Emergi-Lite
Emergency Lighting Systems
Emergency lighting is vital to help people escape
from a building when necessary. It highlights the escape route and
essential fire equipment en route permitting safe evacuation.
Emergi-Lite Emergency Safety Systems will now discuss
requirements for designing emergency lighting systems.
Requirements & Standards
The requirement for emergency lighting
originates from the Fire Precautions Act 1971. This was further
enforced by the Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997 and
amended in 1999. This and other related documents introduced the
concept of ‘Risk Assessment’. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety)
Order 2005, Statutory Instrument 2005 no. 1541 became law on 1st
October 2006. From October 2006, ‘Fire Risk Assessment’ is the
responsibility of the building owner, user, or occupier/employer
superseding the existing Fire Certificate regime.
The risk assessment is a multi-stage process,
which guides the assessor or ‘competent person’ in identifying the
risk and the need for fire precautions, to reducing those
risks down to acceptable levels. In reducing those risks, the need
for emergency lighting is established. Once a decision is taken to
install emergency lighting in premises then BS 5266 Parts 1, 7 and 8
should be followed. When designing a system the emergency
lighting luminaires should conform to the harmonised British and
European product standard BSEN 60598-2-22. Certified products show a
compliance with good quality and safety.
Internally illuminated exit signs should
also comply with the product standard. The format of the legends
should comply with the Health and Safety ‘Safety signs and signals’
regulations 1996, or the European Signs Directive.
An installer will have more confidence and be
less at risk with the work performed, by using products certified to
the product standard and marked with the approval of the national
test house. CE marking alone does not imply a
product will work in an emergency situation. Certified and approved
emergency lighting has an enhanced level of safety compared to
general lighting, which is only required to be ‘safe in use’. ‘Safe
in use’ in the general lighting context, means that it is neither an
electric shock nor a fire hazard and that non-operation of the
fitting would be an inconvenience. In the emergency sense
‘non-operation’ of an emergency luminaire is a safety hazard.
The Industry Committee for Emergency Lighting (ICEL)
has a certification and registration scheme for luminaires and
conversion modules. The ICEL1001 scheme goes further than the BSEN
product standard, by introducing additional requirements for
performance, battery or component life and fire retardancy. In using
ICEL registered product, the competent person or installer can be
further assured that the product is safe and will work in an
emergency for many years.
General Requirements for Emergency Lighting
BS 5266 Parts 1, 7 & 8
Emergency lighting must:
-
Indicate the escape routes clearly
with exit signs so there is no doubt which is the way out
-
Illuminate open areas used in an escape
route so that obstacles such as equipment or furniture can
be avoided
-
Ensure fire alarm call points & fire-fighting
equipment can be readily located
-
Provide illumination for high-risk areas to
allow machinery processes to be shut down safely
Exit Signs Any point on,
or leading to, an escape route must have an exit sign so that
there is no ambiguity in the direction of escape. BS5499 format
pictograms and European format pictograms are acceptable within the
UK Signs and Signal Regulations. Text only signs are obsolete and
must be replaced. Exit signboards can be used, providing that
an adjacent emergency luminaire illuminates the board adequately. A
more effective way of emphasising the way out is to use internally
illuminated exit signs, such as the Emergi-Lite Navigator,
Mistral, Horizon, Silver-Lite or Corniche Ranges.
Escape Routes It is essential that people
can move safely along an escape route in an emergency. There are
often minor hazards such as steps that should be illuminated. It is
not unusual for an object (trolleys, boxes, suitcases) to be left on
the escape route, in which case the lighting should be sufficient [a
minimum of 1 lux on the escape route] for people to see the
obstruction and avoid it.
Open Areas Where an
escape route leads through an open area, then illumination of 0.5
Lux minimum should be provided.
Points of Emphasis The
following places have been identified at which emergency luminaires
should be located:
-
Near Stairs
-
Near changes of level
-
Near changes of direction
-
Near the intersection of corridors
-
Near an exit door
-
Near each piece of fire-fighting equipment or
manual call points
-
Near each First Aid point
(Near is defined as being within 2 metres)
Additional Areas & High Risk Certain areas
are not part of the escape route but still require illumination if
people could be located there. This includes: Lifts, escalators,
moving walkways, toilets larger than 8m˛, toilets smaller than 8m˛
without borrowed light, disabled toilets, small lobbies, motor and
plant rooms and pedestrian routes within covered car parks. Other
additional areas, which require special attention, are high-risk
task areas, places of entertainment and open areas greater than
60m˛.
Stand-by Lighting If
stand-by lighting is used as emergency lighting it should conform to
all the requirements of emergency lighting.
Mounting Heights
Emergency luminaires should be mounted at least 2 metres above the
floor. There is no upper limit but luminaires should be fitted below
smoke level if there is a significant risk of floor illumination
being affected. In high-risk smoke areas low-level way finding to BS
5266 Part 2 can be installed in addition to overhead emergency
lighting.
Luminaire Failure
The possibility of emergency luminaire failure
should always be considered in the scheme design. A minimum of 2
luminaires should be allowed for in each lighting compartment.
Luminaires & Emergency Lighting Systems A
varied range of emergency lighting is available to suit different
budgets, decors, building requirements, colours and specifications.
Emergi-Lite Safety Systems can help the Specifier with the selection
or possibly consider a special luminaire to a particular
requirement.
Types of Emergency Lighting
-
Self-contained: Each luminaire contains a
battery & is a micro-system in itself
-
Slave: Luminaires that are powered from a
central battery AC/AC or AC/DC system
-
Conversions: Most mains fluorescent
luminaires can be converted for emergency use. Emergi-Lite has
specialist conversion centres for this purpose. Emergi-Lite
Morley is 3rd party certified to ICEL-1004
Categories of Emergency Lighting
-
Non-maintained (NM): Luminaires operate when
the mains fail
-
Maintained (M): Luminaires operate when the
mains fail, but can also be operated if required using a switch
when the mains are healthy
-
Combined non-maintained: The luminaire has
more than one lamp, one illuminates when the mains is healthy,
the other in emergency when the mains fails
-
Combined maintained: Both lamps operate when
the mains is healthy, on lamp operates in emergency
Testing & Maintenance of Emergency Lighting
To be effective it is essential that Emergency Lighting is regularly
tested and a maintenance procedure is set in place to current
British Standards BS 5266 Part 1:2005 and BS 5266 Part 8:2004
(EN50172). Semi-Automatic Testing
Semi-automatic testing systems are available that
can initiate a test to verify the correct operation required in the
prescribed monthly and annual tests. The Emergi-Lite remote infrared
test system (IR2) is simple to use and enables the user to control
and observe tests or download and store data for assessment later on
a PC.
Fully Automatic Testing
Fully automatic testing can be achieved using
‘Centrel’ addressable type systems. Each luminaire is given an
address. A central control unit then communicates to each emergency
luminaire via an extra two-core data cable and programs automatic
testing schedules.
Request information Emergi-Lite
Emergency Lighting Self Contained Luminaires Central Battery Systems
Fire Detection
Technical information associated with: Emergi-Lite Emergency Lighting |
