User Manual

12
2.5 Organization and Management
Without good organization and management even the
best structural and technical infrastructure cannot provide
the quality of life safety and asset protection that is
required.
2.5.1 Good housekeeping
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Good housekeeping can make a significant contribution
towards reducing the chances of a fire starting, for
example by monitoring the accumulation of combustible
materials. Waste material should always be kept in suitable
containers prior to removal from the premises. If rubbish
bins or particularly wheeled containers are used outside
the premises, they should be secured in a dedicated area
at a distance of some meters from the building, to prevent
them being moved close to the building wall and set on
fire. (The recommended distance may vary depending on
the country or fire authority concerned.). Good
housekeeping is also a key factor in preventing escape
routes being used to store material and fire doors being
blocked or obstructed in some way. The risk of a fire
occurring outside normal hours can be reduced by
implementing clear closedown procedures, which must be
strictly enforced. This is particularly important in higher
risk areas such as kitchens, laboratories and workshops.
A typical closedown procedure could take the form of a
check list similar to the one below.
Check that:
 All refuse/waste has been removed from the premises
and placed in secure storage
 All flammable materials are suitably locked away
 All equipment and machinery is switched off
 All internal doors are closed
 All external doors have been secured – while ensuring
that this does not affect the means of escape for
anyone using the premises outside of the normal
working hours
Due consideration should also be given to how materials
are stored and whether the type of storage might create
an additional fire risk. When foam gym mats are not in
use, for example, they should be stacked on top of one
another in a dedicated storeroom. In this way the rate at
which a fire might grow would be significantly less than
if they were laid side by side or stood vertically against
a wall.
2.5.2 Training
Regular staff training is essential and for those members
of staff nominated as fire wardens this training should
include:
 Operation of the fire-fighting equipment
 Familiarity with the fire protection panel (e.g. is the
system working? Are any faults or isolations indicated?)
 Familiarity with internal communication channels
 Duties in the event of a building evacuation
 Supervision of people with disabilities
2.5.3 Maintenance
Preventative maintenance is an important part of daily
business in fire risk management. Poorly installed and
maintained electrical equipment can significantly increase
the risk of accidental fires.
The main causes of electrical fires are:
 Overheating cables and equipment (e.g. due to
overloading circuits, bunched or coiled cables
or impaired cooling fans)
 Incorrect installation or use of equipment
 Damaged insulation on cables or wiring
 Combustible materials being placed too close to
electrical equipment which may give off heat even
when operating normally or may become hot due to a
fault
 Arcing or sparking by electrical equipment
 Misuse or lack of maintenance of cooking equipment
and appliances
 Electric motors or transmission drives (worn drive
belts, excessive friction due to lack of lubrication)
All electrical and mechanical equipment should be
installed and maintained in a safe condition by a
competent person. Regular checks should ensure that any
defective equipment and installations that do not comply
with the specified safety standards should be repaired
immediately or taken out of service. It is, of course, also
essential that all fire safety related equipment, such as the
fire protection system itself, emergency lighting and the
extinguishing infrastructure (sprinkler systems, fire-hose
reels, hand-held extinguishers etc.) are always maintained
in perfect working order as an emergency situation could
arise at any time.
2.5.4 Compliance with regulations
Staff must be responsible for the strict enforcement of fire
prevention regulations and this should be an important
part of their job description. In particular this applies
to enforcing the no-smoking regulations, which in most
countries now apply to all college and university buildings.
If smoking is permitted in certain areas then this should be
carefully controlled to ensure that it only takes place in
those designated areas. Staff should always be on the
lookout for evidence of unauthorized smoking on the
premises and take measures to prevent this. (In the past
carelessly discarded cigarettes and other smoking
materials have been a major cause of fire. A cigarette can
smolder for some considerable time and numerous fires
have started several hours after the smoking materials had
been dropped into waste bags and left for future disposal.)
Similarly, those regulations relating to the behavior in halls
of residence must be enforced by periodic checks for
evidence of:
 The use of candles
 Overloading of power sockets
 Use of forbidden electrical equipment in the student
bedrooms
 Manipulation of fire protection equipment
 Propping open of fire doors
 Poorly maintained cooking equipment
(e.g. fat build-up on ovens etc.)