BRITISH STANDARD FOR EMERGENCY LIGHTING HAS BEEN UPDATED, CREATING A NEW CATEGORY OF SAFETY LIGHTING.
This new category has been named ‘emergency safety lighting’ and was created when BS5266 was revised in 2016 to bring it more in line with European Standards 1838, lighting applications, emergency lighting.
The revisions clarify questions by giving guidance on increased risks from high levels of occupancy, underground or windowless rooms, rooms which escape routes pass through, and other specific situational requirements.
Every environment is different, so it is important that your emergency lighting system is correctly designed and that all potential risks are evaluated. It is advised that these assessments are reevaluated if there are changes made to the property as risks could change over time.
The ‘responsible person’ will always need to carry out an individual risk assessment for emergency lighting systems, but it is also advised to get a professional to design and regularly fully test the working order of the system, particularly as safety lighting runs on battery power. It is vital these systems are appropriately tested, in some cases even automatic testing is advised. The ‘responsible person’ has the financial responsibility to service, maintain and upgrade a compliant emergency lighting system.
Keybury Fire and Security can provide comprehensive assessments of emergency safety lighting requirements, upgrade, maintenance and testing plans. Call us today on 01535 66 11 97 or visit our contact page to discuss how we can help you to ensure your emergency lighting is compliant with the updated safety standards.