Hi all,

Emergency lighting duration!! Your opinion of the following would be appreciated.

We are a manufacturing company the operates with warehousing, assembly areas and offices. Our annual discharge test has found that approx 80no. emergency lights have failed the 3hr test. The vast majority lasted 2 1/2 hrs.

Research tells me that i now have to replace all failed lights!!! a costly project indeed.

What makes this worse is the fact that we do not work shifts; we work 8-5.

The British Standard BS5266-1:2016 states that we only need 1hr duration coverage yet because they are 3hr fittings they must last 3hrs; bad for us, good for the suppliers of lighting.

Has anyone any advice? 

The following exerts are pasted from the standard.

 I would happily put a belt and braces minimum illumination time of 90 mins for our discharge tests.

9.5 Non-residential premises used for teaching, training and research, and offices

NOTE This class includes such premises as schools, colleges, technical institutes and laboratories.

In general, people using this class of premises can be expected to be reasonably familiar with the layout, and safety provisions and orderly evacuation can normally be expected in the event of an emergency. Also, except possibly in some types of process laboratories, there is not normally any safety requirement for early reoccupation after an emergency, and the minimum duration of emergency escape lighting is therefore expected to be adequate.

Based on these considerations, emergency lighting systems of 1 h duration should be used in premises of this class, unless there is a particular requirement for early reoccupation, in which case a longer duration might be necessary.

Where any part of a building is used outside of normal weekday office hours then a 3 h duration should be used for the entire building.

9.7 Industrial premises used for manufacture, processing or storage of products

NOTE 1 This class includes such premises as factories, workshops, warehouses and similar establishments.

In general, people using this class of premises can be expected to be reasonably familiar with the layout and safety provisions, and orderly evacuation can normally be expected in the event of an emergency.

Based on these considerations, a 1 h duration system should be used for these premises.

Regards

​​​​​​​Gazbut