What is emergency lighting?
The above-mentioned BSi guide to emergency lighting states:
According to the British and European standard BS EN 1838, "emergency lighting" refers to any equipment that provides illumination in the event that the normal lighting's power source fails (p. 1). Emergency lighting comes in two main categories: emergency lighting for egress; standby lighting (p. 2).
"That portion of emergency lighting that is supplied to permit safe leave in the case of loss of the regular supply" is defined as emergency escape lighting.
"That portion of the emergency lighting provided to enable normal activities to continue in the event of failure of the normal mains supply" is what is meant by standby lighting, according to the definition.
The guide also makes a crucial distinction between standby lighting and emergency escape lighting: the former is not a part of a building's fire protection system, while the latter is (unless it meets the same equipment design and installation requirements as emergency escape lighting systems). Emergency escape lighting is therefore the important type of emergency lighting from the perspective of fire safety provision, and will be the subject of this article's remaining sections.
Emergency exit illumination
Emergency exit lighting has three main characteristics: 1) Lighting for the escape route; 2) Lighting for open spaces or panic zones; and 3) Lighting for high-risk work areas.
A building's escape routes, such as hallways and stairways, as well as the location of fire-fighting equipment, such as fire extinguishers, and safety and security equipment, such as keyboxes holding emergency keys to exit doors, are illuminated as part of an emergency lighting system to allow for a quick and safe evacuation. As a result, regardless of usage or occupancy levels, escape route illumination may be considered as a basic necessity of fire safety provision in all non-domestic properties including public areas of HMOs.
Large public structures like shopping centers, museums, and exhibition halls, among others, draw large crowds of people who are unfamiliar with the layout of the property. Therefore, panic may break out should the fire alarm signal an immediate evacuation. Identifying escape routes and exits and directing people toward them are made easier in such circumstances by open area / anti-panic lighting.
High risk task lighting is a special kind of emergency lighting that is used to ensure the security of individuals engaged in potentially hazardous activities or circumstances. It must be sufficient to implement the necessary shut-down procedures. Only a small number of situations will call for this kind of illumination.
The aforementioned contrasts highlight the importance of emergency escape lighting in fire safety and demonstrate how it is customized and applied depending on the unique usage and occupancy levels of a given structure and/or area(s) within it.
