Why emergency lighting is a must for any commercial business

A legal requirement for commercial premises that have staff working on-site, emergency lighting is often overlooked as a 'nice to have' element of any factory, warehouse, hotel or retail space.

However, as an employer, you are legally obliged to ensure that staff and visitors are able to exit buildings safely in case of an emergency, so it really is an essential element that any business should consider.

There are three primary purposes of emergency lighting:

1. Escape route lighting: illuminates exit routes & helps occupants find firefighting equipment in a fire

2. Open area lighting: also called 'Panic Lighting'. Keeps communal areas lit in a fire to reduce panic

3. High-risk task area lighting: provides light to shut down potentially dangerous processes in the event of fire such as commercial kitchens

Imagine that you suffer a power outage and you have stairs and hallways plunged into total darkness. Having emergency lighting not only provides the necessary illumination in order for employees and visitors to evacuate the building without any slips or trips, but they also help signpost the next available exit points and provide a calming light source that helps reduce panic levels.

In the case of an emergency such as a fire, any emergency lighting can act as a useful tool to help emergency services navigate the premises with ease and find unobstructed exits as quickly as possible.

Emergency lighting is recommended in rooms that are larger than 60 square metres and should be tested monthly by a designated member of staff to ensure that everything is working correctly in case of a power outage or other emergency that means that the usual light sources fail to work properly.

It is also recommended that all emergency lighting is tested for at least one hour once a year to ensure that any lighting stays on for long enough for the premises to be fully evacuated.

There are several types of emergency lighting available to order from our website, with a wide range of both surface mounted emergency light fittings and recessed emergency fittings and legends that can be mounted on ceilings instead of their wall-mounted counterparts.

Not only do these two ranges from BLT Direct offer exceptional value for money, but there are also an array of accessories, sizes and fittings available to suit any type of commercial space and that help businesses keep their visitors and employees safe should the need arise.