When you are a business owner and the lease of the office is in your name, it is your responsibility to ensure that your employees are safe.
This includes things that are unexpected, like fires.
Even the smallest office space can fall victim to a fire, and of course, we all like to think that it will never happen to us. Fires are something that you should prepare for, with the hope that it never happens.
The first thing that you need is to have a comprehensive fire policy that lets all of your employees know what to do if there is a fire while they are in the building.
Photo by Paul Bulai on Unsplash
Risk assessment
It is your job to safeguard your staff, and if you aren’t aware of all of the risks, that job becomes a lot more difficult. You can get a fire safety expert to help you highlight all of the potential threats that your building poses to your staff.
A risk assessment will cover how fires (that are not arson) may start, how they will spread through the building, the exits that are best to be used, and how the risks can be mitigated.
It is a good idea to check all electrical outlets, and have any replaced that are old or showing signs of damage. Ensuring that you have regular PAT testing on all your electricals can reduce the likelihood of faulty electricals being the cause of a fire.
Fire safety training
No matter how much time and energy you put into the risk assessment, if your staff doesn’t know what to do in the case of a fire, then you aren’t doing your best.
Just like when schools have fire drills, and the teachers give them clear instructions to follow to get to safety in an orderly fashion – your staff needs this training.
You can choose to have a comprehensive set of fire training and appoint a member of staff to be the fire safety liaison. The fire warden will get extra training, and it is a good idea to have several depending on the size of your company.
Training should include how to get out of the building if there is fire below, in the stairwells, or in the office itself.
If staff are not prepared to exit quickly and safely, it can result in people running in different directions, getting lost, and ultimately a terrible outcome.
Fire equipment
When you have your office fitted, this is the time to consider fire-retardant materials. Fire-retardant materials will be able to reduce the spread of the fire, and this can give more time to stop the fire or to escape.
Fire glass is designed to withstand the high heats that are produced by fires and can act as an extra barrier.
Having several fire extinguishers with easy access, fire blankets, and more can help your team to escape at speed or to put the fire out if they need to.
Keeping the office clean and tidy is one of the biggest ways to negate the chances of accidental fires: 6 Tips To Help You Keep Your Office Spaces Clean And Safe – B2B News Network.
