February Refurb and Renew magazine
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Fire & Safety Systems |<br />
False alarms: A burning issue<br />
The Fire Industry Association estimates that false alarms are costing the UK taxpayer in excess of one billion pounds every year.<br />
As well as this financial burden, high levels of<br />
unnecessary alerts also have other negative<br />
consequences for both fire services <strong>and</strong><br />
businesses.<br />
A recent Government report suggested the<br />
average response time to non-domestic building<br />
fires in Engl<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> Wales in 2014-15 was 8<br />
minutes 28 seconds, an increase of 21 seconds<br />
from the previous year.<br />
Not only do false alarms distract fire <strong>and</strong> rescue<br />
teams from attending genuine incidents, they can<br />
also cost businesses significant amounts of<br />
money from lost worker productivity <strong>and</strong>, in<br />
some cases, fines.<br />
There are a number of simple actions that<br />
organisations can take to reduce false alarms in<br />
their premises.<br />
According to Government figures, nearly two<br />
thirds of false alarms are due to apparatus issues.<br />
In Engl<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> Wales alone, faulty equipment<br />
accounted for more than 141,000 incidents in<br />
2015. In most cases, this is due to improper<br />
maintenance or installation, as even the most<br />
high-spec fire safety equipment can malfunction<br />
if neglected or fitted incorrectly.<br />
By choosing a reputable installer to fit intelligent,<br />
high integrity systems, building owners <strong>and</strong><br />
managers can help minimise any potential issues<br />
from the moment of installation.<br />
During the lifecycle of the fire safety system,<br />
regular inspections <strong>and</strong> servicing of equipment<br />
must be undertaken <strong>and</strong> recorded in a logbook<br />
according to recommendation BS 5839. By doing<br />
this, building owners <strong>and</strong> managers can accurately<br />
build up a pattern of false alarms, as well as stay<br />
on top of the required maintenance processes,<br />
ensuring compliance.<br />
By taking simple steps to confront the issue of<br />
false alarms, building managers <strong>and</strong> owners can<br />
help increase occupant safety <strong>and</strong> avoid the legal<br />
<strong>and</strong> financial ramifications.<br />
“In 2014-2015 Fire &<br />
Rescue authorities<br />
attended 215,600<br />
false alarms<br />
counting for call-outs<br />
every 2 minutes!”<br />
For more information, including a<br />
free-to-download white paper on<br />
the subject, visit<br />
www.hochikieurope.com<br />
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .<br />
58%<br />
FALSE<br />
ALARMS<br />
In 2014-15:<br />
Fire & Rescue authorities attended 215,600<br />
counting for call-outs every 2 minutes!<br />
false alarms<br />
29% 58% of installers encounter false alarms at customers’<br />
of all fire related emergency call-outs were false<br />
alarms<br />
sites<br />
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .<br />
Aerosols<br />
Humidity<br />
Dust<br />
Steam<br />
Insects<br />
s<br />
Poor installation<br />
Faulty device/ poor<br />
communication<br />
Cooking fumes<br />
Tobacco smoke<br />
£ £<br />
. . . .<br />
1 BILLION<br />
POUND LOSS<br />
False alarms<br />
can:<br />
•<br />
Reduce productivity of employeesees<br />
•<br />
Create negative customer<br />
experiences<br />
• Divert genuine emergencies<br />
In 2014 the London Fire Brigade<br />
became the first authority ty to introduce<br />
charges for false alarm call-outs.<br />
If the charges had been in place in<br />
London in 2013 it would have cost:<br />
Colleges & universities -<br />
Hospitals - £499,380<br />
£73,660<br />
18<br />
refurb| RENEW Jan / Feb 2O16 issue 8955
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