Chris Anderson, Technical Manager for Ansell Lighting, sheds some light on the forthcoming revisions to the British Standards that apply to emergency lighting, and their implications for the safety and wellbeing of building occupants.
Emergency lighting plays a pivotal role in ensuring the safety of individuals within a building during an unexpected or hazardous situation. Alongside providing illumination to escape routes and open areas, it helps to avert panic, enhance security, support emergency response efforts and facilitates controlled shutdown procedures during power failures.
In the coming months there are a number of changes due to come into effect that will alter best practice recommendations for emergency lighting. The revisions will impact any changes to existing installations, as well as the maintenance practices that are required in buildings across the country, and they specifically apply to two key British Standards: BS EN 50172:2004 and BS EN 1838:2013.
Changes to BS EN 50172:2004
Concerned with illumination specification and system testing, BS EN 50172:2004 denotes the minimum provision of illumination of escape routes and safety signs, as well as the testing requirements of emergency lighting systems for different premises.
The main updates being made to this standard relate to the inspection and testing of the luminaires and systems.
In addition to current daily, monthly, and annual verification tests, the revised recommendations advise that a bi-annual test of emergency luminaires and externally illuminated escape route safety signs should be implemented. This is to ensure that luminaires are undamaged and that their intended function is not impaired due to the presence of dirt, dust or visible material degradation therefore enhancing safety.
Changes to BS EN 1838:2013
BS EN 1838:2013 applies to the illumination to be provided by emergency lighting (including illuminance, duration & colour) and stipulates that whilst the maintained illuminance of local area safety lighting shall be based on risk assessment, it should be at least 1 Lux on escape routes up to 2m in width and 0.5 Lux in open areas with a floor area greater than 60m (excluding a border of 0.5m around the perimeter).
BS EN1838 also stipulates that the minimum duration the local area safety lighting should last is one hour and that escape route lighting from the area of safety to the final exit shall have a duration equal to or greater than the local area safety lighting.
This standard covers both temporary and permanently installed electrically powered emergency lighting and applies to self-contained luminaires with integral batteries, centrally powered luminaires, and to centrally generator powered luminaires.
Adaptive Emergency Escape Lighting Systems
The main update to BS EN1838 (currently called prEN1838) concerns Adaptive Emergency Escape Lighting Systems (AEELS) and recommends that they now be used in all types of buildings.
Designed to enhance the safety and effectiveness of emergency evacuations, AEELS are highly intuitive, advanced lighting systems that provide clear and efficient illumination to guide building occupants to safety. Using sensors and monitoring devices they can detect changes in the environment, harnessing intelligent control technology to automatically modify factors such as escape route direction, the visibility of the emergency signage and lighting levels on escape routes dependent on changing conditions.
The adoption of AEELS will serve to take safety in buildings to new levels, ensuring occupants can evacuate spaces in the most efficient way.
Impact of the changes
The new updates to British Standards are an important step in the ever-evolving landscape of emergency lighting and their adoption will help to protect individuals from harm.
Implemented alongside the legal regulations stipulated by Approved Document B of Building Regulations in England and Wales, as well as within the Building Standards for use in Scotland, they form a comprehensive framework for ensuring the safety and well-being of building occupants.
Those electrical installers who stay informed and adopt the latest changes alongside advancements in emergency lighting technology, will help to preserve lives and prevent future disasters.
