Emergency Lighting
Emergency lighting is one of the essential life safety systems
required to be provided by an owner or occupant of premises, that is
a place of work. The system should, if correctly designed, installed
and maintained, reduce the possibility of an accident or loss of life
in the event of an electrical power loss. The requirement for emergency
lighting, its type and location, is defined through the carrying out
of a risk assessment.
Why carry out an Emergency Lighting Risk Assessment?
It is a legal requirement in many countries that a risk assessment is carried out
and documented, and the findings acted upon within reasonable time,
if there are more than 5 persons employed in a premises.
If there are less than 5 persons employed in a premises, a requirement
still exists to carry out a risk assessment, but it does not need to be
formally recorded.
Carrying out a Risk Assessment
An assessment should be made to determine that the installation
meets the requirements of all current legislation and codes of practice.
Emergency lighting and signs must comply to the Fire Precautions (Workplace)
Regulations 1997 and BS5266 or ISO3217 or other local regulations.
Levels of llluminance
The current code of practice, BS5266 Pt 1:1998, specifies a minimum
requirement of 0.2 lux on the centre line of emergency escape routes.
Higher levels are to be used if particular risks exist.
ISO3217 :1989 specifies a minimum requirement of 0.5 lux on the
centre line of escape routes.
In open areas BS5266 Pt 1:1988 and ISO3217:1989 specifies 1.0 lux
average over the whole area.
New European Harmonised Requirements for Emergency Escape Routes
New requirements will soon be introduced in the E.U. that specify a level of
1.0 lux for emergency escape routes. It may be permissible to still
use 0.2 lux for permanently unobstructed¹ escape routes.
Open areas less than 60msq, where there is no fixed escape route,
require a minimum level of 0.5 lux anywhere on the floor, excluding
0.5m border around the room. High-risk areas require at least 10%
of the normal mains lighting level or a minimum of 15 lux to be provided
within 0.5 seconds of the power failure. This level has to be maintained
until the hazard ceases.
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