To protect your employees, customers, and property, it is important to meet all fire requirements for commercial buildings. This article will discuss the fire safety equipment that can help keep your employees and visitors safe in an emergency.
Key fire requirements for commercial buildings
Adhering to fire safety requirements in commercial buildings is a legal obligation and a crucial measure to protect lives and assets. These regulations equip structures with appropriate fire prevention, detection, and suppression systems tailored to each building’s risks.
Active and passive fire control
Regarding fire safety, active fire control is just as important as passive fire protection.
Active fire control involves any equipment that requires activation to function. This can include manual activation, like using a fire extinguisher, or automatic activation, such as sprinklers triggered by an alarm.
Once activated, active fire protection elements work to contain, suppress or extinguish the fire.
Automatic fire-rated swing doors, sprinklers and alarm systems are crucial in fire safety equipment. By closing immediately when a smoke detector triggers, they help slow the spread of fire and provide people with more time to evacuate.
While passive fire protection elements, such as fire doors and walls, help prevent the spread of fire, active fire control elements are essential for actually extinguishing a fire.
As a result, it is important to have both types of fire protection in place in any building.
Fire-resistant doors in commercial properties can help contain a fire and prevent it from spreading
Fire doors are essential to any commercial building’s passive fire control system.
A fire door is specialised to slow the spread of fire and smoke. Typically made of steel or fire-resistant glazing, it includes a self-closing device that activates when opened.
By doing so, fire-resistant doors also help create safe passages for evacuating people.
To ensure a fire door is effective, you must install it correctly and maintain it regularly. This involves fitting the door properly to its frame and keeping all hardware, such as hinges, locks, and closers, in good working order.
The door should also be inspected regularly to ensure it is free from obstructions, damage, or other problems preventing it from functioning correctly in a fire.
Fire detection and smoke alarms
Kitchen and electrical fires are the most common types in commercial buildings, making smoke alarms crucial. You should install them in every room and test them monthly.
A fire alarm system is necessary to detect fires and warn occupants.
One of the most important things you can do to ensure the safety of your commercial building is to install a high-quality fire alarm system.
Fire alarm systems provide an early warning that a fire has started, giving people time to evacuate the premises. When choosing a fire alarm system for your commercial building, be sure to choose one that is reliable and has a loud, clear signal that can be heard throughout the entire building.
Emergency lighting and exit signs
It is important that your commercial building has a reliable emergency lighting system in place in the event of a power outage or fire. Emergency lighting should be bright enough to illuminate all exits and walkways, and exit signs should be clearly visible from every direction.
Exit lights
Another important element of fire safety in commercial buildings is having adequate lighting. This includes natural lighting from windows and skylights and artificial lighting from light fixtures.
Adequate lighting is important for two reasons: first, it allows people to see where they are going during a power outage; second, it makes it easier for firefighters to see when they are fighting a blaze. You should always keep exit signs illuminated so people can easily find the nearest exit in an emergency.
You should clearly mark and ensure easy access to emergency exits.
In the event of a fire, every second counts. That’s why marking exit signage throughout your commercial building is so important.
You should place exit signs near all exits and keep them illuminated to ensure visibility, even in low-light conditions. Additionally, if your employees or customers speak languages other than English, you should provide accessible signage in those languages.
Fire extinguishers
All commercial buildings must have a sufficient number of fire extinguishers on hand.
Extinguishers should put out small fires before they have a chance to spread.
Place fire extinguishers in strategic locations throughout the building to ensure easy access in an emergency. Additionally, employees should be trained on proper extinguisher use and conduct fire extinguisher training regularly, at least once yearly.
Ensure extinguishers comply with Australian standards, maintain them properly, and service them regularly to keep adequate pressure.
Fire sprinklers
Sprinklers can help prevent loss of life and property damage by containing or extinguishing fire. This makes them a vital part of any fire safety plan.
Sprinklers put out fires before they have a chance to spread.
In Australia, various standards govern fire sprinkler systems’ design, installation, and maintenance. These standards ensure proper installation and maintenance, enabling sprinklers to protect against fire effectively.
An alarm usually triggers sprinklers, allowing them to rapidly deploy water to extinguish the fire. As a result, they are an essential piece of fire safety equipment. By investing in a quality sprinkler system, you can help protect your home or business against the ravages of fire.
Evacuation and regular fire drills
Conduct fire drills regularly, and allow employees to practice using fire extinguishers and other safety systems.
Employees should be aware of potential fire hazards and assembly points.
In addition, all employees should be familiar with the evacuation routes and procedures. Evacuation routes and muster points should be marked and wheelchair accessible for people with disabilities.
Thereupon, by taking these precautions, workplaces can help ensure their employees’ safety in the event of a fire.
Final tips: Fire requirements for commercial properties
- Fire requirements for commercial buildings vary depending on the type of building and its use.
- The layout of a commercial building can impact its fire safety rating.
- Commercial buildings, such as office and retail buildings, are held to a higher fire safety standard than residential ones. Always refer to your state’s regulations and building assessment code.
- A well-maintained building is less likely to experience a fire emergency. Use professional services to regularly maintain automatic doors and other fire equipment in commercial spaces to ensure they comply with strict standards.
- There are specific requirements for the installation of fire suppression systems in commercial buildings.
- Employees must be trained in evacuation procedures in the event of a fire and proper use of fire equipment, including extinguishers and fire blankets.
- A qualified professional should inspect commercial buildings regularly to ensure all building materials and fire safety equipment are up to code.
- Contact a professional installer to learn more about installing fire-resistant doors in your commercial building.
Go Doors offers a complete solution for the installation of fire doors
Go Doors is a leading supplier of fire resistant doors and glass fire doors for commercial premises. We supply and install fire doors that are custom designed to reduce smoke and fire spread in the event of an emergency, enabling safe building evacuation.
Go Doors can also install the market-leading DFA 127 automatic swing door operator, which is designed for use in fire doors that must open or close automatically during a fire signal.
Go Doors is committed to helping businesses meet their fire safety requirements. Get a quote for your office, warehouse or other commercial premises today. Or for more information about fire doors, contact our team.
