From quite early in our education system and on through life, we learn about fire safety. Stop, drop, and roll is drilled into the heads of young ones everywhere, along with multiple tidbits on how to avoid fires, how to escape them, and general tips on fire safety. But no matter how many safety precautions are taken, there are always fire hazards, particularly in commercial buildings with lots of operations going on and lots of personnel or customer turnover. Whether it is conditions that lend themselves to fire danger, or a mistake or carelessness of a person, it is a good idea to have fire safety measures in place and up to code.
Creating the right work environment
No one wants to think about what will happen in the event of a fire. Ideally, your insurance will cover any damage, or better yet, there will be minimal damage. But the destruction and potential harm of a fire are very real and very serious. The first thing that you will want to do to protect yourself and your business from fire is to create environments throughout your business that are fire resistant, or at the very least, not particularly conducive to a fire. Conditions that might lend themselves to igniting fires would be overloading a power socket with office appliances that need to be plugged in, leaving heat sources too close to materials such as curtains or bedding in a hotel, or careless handling of flammable liquids in a garage or kitchen setting. You also want to ensure that you have a good housekeeping staff, to avoid dust buildup that could ignite under the wrong conditions.
Of course, one of the most important things to think about after you create a workplace environment that is low risk for fire is your fire alarm systems. It is important to hire quality contractors to regularly check and perform maintenance on your alarm and other fire protection systems if necessary.
Fire alarm services for your company safety
You may feel comfortable enough with checking your smoke alarms on your own, but it is still a good idea to invest in quality fire alarm services. Your regular, everyday operations are more than enough to do. Trying to remember to check the smoke alarms, or knowing just what to look for if something is faulty, is just more work for yourself that could too often be neglected for other company operations that seem to be more pressing. A fire alarm repair service and other types of fire protection services give you the peace of mind that your systems are in place and working well, ready to protect you and your employees. Neglecting these workplace features could end up being catastrophic.
The good news is that when fire alarm services are properly utilized, lives are saved and damage is diminished. Over the course of 30 years, the occurrences of warehouse property fires have declined by around 3,500 fires per year. This shift toward less fires is likely due to proper use of fire alarm systems, as well as improved safety guidelines and regulations in general. In buildings that have both early warning systems and automatic sprinklers, the occurrence of injuries, death, and property damage could be diminished by at least 50%.
Fire safety is no place to cut corners. For the sake of your company and everyone involved, be sure to keep your fire systems updated and your regular maintenance checks scheduled.