subject: Fire Risk Assessment And Safety Training For Your Business [print this page] Every year, an unreasonable amount of properties and stocks get destroyed because of fire incidents that occur in the United Kingdoms business establishments. More importantly, not only valuable properties are lost but also the lives of people. Citizens decide to work in the business sector of the country in order to build their lives for the future; however such goal in life suddenly collapses when incidents such as fire happen in their own work places. In such events, rules have already been introduced in the countries of England, Scotland and Wales in October 2006 to replace most of their existing fire safety legislation.
One of these rules is the compliance of a business establishment with five or more occupants to undergo a fire risk assessment. In this process, there are basically five steps to conduct. The first step is identifying the fire hazards that may be present in your work place. These fire hazards are materials, equipments and probably areas that can ignite a fire at any time. These may be naked flames, faulty wiring, dysfunctional machines, heaters and even hot air dryers. Also, considered in the category of fire hazards are anything which can burn up easily when reached by fire such as sofas, textiles and the like. Moreover, oxygen sources can definitely intensify the level of fire incidents in the work place.
The second step to fire risk assessment is determining the people within your establishment who are mostly likely to be vulnerable when fire breaks out. For example, viable candidates for such category involve people who are stationed closed to fire hazards, who work alone in isolated areas, or elderly people. Also, people who are stationed far from the emergency exits are also considered as people at risk.
The third step in the risk assessment process is evaluating whatever data and findings that you have gathered. After which, the fire risk assessment tells you to remove such fire hazards which are currently present in your work place. In addition, if there are fire hazards which cannot be entirely removed, at least reduce its fire hazard tendencies. As much as possible respond to these fire hazards and keep away anything that can start a fire in your work place. After reducing the amount of fire hazards within your area, then you must think of safety measures which you can employ in your establishment.
The fourth step is recording all of your data and also the steps that you have provided in order to respond to the fire hazards present in your work place. More importantly, this step entails you to make your employees aware of these findings and train them safety measures that they can employ in the office. The fifth step is having your assessment reviewed. A fire risk assessment must not only be done once, but as many as possible, whenever the need arises for your work place to be re-assessed again. Conducting a fire risk assessment and also training your employees to safety measures can definitely lessen the possible casualties and losses which may occur if a fire breaks out.
