at the earliest to the stakeholders or even the building owner directly.
Emergency lights come in four primary types:
Also known as exit route lighting, escape route lights are used to illuminate fire escapes and emergency exits to help occupants get out safely.
These lights are also called “anti-panic”. These systems are installed in open areas to provide adequate light for a safe escape during an emergency or fire.
You will find these lights installed directly over areas that deal with high-risk tasks, such as operating complex, dangerous, or heavy machinery. For example, in factory buildings, the goal is to keep some areas illuminated long enough for the workers to stop working, switch off the machinery, put down the tools, and evacuate safely.
Standby lighting can be thought of as emergency lights, but they differ in one big way: they are not required by law. These are simply standby lighting systems that turn on during simple outages.
They are not for evacuation purposes, but their presence can help calm people down since they can see more than what the emergency lighting alone illuminates. Standby lights are powered by generators or solar systems and can help keep the area illuminated until power is restored.
As you may know by now, emergency lighting systems are not to be taken lightly. They must not be installed using the DIY approach and must always be handled by professionals who keep all compliance factors in mind.
Professional installation companies like Calder Electrical use their decades of experience, accreditations, and trained technicians to install emergency lighting using industry standards.
Emergency lighting installation is all about correct positioning.
Incorrectly positioned lights could put the occupants of the building at some serious risk. This is why professionals strategically outline how the lights must be installed in relation to the floor plan of the building.
Additionally, according to the regulations, illuminated signs must be used in place of emergency lights if the emergency exit isn’t easily identifiable by the occupants.
The escape route areas where emergency lighting must be positioned include:
The non-escape route areas where emergency lighting must be placed include:
As per the British Standards 5266, emergency lights should be placed properly so that they clearly and equally illuminate an area with their brightness not less than 1 lux. For panic areas, the brightness must be 0.5 lux to exclude a 0.5-metre border around the escape route.
Escape routes that are around 2 metres wide should be well-lit to a minimum of 1 lux on 50% of the route’s width. Wider routes may also be treated as multiple 2-metre-wide bands.
How is the illumination measured? Professional installers use lux meters to determine the required lux levels for a building. Factors such as the type of building, the number of occupants, and how certain areas and rooms are used all go into determining the baseline for the lux levels.
It is important to note that special attention and more thorough assessments must be done for crowded places such as supermarkets, hospitals, and pubs.
One of the best ways to ensure full compliance is to build an internal compliance board for your building.
For serious building owners who want to create a stronger brand image and get ahead of compliance, there is no better way than to have a compliance board that oversees and assigns duties to the appointed individuals.
These individuals can help conduct daily assessments and ensure safety, especially during high footfall times. Building owners are encouraged to set up internal policies and create a paper trail for better accountability as well.
For example, assigned individuals can log inspection events and highlight compliance issues around the building. This report can then be shared with building stakeholders who can get ahead of the problems and immediately address them.
This is not only an excellent way to improve safety but can also save investors and stakeholders a lot of money over the long run.
Typically, emergency lighting can be serviced and tested daily, monthly, and yearly.
Daily inspections involve a visual check of the power supply indicators to make sure the emergency lighting system is fully functional. These tests take about 20-30 seconds but can only be conducted on systems powered by a central battery.
According to the British Standards 5266, all emergency lighting systems must be tested at least once a month. Monthly tests focus on a “flick” test, where the power is cut for a particular lighting system to simulate a blackout. This test can reveal how effectively the light works and whether it operates as intended.
Yearly tests dive even deeper and check the battery integrity as well as the internal systems. These tests aim to figure out and confirm if the emergency lights remain on for the duration specified by the British Standards (at least 3 hours).
When should you conduct these tests? Here are a few things you must keep in mind:
We have been providing electrical services to residential, commercial, and industrial properties for over 40 years and are specialists in all aspects of electrical installations, maintenance, and testing.
We are NICEIC registered, follow the current wiring regulations, and have experienced and fully qualified electrical engineers on hand to deliver a professional and high-quality service that includes emergency lighting installation and servicing.
If you wish to learn more about emergency LED lights and the best lighting solutions for your property, Calder Electrical Services is here to help!
From LED installation to upgrades, repairs, and troubleshooting, we offer a complete package for your homes and businesses, ensuring that everything complies with the latest electrical safety standards and regulations.
Our team can generate a Visual Inspection Report (VIR) to identify anything visual that does not comply with the standards or looks unsafe, as well as a full Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) where we will identify and test each circuit to make sure they are not deteriorating and are safe for use within the current standards and regulations set by the BS 7671.
We have been undertaking electrical work since 1976 and are specialists in the field. If you have unplanned issues within your home or business, we can provide a call-out service to rectify and solve any problems.
Our call-out services include emergency repairs, scheduled maintenance, fault finding and diagnostics, installation services, safety inspections, and emergency lighting and power solutions.
Contact us here or call us on 0800 612 3001 for more information on emergency lighting systems and what happens if your emergency lighting is non-compliant.
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