Fire Safety Responsibilities For Commercial Landlords
What measures should commercial landlords take with the structure and fit-out of their building to ensure it’s fire-safe for all occupants?
The workplace may not seem like the natural place for a fire to break out, but statistics say otherwise. Between September 2018 to September 2019, 15,005 fires broke out in non-dwelling buildings across the UK, with 564 of these taking place in office or call centres, and a further 3,578 in private, non-residential buildings. The majority of these fires were accidental, caused by issues such as poor electrical circuits or the use of old appliances. Commercial landlords have an obligation to mitigate against fire risks in these premises and must take significant precautions to protect all occupants of the building, along with business assets and the property itself.
Fire Rated Doors
By installing multiple fire-resistant doors at strategic points throughout your building, you can be assured that any fire that does break out will be quickly contained until the emergency services arrive. Fire resistant glass technology prevents the spread of flames for 30, 60, 90 or 120 minutes depending on the strength of your premier doors in place. This also provides occupants of your commercial premises the necessary time to safely leave the building.
Choosing An Appropriate Fire Detection System
Smoke alarms are required by law in your commercial property, but there are two main types of fire detection systems available and it’s important to understand the difference between them. Addressable fire alarms are usually more appropriate for larger commercial premises. When a fire is detected, the central unit will display the precise location of the smoke alarm that has been triggered. For smaller buildings, you might consider opting for a conventional fire alarm which will only tell you which zone the emergency is taking place in.
Water Sprinkling
Another fire protection solution which works well in commercial buildings is to invest in a sprinkler system. These work on a trigger basis, so if the sensors detect that a high volume of heat is present in the building, then the sprinkler heads will activate and spray pressurised water across the necessary zone to douse the fire and thus put it out. Some landlords are concerned about the damage that water sprinkling can achieve, but actually modern systems rely on the use of just one or two sprinkler nozzles to be turned on in the necessary, concentrated area. This negates the need for water sprinkling to be operational across your entire commercial premises.
Hi Visibility Signage
Commercial landlords must always clearly define and label the fire exits which will allow the quickest and safest route out of the building in the case of an emergency. These should be clearly signposted so that they comply with the Health and Safety Signs and Signals Regulations of 1996. You must use green information signs to denote the location of these exits and must also use the electrical LED lights to illuminate the fire exit in the case that power is lost.
Commercial landlords must always take their fire protection responsibilities seriously, so as to avoid legal penalties, but most importantly, to save lives.
