Are Your Meeting the Legal Requirements for Fire Safety?

  • Added:
    May 15, 2013
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    1752
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    480
Fire in Dumpster
Fire in Dumpster
Photo by benwatts

Fire safety is a big issue for all employers and project managers. Fires can not only pose a serious risk to the health and safety of your staff but they could also cost you in terms of time and money. Not all fires are accidental and part of your building site security needs to focus on the prevention of potential arson attacks.

Protect Against Arson

Building sites in particular can be vulnerable to break-ins and vandals. Some will enter building sites with the malicious intention of doing as much damage as possible. This could set your projects back months and cost thousands of pounds in wasted time and materials. Arson is a fast way to inflict heavy damages on building projects and materials. Therefore you need to invest in good building site security to help prevent would-be vandals and arsonists accessing your site.

Wireless security systems can now offer flexible and affordable options for sites. You can link multiple sites or run single security systems remotely and help to protect your projects against arson attacks.

Fire Safety

Whether fires are accidental or deliberate you need to protect your workforce and any visitors to your property. There are Fire Safety Regulations in place that inform employers and project managers of their legal responsibilities. This is also a good starting point if you are new to fire safety. The regulations will provide you with a comprehensive guide to what steps you can take to reduce the risks of fire and keep your business and employees safe.

• To help get you started with fire safety for your buildings and premises here are just some of the main legal requirements for employers:
• Employers must carry out fire risk assessment of the workplace. This could be a building site, retail space or office.
• This risk assessment must cover all employees (from office staff to maintenance workers) and anyone who might potentially be affected by a fire occurring in any area of the workplace.
• Identify those people who might be particularly at risk during a fire. This could include mobility impaired workers or those working in confined spaces.
• Using risk assessments employers must identify and implement fire safety precautions to eliminate or reduce hazards and safeguard everyone.
• If any areas of specific risk have been identified in the assessment then this will need to be communicated to all of your employees.
• Establish a clear guideline for staff on contacting emergency services and evacuating the building or site premises in the event of a potential fire.
• You should nominate specific members of staff to undertake special roles in emergency plans. This might include roles like ‘fire marshals’.
• Fire safety training should be provided to all employees, with special training provided to those nominated in specific roles.

Fire safety is an important area that should never be overlooked by employers. Protect your assets from potential arson threats with the latest wireless building site security.

Author's Profile

Security is paramount, whatever industry you are in. However, some industries require heightened protection and that is why building site security is highly sought after. He has written many articles pertaining to all things regarding construction and building site security especially on such subjects as the prevention of copper theft and the provision of specialist security solutions.


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