Fire extinguishers must be placed and give access needed to mitigate certain safety threats to potential hazards as a matter of the workplace.
Portable fire extinguishers are essential to the life safety of you and your property, as fires do not follow a set schedule on when they may arise. They have the ability to put out a small fire or contain it until the fire department arrives.
In this blog, we explore the best practices for placing fire extinguishers in the workplace to help protect employees and preserve valuable property.
Regulatory Compliance
The most important consideration when placing fire extinguishers is compliance with local and national codes. Based on that, regulatory bodies recommend the type, quantity and location of fire extinguishers as per the size and nature of the workplace. These regulations are central to ensuring safe workplaces and employers need to know and implement them in their space to avoid legal issues and, most importantly, save lives.
Fire Hazards and Classifications
Also, before deciding on where to place your fire extinguishers, you must first understand what constitutes a fire hazard in your workplace. Fire extinguisher types There are different types of fires, and they require different types of fire extinguishers.
- Class A Fire is burning of ordinary combustibles like wood and paper.
- Class B fires include combustible liquids
- Class C fires involve energized electrical equipment.
- Class D fire uses combustible metals as fuel.
- Class K fires pertain to fires involving cooking appliances fueled by combustible cooking oils and fats.
Fire extinguishers are different and if business owners understand the nature of potential fire dangers, they can more appropriately place fire extinguishers to homes that address specific hazards.
Accessibility and Visibility
All employees shall be able to see and access fire extinguishers. Improving emergency response time includes knowing where portable fire extinguishers should be placed, which ideally should be near exits, high-risk areas, and spaces equipped with electrical equipment. Because employees must be able to find a portable fire extinguisher viz-a-viz the portable fire extinguisher placement is equally important. Proper lighting and signage complements the placement of fire extinguishers for overall effectiveness.
Adequate Coverage and Spacing
Guidelines for distribution of fire extinguishers in workplace It is the best practice to use a spacing rule for avoiding the dead zones such that every part of the facility remains accessible. Most commercial buildings should have one within 75 feet of travel. This allows employees to arrive at an extinguisher in a matter of seconds so as to avoid any spreading of fire.
Training and Maintenance Regular
It’s not only important where you place fire extinguishers, but how they function, too. They must be tested and refilled regularly to ensure they are in working order.
Furthermore, Essential fire extinguisher training of employees during fire safety training will help them utilise the fire extinguisher properly when required during an emergency.
Fire extinguisher placement in the workplace is an essential part of fire safety in general.
Employers can create a safer environment for employees by following regulatory guidelines, identifying potential fire hazards, ensuring accessibility and visibility of extinguishers, coverage and training, and regular maintenance. Fire safety is a collective concern, and adhering to these best practices helps ensure the safety and well-being of all workplace occupants.
Be Sure Your Fire Extinguishers are in Compliance
Brazas Fire helps businesses comply with the fire extinguisher code and deploy their fire extinguishers strategically within the workplace.
We help ensure businesses meet local and national fire safety industry standards. We offer guidance and quantities required for a given workplace, discovering its fire hazards and detailing fire extinguisher classes.
Not only do we guide you in determining how many and what kind of extinguishers are best for your needs, but also where to place them for the highest effectiveness.
Working with Brazas Fire, businesses receive an integrated approach that takes into account accessibility, visibility, and coverage specific to the layout of their facility and any related risks. Brazas Fire also offers routine maintenance and staff education—an all-in-one solution to maximize fire protection in your place of business.