Significance of Fire Safety in a Workplace - Research Paper Example

Table of contents Table of contents 1 Background of fire safety 2 Statement of the problem 3 Objectives of fire safety study 3 Hypothesis for testing in fire safety 3 Significance of fire safety in a work place 4 Literature review on fire safety at work place 5 Fire risk assessment 6 Importance of carrying out fire risk assessment 6 Steps towards fire risk assessment 7 Hypothetical fire risk assessment form 7 Frequency of fire risk assessment 8 Fire safety order 2005 8 Principles of fire extinguishing 9 Classes of fires 9 Portable fire extinguishers 10 Water extinguishers 10 Additives based water fire extinguishers 10 Form fire extinguishers 10 Carbon dioxide extinguishers 10 Wet chemical extinguishers 10 Building regulation act 10 Guideline that a premise should satisfy according to building regulation act 11 Standard precautions measures that a commercial building should satisfy 11 Precautions necessary in the event of fire 12 Safety practices towards fire risk management 12 Conclusion 13 Recommendations 13 Bibliography 14 Background of fire safety Outbreaks of fires at work place bring about great loses (Onyango, 1984). Fires destroy buildings and raw materials that are used for production as well as products that are produced or stored in the warehouse (Robinson, 1998). Fire outbreaks lead into death of employees, disables employees or clients in the premises and cause physical, emotional and psychological problem. A family looses a bread winner and this reduces the standard of living of the family (Onyango, 1984). Economically, the government loses revenue in terms of tax that the employee and the company would have paid. Insurance company suffer through compensation of the persons injured in the fire incident, those who died and compensation of the company in terms of raw materials lost and processed products burnt (Ronald W, 2003). Fire outbreaks need methods of better control, prevention and management. Statement of the problem Many work places don’t have appropriate mechanical and electrical devices to prevent spread of fires. Some work places don’t have defined means of escape in place in the event of fire outbreak. This arises when the premise doesn’t meet minimum requirements as outlined by building regulation act (Buckle & Mars, 2000). In many work places, the employees don’t have skills or sufficient training in fire prevention and fire control. These employees don’t understand guidelines provided for in the fire safety order 2005 (Buckle & Mars, 2000). In many work places, fire risk assessment is not carried out. Objectives of fire safety study To determine importance of carrying out fire risk assessment To investigate guidelines that a premise should satisfy according to building regulation act To investigate if employees or personnel in charge have knowledge and practice fire safety order 2005 Hypothesis for testing in fire safety If fire risk assessment is carried out periodically, the personnel in charge may know areas of interest that can lead into outbreak of fire and recommend maintenance. If the building satisfies building regulation act, employees are able to get out of the building to a safe place. At the same time, there would be sufficient time the building would have sufficient tool to warn employees when there is outbreak of fire. If the personnel in charge of premise or production follow fire safety order 2005, cases of fire outbreaks would be minimal. Significance of fire safety in a work place The fire safety report will provide Knowledge on fire safety that would enable the personnel in charge to have all staff trained on fire fighting and ensure the staff understands necessary precautions in handling inflammable substances. The report on fire safety will provide sufficient information on importance of fire risk assessment and why it is necessary for workplaces to have an up-to-date report on fire risk assessment. The report will provide necessary information on fire safety at work place to ensure workers are more productive, their efficiency and output is more on understanding their work place is fire risk free. The report will provide information on safety precaution necessary in the event of fire and offer guidance of standards of safety that a building should have. Literature review on fire safety at work place Many work places don’t carry fire risk assessment (Buckle & Mars, 2000). The company is not able to determine its fire safety level. Outbreak of fires in such companies occurs from preventable incidents. Many employees are not trained nor have no skills in fire safety. The employees don’t understand specifications of fire safety order 2005 (Robinson, 1998). Many premises of work don’t satisfy building regulation act on mechanical and electrical methods of preventing spread of fires within the building and between the buildings. Some companies are not efficient in their production processes and have a lot of waste materials piled in the premise. These waste materials help to increase intensity of fire and spread of fire. The efficiency of the company doesn’t meet specifications of production efficiency as laid down by fire safety order 2005 (Paton, 1996). Other work places have transferred ownership. The premise initially was a residential structure and currently is commercial entities. They do not have well defined exit channels to a safe place in the event of fire. These premises don’t satisfy the principle of work at height (Paton, 1996). In many incidents of fire reported, they are due to electrical short circuits due to exposed live naked wires or overloading of the line. In other scenarios, employees don’t follow manufacturer’s guidelines for handling inflammable and very reactive substances. Incompetent employees (Muli, Kamau, & Maina, 1999) who do not understand flammable liquids easily cause fires when the inflammable liquid cylinders are opened in presence of open fires. Many employees death are reported in companies that don’t have defined means of escape. The employees are trapped inside and burnt alive. Others die of asphyxiation. Fire outbreaks are costing insurance firms a lot of money in compensation (Robinson, 1998) of persons affected in the fire incident and the company as well as the owner of the building. Increase in fire incidents may in future make insurance firms to increase their cost of insuring work places. Fire risk assessment Fire risk assessment (Paton, 1996) is a report that shows the current position of a premise or work place safety y standards in relation to outbreaks of fire outbreaks and current measures in place to control spread of the fire. Fire risk assessment provides information on fire vulnerability of the building. Importance of carrying out fire risk assessment It shows if employees have required training on fire safety (Ronald W, 2003), firefighting and if employees understand means of escape available in the premise. It shows mechanical and electrical methods (Frangi, Fontana, & Knobloch, 2008) in place for prevention of spreading of fire in the building. It provides information on whether employees or personnel in charge understands and practices fire safety order 2005 (Diguiseppi, et al., 2002). Steps towards fire risk assessment Identify risks and hazards Identify departments at risk Evaluation of risks Recording findings and implementing action Reviewing fire risk assessment Hypothetical fire risk assessment form Yes No Not sure Is there written fire risk assessment report in place? Are there fire fighting procedures in place? Is there obstruction free emergency escape route? Is the emergency escape channel lit? Is the escape emergency channel well labeled with signs to show direction of escape? Does the building meet and satisfy building regulation act to enable employees to escape to a safer place before it collapses? Is there a method of creating a warning alarm in place? Is the alarm in working conditions? Are all equipments well maintained by a registered professional? Has the company received any fire safety procedures in the recent past? Does the staff have adequate training on fire fighting? Frequency of fire risk assessment Fire risk assessment should be carried out often, utmost within a period of three months or six months or twelve depending on the type of work that takes place there. Fire safety order 2005 requires employer to have updated fire risk assessment. Fire safety order 2005 The fire safety order 2005 (Frangi, Fontana, & Knobloch, 2008) provides that manufacturing firms should have efficient system for production process. There should be less waste materials produced and if possible, there should be a laid down procedure of their disposal or recycling into useful product. Accumulation of waste products helps to spread fires in premises. Fire safety order 2005 provides that the fire safety responsibilities are the concerns of responsible person in the building. Every one is responsible for safety in the building. The personnel in charge should update fire risk assessment. Fire safety order 2005 gives companies privileges’ not to be certified for compliance with safety precautions but gives fire department powers to carry out routine inspection to ensure fire risks are minimal. Principles of fire extinguishing The principles of fire extinguishing lie in reducing amount of oxygen present for burning (Robinson 1998). Oxygen is active gas that is used for combustion and if its supply is limited, burning cannot be supported. The principle of using carbon dioxide is aimed at increasing partial pressure of carbon dioxide (Patel 1991) and reducing partial pressure of oxygen. Other gases support burning at elevated temperatures (Patel 1991). These gases are like nitrogen. If the fires are burning metals, nitrogen can be decomposed by the excess heat to produce nitrogen radicals that are not stable and this leads into formation of nitride coat on the metals. Nitrides usually have higher temperatures and this helps to put off the fires. Classes of fires Fires are classified into classes (Muli, Kamau and Maina 1999) depending on the nature of material. The classification of fire into classes is also based on how the fire is extinguished. Similarly, fire extinguishers have alphabetical rating. These are: A = freely burning materials, such as wood, paper, textiles and fabric B = Flammable liquids, such as petrol, diesel and oils C = Flammable gases such as butane, methane and propane D = Flammable metals such as magnesium, potassium and sodium E = Electrical hazards such as computers and switchgear F = Cooking oils and fats Portable fire extinguishers Water extinguishers They are ideal for class A fires. Additives based water fire extinguishers Additive minimizes water surface tension. Form fire extinguishers It’s good for flammable liquid fires. Carbon dioxide extinguishers It’s suitable for electrical fire and flammable gases. Wet chemical extinguishers They are effective for fat fryer fires. Building regulation act These are guidelines that a premise should satisfy in order to provide required safety against incidences of fire outbreaks. Guideline that a premise should satisfy according to building regulation act A building should have installed automatic water sprinkler system and automatic smoke detectors. The exit channels should have directional signs for escape. The exit channels should have sufficient lighting system that is powered independently The building should have wet or dry standpipes to help in fire fighting The premise should have appropriate fire extinguishers for the fires that are likely to break out in the work place. The distance between the buildings should be enough to prevent spread of fire. The building should have separate access point for firefighters. Standard precautions measures that a commercial building should satisfy A commercial building should satisfy the following measures in order to comply with building regulation act (Paton, 1996). Every user of the building, regardless of their departments, should get sufficient warning in the event of fire. The building should be resistant to momentary collapse to enable users to get out to safer places and also provide evacuators with sufficient time to complete search tasks. The premise should comply with safety regulations on spread of fires within and between the adjacent building or structures. The building should have installed mechanical and electrical methods for regulating spread of fires. Fire extinguishers should be accessible by all users in the premise. Precautions necessary in the event of fire The following are required safety precautions for implementation in the event of fire (Diguiseppi, et al., 2002). All users should get out fast to a safer place following exit channels. All workers should understand the nearest exit channels in the building. If the fire is caused by chemicals, water should not be used in extinguishing it. Employees should have sufficient fire fighting skills No emergency calls should be made in the building. Safety practices towards fire risk management Inflammable chemical substances should be handles according to manufacturers handling precautions All inflammable waste products should be disposed according to safety standards required of them Electrical devices used in the production should not be overloaded There should be periodic inspection of loose electrical plugs and their repair timely done. Heating devices should be periodically tested and certified by a registered professional. Conclusion A work place should have fire risk assessment in place to provide guidelines on safety standards of the building. The employees should be trained on fire safety and on use of fire extinguishers and have knowledge of all exit points in the premise The building should be installed with wet or dry standpipes, have operating mechanical and electrical devices for preventing spread of fires. Recommendations All workers should have sufficient training in fire safety and fire risk assessment Fire risk assessment should be carried out occasionally to determine vulnerability of the premise to outbreaks of fire. All devices in the premise should be repaired and certified for compliance with safety by a registered personnel Employees or personnel in charge should practice tenets outlined by the fire safety order 2005 Bibliography Agency, F. e. (2003). Federal Response Plan-9230.1PL. Bartosh, D. (2003). incident command management in the era of terrorism. police executive reaserch foru . Buckle, P., & Mars, a. S. (2000). new approaches to assessing vulnerability and resilience. Australian journal of emergency management, Winter , 8-14. Diguiseppi, C., roberts, i., Wade, A., Sculpherm, M., Edwards, P., Goward, C., et al. (2002, November 2). Incidences of Fires Related Injuries After giving out Smoke Alarms: Cluster Randomized Trials. 325 (7372), pp. 995-995. 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