‘Safety first’, another old adage, which is immensely important with emergency lighting systems. Primarily intended to provide sufficient illumination, emergency lightning systems enable people to safely see their way out of a building in cases of emergency. An emergency can be a fire or a power cut, which may lead to sudden darkness and therefor be a possible danger to people, either through panic or physical danger.
Keep in mind that in most cases the electrical supply of a building will be cut when a fire happens. In addition to providing enough light in an emergency, lightning systems also enable a building to meet the fire safety legislation in a visually appealing way and simple when it comes to maintenance and operation.
Before giving any thought to the design though, you should make sure to establish all the relevant legal requirements for emergency lightning systems and agree on them with the building control officer, the system designer and of course the system installer. The instalment and maintenance services are provided by a Romford electrician.
Besides along all escape routes, which now require a luminance level of one lux on the centre line of the escape route, also all open areas that are larger than 60m2 must be illuminated with emergency lights, if the normal lightning supply fails. In that case, it is vital that emergency lightning does come on. The systems are normally required to give illumination of a sufficiently high level and operate fully automatically. They need to be positioned in a way that enables the occupants of a building to be evacuated safely in an emergency and be illuminated for enough time.
The systems have to comply with BS 5266-1, which is the code of practice for emergency lighting. It offers simple guidance on the most important factors, such as the positioning of emergency luminaries, acceptable glare levels, minimum routine testing schedules and height levels. BS 5266 puts additional emphasis on the importance of regular testing of all emergency lighting equipment.
It is recommended that advice on the installation should be given by a person who specialises in emergency lightning systems and is competent in that field of expertise. Contact your electrician in Romford, to find out about services concerning the matter and to make sure you conform to the regulations.
There are two types of power supplies available when it comes to emergency lightning. Self-contained/ single point systems have the advantage of a cheaper and faster installation. The maintenance and equipment costs are low with this type. The system can be easily extended with additional luminaries and each luminaire is independent of the others. It should be considered though, that battery life is limited to between 2 and 4 years, dependent upon the application and the testing requires isolation and observation of luminaires on an individual basis. Central battery source systems, on the other hand, come with higher costs, but with only one location to consider, the maintenance and routine testing is much easier. Dependent upon type, the life of a battery is between 5 and 25 years
Having said that, continued maintenance and testing is a must and has to be correctly carried out, to comply with the directive and the equipment used must be of adequate quality. Compliance with the appropriate British Standard gives evidence of this. The standard for luminaries is BS EN 60598-2-22. For central battery systems the standard is BS EN 5017.
Emergency lighting systems should be maintained every 6 months by an electrician in Romford and regular internal tests should be done on a weekly/ monthly basis.
Why call Powerlec Electrical & Testing Ltd?
We have been operating as electricians in Romford for a number of years, and over that time have built up a reputation for our professional and efficient service. Whether it is emergency lighting you need, or indeed any other electrical service, give us a call on 01702 952 951 or fill out our handy contact form and we’ll be happy to help.
