Over the last three years Security Installer has increased its coverage of the fire sector reflecting a new interest from security companies.
Much if this trend has been triggered by distributor ADI Gardiner which has taken a pro-active role in this area.
Now its spearheading work in raising the competence of fire safety through training has been recognised by the Fire Industry Association’s first ever award given to a company outside of the fire industry.
Fire product manager Peter Holmes accepted the award in acknowledgment of the unique three year partnership which has seen more than 3,500 ADI Gardiner customers put through FIA Fire Detection and Alarm training courses and has provided a string of incentives to help fire system installers meet British safety standards in preparation for the Regulatory Reform Act.
Thousands of installers
“This award has been created especially for ADI Gardiner and we’re extremely proud to have been honoured in this way,” said Peter. “Over the past three years we’ve played our part in training thousands of installers improving overall fire safety across the UK.”
ADI Gardiner now has a dedicated fire team providing state-of-the-art safety equipment as well as training for traditional security installers who want to break into this sector.
Presenting the award, Martin Harvey, chairman of the FIA, said: “Over the last three years ADI Gardiner has shown its commitment to training in the fire protection industry. We look forward to continuing this successful partnership in the future.”
Security Installer magazine has played an active part in this trend and has carried numerous advice articles and series on this subject, written by Peter.
We hope our two major series on the ADI Gardiner initiatives helped readers get into this sector. You can read these articles – ‘Fear of Fire’ and ‘Future Face of Fire’ plus a Q&A from installers – by going to our website.
Go to www.info4security.com and key in “Peter Holmes” in the search box in the top right hand corner.
Increasing trend
The National Security Inspectorate is also recognising this trend. Said Julian Stanton, NSI Marketing Manager: “We are seeing an interesting trend in the fire market, with a growing number of NSI NACOSS Gold approved companies seeking NSI Fire Gold approval as a means of achieving credibility in that sector.
“The move from electronic security into fire is also being mirrored, with some Fire Gold approved companies considering NACOSS Gold approval so as to offer a security and fire integrated package to their customers.”
Hard wired smoke alarm installation is a natural gateway for security alarm installers.
Here Neil Perdell of Aico gives his views on the controversial subject of battery smoke alarms in rented accommodation …
Flat battery
Does new legislation spell the end of the line for battery operated smoke alarms in rented accommodation? Neil Perdell, technical services manager at Aico Limited, gives his reasons why this is the only solution for the future …
In the last few years, Scotland seems to have led the way in progressive social legislation. Now, with new guidance in relation to the Repairing Standard under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006, which came into effect on September 3 2007, it is leading the way again – this time in the area of smoke alarm provision by landlords.
Now, any smoke alarm installed by a landlord – and this includes replacement alarms – must be mains powered. In effect, it’s the beginning of the end for battery powered smoke alarms in rented accommodation in Scotland. Hopefully, it will also be the beginning of the end of the battery alarm for councils and housing associations in the rest of the UK as well.
We may well find that the Scottish initiative could be adopted by British Standards and legislation in the near future, as it is based on sound safety principles, not to mention back-up by the Fire Statistics United Kingdom which show a glaring, ongoing problem with the protection offered by battery powered smoke alarms compared with mains powered units.
Batteries removed
This is not necessarily because of the build or design quality of battery powered units; many are very good, although some are distinctly lacking too. The problem has been in the maintenance of these units, and the removal of batteries by tenants – even so called ten year batteries – rendering their smoke alarm useless. It may be that the battery has been removed to silence a persistent false alarm. Equally, it may be that the battery has been removed for use in another household device. Either way, it is completely disabled. Unless he is able to constantly check the device, the landlord cannot know.
We can see the nervousness about battery alarms reflected in the Notes on the Statutory Guidance, where landlords are advised to get tenants to change their batteries once a year and to change batteries themselves before a tenant moves in if they have a lease lasting less than a year. The Notes go on to say that “It is also recommended that landlords should advise tenants not to tamper with alarms and leases should contain a clause about not tampering with batteries”.
Problem laid bare
In Fire Statistics, United Kingdom, 2005, issued by the Department for Communities and Local Government, the scale of the problem is laid bare. To quote Section 2.34, “In those dwelling fires where a smoke alarm was present, 24 per cent of alarms in 2005 failed to operate. However, this overall figure masks a wide difference in performance between battery-powered alarms and mains-powered alarms – 38 per cent of all battery-powered smoke alarms failed in 2005 compared to just 13 per cent of mains-powered alarms.”
The report goes on to point out that the main reason for smoke alarm failure in these cases was missing or flat batteries. Batteries were the cause of failure, in fact, in 44 per cent of all cases. This was because the battery was actually missing. (By comparison, the main reason mains powered alarms didn’t sound was that fire products didn’t reach them).
It must be clear from these statistics – which seem to repeat with every year – that something needs to be done. Manufacturers have tried design changes, but nothing seems to have stopped tenants from removing batteries. Is there a way to stop tenants from removing or disabling batteries? Can tenants be relied upon to replace them when they go flat? Can a landlord develop a way of adequately checking all properties to ensure that tenants haven’t disabled their alarms, 24/7, 365 days a year? The answer to all three questions seems to be a resounding no.
The only solution
The Scottish move away from battery-powered units towards mains powered protection seems to be the only way to tackle the problem. Tenants are far less likely to attempt to fiddle with mains-powered units and, if they do, there are usually no useful batteries inside, especially when Lithium Cell technology is used. Statistics bear this out.
Moving from battery to mains protection is so sensible – and essential – that, now that Scotland has led the way, it would be shameful if the present situation in the rest of the UK were allowed to continue much longer. Given the trend towards ever-tighter health and safety regulation, it seems unlikely. If and when such changes do come nationwide, it is most likely that they will follow the Scottish model by not actually demanding immediate replacement of battery units in existing applications, but that all new installations will have to be mains powered.
Any landlord in the rest of the UK now contemplating a new installation really should bear this in mind and now seriously consider installing mains-powered protection instead if they were planning to use battery units. Not only would this be planning for the future but it also ensures greatly increased safety for the tenant and better protection for the property itself, since the earlier an alarm is heard, the less damage tends to occur. Even if alarms are due for replacement, it makes very good sense to use the opportunity now to once-and-for-all upgrade to a mains-powered system.
Easier to fit
Mains powered systems have seen many changes over the past few years: units have been designed which are far quicker and easier to fit; new alarm types can be interconnected by radio signal instead of hard wiring, greatly speeding up installation time, cutting installation costs and reducing disruption to the property and to tenants; other new features, such as Remote Control, now enable tenants to hush or test an alarm from a conveniently placed wall box, preventing them from having to physically reach or interfere with an alarm; mains powered smoke alarms can now be integrated into one system with Carbon Monoxide alarms, preventing the need for two systems.
There are also a host of extra safety features available to ensure any special needs are met – a vital consideration given the onerous task of Risk Assessment.
With these new developments, with the powerful arguments presented in Fire Statistics, with ever-tighter health and safety legislation and with the example set by Scotland, the days of battery alarms being acceptable protection in rented accommodation must surely be coming to an end.
