SOLUTIONS FIRE SAFETY By Chad Connor
Fire safety best practices for manufacturing facilities Are lights, alarms, extinguishers and sprinklers inspected every year?
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n estimated 37,000 fires occur at industrial and manufacturing properties every year resulting in $1 billion in property damage, 279 injuries and 18 deaths, according to Occupational Health and Safety Administration. As a professional fire safety inspector, the author has inspected hundreds of manufacturing properties. During inspections, there are overlooked areas when it comes to fire safety that need immediate attention. Identifying and correcting these issues will help ensure the safety of your tenants and property during a fire emergency.
Conducting regular inspections
A manufacturing facility should have its lights, alarms, extinguishers and sprinklers inspected every year (see Figures 1-3). Many companies neglect their annual services. Neglecting the fire safety system can cause the equipment to erode over time resulting in faulty equipment. After a professional inspection, a facility will receive a report from the inspection company. The report will include the date of the inspection, name and address of the property, type of occupancy, any issues to address, contact details of the building owner and those interviewed during the inspection. Facilities are required to keep this on file for at least one year, but five years are recommended. Beyond the fire code standard of keeping records for one year, many insurance companies require longer timeframes for record keeping. Contact the insurance company to be aware of its requirements.
Placing signage
Maintain the exit lights in manufacturing facilities. During a fire, conditions can be chaotic and confusing. Smoke can obscure vision and make it difficult to navigate the facility. Illuminated exit signs make it easier for people to see where to go and how to get out of the building. Exit signs are designed to switch to emergency power when they no longer receive electricity. These lighted signs need regular testing by the facility safety teams to ensure proper operation. Often, this involves pressing www.plantengineering.com
the test button on the side of the sign to ensure they correctly switch to the standby power source. If the signs do not switch to the standby power source, they must be replaced. If the facility uses chemicals, the supervisors must make sure the outside of the building has the hazard communication sign indicating firefighters of what hazards may be inside. The hazard communication sign incorporates the NFPA 704-2022: Standard System for the Identification of the Hazards of Materials for Emergency Response fire diamond to communicate the hazard of short-term, acute exposures to chemicals that could occur as a result of a fire, spill or similar emergency. The fire diamond is color coded representing different risk levels: blue for health, red for fire and yellow for reactivity and instability. These hazards are ranked on a scale of 0 to 4 for severity of danger allowing fire firefighters to better understand the situation if they are called to fight a fire.
Communicating your emergency action plan
Manufacturing facility supervisors should provide written emergency action plans for employees to ensure everyone knows the exit routes and what fire emergency procedures are in place. Emergency action plans should cover designated actions employers and employees need to take to ensure their safety during fire emergencies, according to OSHA. These actions include which equipment needs shutdown and when fire suppression efforts should take place. The supervisors need to ensure all employees understand fire suppression procedures and escape routes to be followed by each location in the facility. Supervisors are required to review the emergency action plan with each employee at certain times including when the plan is developed, when an employee’s responsibilities change and when the plan changes.
Proper racking system placement
Manufacturing plant supervisors need to alert employees of any debris or racking systems blocking doorways PLANT ENGINEERING
April 2021
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