In the June issue of FSE, we looked at the role of good maintenance in satisfying the new burdens of fire safety under the forthcoming Fire Safety Order. In the second part of their article Bill Rossiter and Dave Bartlett detail the tasks and duties involved in the maintenance of automatic fire detection systems.
It is the duty of the ‘responsible person’ to ensure the highest possible quality of maintenance (inspection, servicing and repair) to maintain the efficient and reliable operation of a fire alarm system, while avoiding false alarms. To achieve this requires a close and effective relationship between him or her and the occupants and users of the premises on the one hand, and with the ‘competent person’ on the other.
While some organisations fill the role of competent person from in-house, the role is more likely to be filled by a specialist third party servicing or maintenance contractor. Further, as identified in the previous article, in the case of monitored systems that organisation will soon have to be accredited as competent for the task. In either case, the competent person needs to have such expertise and spare part support as may be required so that the fire detection and alarm system can be maintained in a full working condition and, if found to be defective, can be quickly and competently returned to good order.
On a day to day basis, the responsible person is on the spot and needs to ensure that the system can function unencumbered (freedom from obstruction of, and to, the system and its parts must be maintained at all times). This ranges from, for example, ensuring that a clear space of 500mm is preserved in all directions around and below every detector and that all manual call points remain unobstructed and conspicuous, to ensuring that free and clear access is maintained to the control and any repeater panels.
On a wider note, this person is also the liaison with those responsible for changes to, or maintenance of, the building fabric or the environment in which the system is installed and which it protects. This covers a wide range of events, ranging from redecoration or repair on the one hand to structural changes or another. In all of them there is the potential to cause faults on – or otherwise interfere with – the operation of the fire alarm, with debilitating results.
When it comes to regular maintenance of the system, however, the list begins to look rather daunting. This includes everything from weekly activation of call points to an annual check of all detectors (almost certainly by the competent person). It includes a visual check to ascertain whether structural, occupancy or usage changes have affected the requirements for the siting of manual call points, detectors or sounders. It incorporates regular checks of the control panel for normal operation (and the recording and rectification of faults here and elsewhere) and the need, at the appropriate times, to test ancillary functions where practical. It comprises the requirement for fault indicators and their circuits to be checked (preferably by simulation of fault conditions) and the control and indicating equipment itself visually inspected for signs of moisture ingress and any other deteriorating conditions.
On a practical note, keys and access codes need to be made available, standby power (generators and batteries) need to be started or otherwise checked (by simulation of failure of the normal power supply) and operated on load. In the case of vented batteries, connections and electrolyte level must be verified (for which – as with much else – special care and competence is required). Even printers need to be tested to ensure that they operate correctly and that printed characters are legible and that consumables are sufficient in quantity or condition to ensure that the printer can be expected to operate until the next planned maintenance visit.
All detectors – whether they are point, beam, aspirating, linear, conventional, analogue, or addressable (be they smoke, heat, CO, or combination) – need to be physically and functionally tested for correct operation (and any accumulation of dirt or other potential problem resolved). Likewise, all fire alarm devices (sounders, sirens, strobes, etc) need to be inspected for correct operation (including confirmation of sound pressure levels and audibility), while visual fire alarm devices must be confirmed as clear from obstruction from view and that their lenses are clean.
Signalling should not be forgotten, so cable fittings and equipment need to be confirmed as secure, undamaged and adequately protected. Radio signal strengths in radio-linked systems should also be checked to ensure that they are adequate. Links to alarm receiving centres should be tested, notifying the centre before and after the test. The list looks long because fire alarm systems can be complex beasts and, vitally, because they interact with their environment, both affecting it and being affected by it.
The regularity of these checks will differ according to a number of factors. Special mention is needed for the word “periodically”: this is best defined as “such interval that the fire risk assessment, type of system, its environment, and any other factors which may affect the system and its long term operation suggests”. The British Standard BS 5839 Part 1: 2002 (updated December 2004) allows for it to stretch to six monthly, and it will typically be between three and six months subject to agreement between all interested parties.
Remedial action and records
As well as the routine maintenance that we always think about, there is the need to keep the fire alarm system optimised. This depends heavily on the competence of the maintenance technician, and his familiarity with the many issues that can detrimentally affect a fire alarm/detection system. Some of the areas that need consideration are:
– change of use of a room or rooms or whole building
– refurbishing/redecoration
– building alterations
– obstruction of air flow
– introduction of hazardous materials
– change of tenant
– change of escape arrangements
– ageing equipment
– addition of sound insulation
– causes of false alarms
In addition, there is the general deterioration of pieces of equipment that can occur due to normal operation. For instance, the electrochemical cell used in CO detectors deteriorates at different rates depending on the environment to which it is exposed.
The point about all this is that the fire alarm and detection system is a ‘living’ system and as such, it needs to be constantly reviewed to make sure it is ready and able to fulfil its purpose. If, for instance, some new offices are installed in an open plan area without detection being installed, a fire could start in one of the offices and would not be detected until it burst out of the room at an already advanced stage of development. This could then result in people being trapped and even killed by having their escape route cut off.
Competent maintenance technicians should be trained at least to have a working knowledge of all of the things that can affect the performance of the system, and be able to make recommendations to the responsible person for changes that may be required. The maintenance company should also have the ability to undertake remedial works in a timely and professional manner if required. The responsible person cannot be expected to know all of the technical issues that may affect the system performance, so he or she must rely on the competency of his/her selected maintainer to provide support and advice relating to any potential increase of risk. Conversely, however, the maintainer depends on the responsible person to provide timely advice of any changes or alterations that have taken place.
Even the best fire protection systems might expect to be serviced by competent technicians only every three months or less. In between visits, the only test is the weekly test conducted by the responsible person. As a result, no one has an ongoing awareness of the ‘health’ of the system, or will necessarily pick up on any deterioration. The system records and log book are, therefore, absolutely essential factors in the process and all too often they are seriously neglected.
Every single fire detection and alarm system should, at the very least, have readily accessible in a known place near to the fire control panel, the following information:
– A fire log book that is completed every week with weekly tests and, whenever appropriate, to record all other events (fire alarms, false alarms, faults, maintenance visits, changes to the system, etc).
– A zone plan showing the fire zone arrangements of the building.
– A set of layout drawings showing the building and the location of each and every system component, preferably marked with the zone data for cross referencing.
– In the case of an addressable system, a full list of all devices with their associated ‘message’ if appropriate. The address should also be shown next to the device on the drawings.
– A manual relating to the operation of the particular fire alarm system installed.
– Details of the maintenance company, their emergency call-out details and any relevant documentation to prove their competency to undertake the work.
– A copy of the design, installation and commissioning certificates from the original installation, plus any other modification certificates for changes, upgrades and so on.
The keeping of full and accurate records is essential to ensure that maintenance is thorough, and that any trends or changes are known to everyone involved with the system. They are also a mandatory part of the audit trail that would be required to prove the competence of the responsible person, should issues arise that question this.
We have endeavoured to review the extensive requirements and responsibilities for good maintenance. Good maintenance is essential to the safety of building users and occupants, while poor maintenance increases risk and could ultimately lead to injury or even death. The forthcoming Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order makes the responsibilities clear: the choice is between good maintenance or criminal negligence.
Responsible Person
Person having control of the building and/or premises, whether as occupier or otherwise, or any person delegated by the person having control of the building and/or premises to be responsible for the fire alarm system and the fire procedures. This definition relates to the responsible person under BS 5839 Part 1.The responsible person under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order is the person who owns the premises or business or the person with control over the premises, business or activity. Where two or more responsible persons share responsibility (e.g. tenant/landlord, multiple tenancy building or adjacent premises) the responsible persons must co-operate, share information and collaborate to provide measures. Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order the responsible person must provide and maintain clear means of escape, signs, notices, and emergency lighting, as well as the fire detection and alarm system and extinguishers.
Competent Person
Person with the necessary training and experience, and with access to the requisite tools, equipment and information, and capable of carrying out a defined task.
User
Person or organisation having control of the building (or part of the building) in which the fire detection and alarm system is installed.
