Of all the problems that can seriously impact on a retail business, fire has to be the most severe. Even a minor fire can put a premises out of action for weeks while repairs are made and stock replaced. Plus of course the risk of injury or worse to staff and customers in the property at the time. In response to the tragic events at Grenfell Tower the Government has been steadily overhauling fire safety legislation. Which makes this arguably the biggest priority for retailers in 2024.
The changes to legislation around fire safety have been gradually introduced over the last few years. These have been a combination of amendments to existing statutes and new Acts. In short the entire subject of fire safety must be taken extremely seriously by commercial property landlords and retailers alike. It is now easier for non-compliance to be dealt with much faster by the authorities. A business cannot delegate responsibility for fire safety failures on individuals. And enforcement can be much more severe.
Looking ahead
One hot topic for 2024 will be the operational abilities of any emergency lighting installed within the retail premises. The updates to fire safety legislation effectively makes it compulsory to regularly test any emergency lighting in place and record the results.
In theory this means customers and staff should be safer in the event of a fire alarm being raised. In practice this can mean an increase in time and resources being spent keeping on top of any issues with your emergency lighting system. Legacy installations need to be inspected in person and can fail at any time. Making the task of implementing a testing schedule potentially costly and not entirely foolproof either.
Solving issues with emergency lighting
The alternative is to update your existing emergency lighting with a network of standalone systems connected together wirelessly. The combination of modern battery technology and central management gives you a long working lifecycle with far easier oversight of all the units in place via a central dashboard.
Being extremely easy to install (and relocate if required), a replacement network can be up and running in far less time than a mains-powered version. But the biggest benefit is the new level of control you would have over the lighting. As each unit talks to the central dashboard, you get instant real time visibility of all your wireless lighting. This means you can see any issues that may be affecting one or more of the units – and have it resolved quickly. No need to wait until the next scheduled test to find out.
Fire safety legislation will inevitably be high up your To-Do list for 2024, and Store Maintenance is here to help. Our network of vetted contractors ensure you don’t fall foul of the new legislation. Plus, with our services around modern wireless emergency lighting we can help you to save time and budget on keeping your fire safety systems compliant. So get in touch today to talk about fire safety and your properties.
