Fire safety is crucial everywhere — including in workplaces — but the unfortunate reality is that not many businesses have a fire safety plan that goes beyond providing a fire extinguisher. Developing a fire safety plan is crucial for keeping employees and property safe in the event of an emergency and helping businesses meet legal requirements regarding workplace safety. A good plan helps you educate and prepare employees while minimalizing liabilities like irreparable property damage and loss of life.
Why Every Business Needs a Fire Safety Plan
An effective fire safety plan offers the following benefits:
- Protection of life: Protecting staff and visitors on the premises is your number one priority and the greatest benefit of having a comprehensive fire safety plan. A good plan equips employees and allows them to respond safely to emergencies. It also ensures that protocols are in place for staff and employees to be able to evacuate timeously.
- Legal and insurance requirements: According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), workplaces must have a fire prevention plan when an OSHA standard requires one. OSHA also stipulates that almost all businesses must have an emergency action plan (EAP) if the business requires or provides fire extinguishers and if anyone will be evacuating during a fire or other emergency.
- Property protection: An effective fire safety plan may prevent a fire from spreading rapidly and causing irreparable damage to a business’s property.
- Financial security: The damage a fire can do to property can halt operations and cause extreme financial loss. A prevention and safety plan ensures your business is equipped to respond to emergencies in such a way that minimizes loss and downtime.
- A culture of safety: Safety should be a vital part of workplace culture. Employees should know that safety is a priority and should work together to ensure everyone is aware of and follows emergency protocol.
Developing a Fire Safety Plan
The key components of a fire safety plan for businesses should cover prevention, detection and response strategies.
Conducting a Safety Audit
The primary benefit of safety audits is that they help you identify and address potential fire hazards. While it is always best to have a professional fire warden conduct a safety audit, it is essential to also have an internal checklist that you can defer to regularly. A fire safety audit should include the following general checks and steps:
- Note any flammable materials such as cardboard, paper, textiles and chemicals and ensure they are stored correctly.
- Identify potential sources of ignition, such as machines that generate heat, and confirm these areas are equipped with fire extinguishers.
- Ensure exits are clearly marked and easy to access, including for people with disabilities. Nothing should ever obstruct exits and evacuation routes.
- Inspect fire doors to make sure they are in good condition, self-closing and labeled clearly.
- Confirm that all fire safety, firefighting and fire detection devices are in good working order and readily accessible. This includes hydrants, extinguishers, smoke detectors and sprinkler systems.
- Confirm that there are sufficient first-aid kits around the building and that there are staff trained in first response.
How to Make an Emergency Evacuation Plan
A fire safety evacuation plan should protect your occupants above all else. First responders will always prioritize life over property, so ensuring everyone is safe first allows firefighters to also focus on salvaging property.
Establishing Fire Escape Routes
It is vital to know your site’s layout to identify effective fire escape routes. Having building plans or blueprints is helpful for identifying all entry and exit points, including doors, staircases, windows and emergency exits. You should also be able to identify the location of all fire extinguishers and hydrants.
By inspecting the site layout, you can map an escape route for all employees and visitors. The map should be easy to interpret and placed in an easily accessible, highly visible place. It should also clearly indicate the location of emergency essentials like fire extinguishers.
Training and Drills
An essential part of a fire safety plan is equipping staff with the knowledge of what to do in an emergency. Employee training for fire emergencies can involve the following:
- Training: Training should be regular and comprehensive. It should include information on how to respond to fire alarms, how to use fire suppression systems and how to evacuate quickly and safely.
- Awareness: Fire awareness workshops should cover crucial information regarding workplace fire safety procedures, such as how to recognize fire hazards, how to report a fire and how to communicate during emergencies.
- Fire drills: Drills let staff practice what they’ve learned and help them become familiar with lifesaving emergency protocols.
Fire Suppression Systems
Reliable fire suppression systems are one of the most critical parts of a workplace fire safety plan. A comprehensive fire suppression system helps with early detection and immediate response, which makes it vital to keeping people and property safer during emergencies. Fire suppression systems should include the following:
- Alarms: Fire alarm systems, such as smoke detectors, provide an early warning for employees so they may evacuate quickly.
- Sprinklers: Automatic sprinklers can help slow or stop the spread of small fires. Workplaces requiring sprinkler systems to comply with OSHA regulations must meet certain standards, including the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) or the National Board of Fire Underwriters (NBFU) guidelines.
- Extinguishers: According to OSHA standards, workplaces must provide portable, readily accessible fire extinguishers in workplaces. It is also crucial to understand which type of fire extinguisher is mandatory or appropriate for your workplace. There are different classes of fire extinguishers, each with unique functions. Multipurpose or ABC fire extinguishers can best benefit office spaces, while Class B, C and D extinguishers are typically required in industrial workplaces with flammable, electrical and combustible materials. Class K extinguishers serve commercial kitchens where fires can occur due to oils and fats.
Workplaces should also provide additional fire suppression tools and accessories, such as fire hoses and the appropriate safety signage.
Regular Maintenance Checks and Updates
Your fire suppression systems should include reliable, high-quality equipment, but regular maintenance checks are still essential to support proper system function. Similarly, it is important to keep reviewing your business fire safety plan to ensure that it is relevant and includes any changes to safety equipment, building layout or protocol.
Reliable Fire Safety Equipment from National Fire Supply
Workplace fire safety plans are nonnegotiable. They help businesses stay compliant and, more importantly, help protect staff, visitors and property.
At National Fire Supply, we have the essential tools you need to equip your business for fire safety, including fire hose reels and fire extinguishers. We are NAFED (National Association of Fire Equipment Distributors) certified.
You can shop our products online and enjoy two-day express or same-day shipping for select equipment. Feel free to contact us regarding our products.