Warehouses & Factories
The Regulatory Reform Order for warehouses and factories states that Fire Risk Assessments must be carried out as per the Guide 2 – Factories & Warehouses. The Guide 2, while not a regulatory order, has been created to provide advice and guidance for those in these environments on how to prevent and manage fires, should one occur.
Just like most premises in the UK a fire risk assessment should be carried out by the responsible person. However, given the nature of this kind of setting this person could be a warehouse owner, employer, manager or a specially appointed employee or third-party expert.
It may also mean that one premises, which adjoins onto other complexes, may require the cooperation of multiple responsible people, to ensure that an integrated risk assessment can be compiled.
Managing Risk
Factories and warehouses are high risk by their very nature. However, fires commonly begin as a result of an unanticipated issue with a machining process or through human intervention.
A regular fire safety risk assessment will help to reduce the chances of a fire but also help to protect the business premises, the stock and, most valuably, the human lives working within the operation.
Deliberate human intervention is the most common cause of fire within a warehousing environment, with 18% of all such fires started deliberately. Most of these cases aren’t targeted attacks; in fact, the vast majority of these incidents are down to opportunist vandals.
That being said, it is the responsibility of the responsible persons to ensure that this threat is significantly reduced.
Challenges of Fire Safety in a Care Home
Heavy Processes
Machining processes in warehouses and factories will often use flammable substances, produce sparks or develop friction that can cause a blaze.
Smoking Materials
5% of warehouse fires are caused by smoking materials that haven’t been discarded correctly. These flames can take time to extinguish, and they are not always detected immediately, which means a lit cigar, cigarette or match can take a while to ignite other materials.
Electrical Failure
If electrical machinery hasn’t been used correctly or it isn’t subject to regular maintenance, then friction and other faults can cause a fire.
Storerooms
Storage areas in warehouses can be very dangerous if not constructed correctly. The quantities of flammable liquids and combustible materials mean that it’s absolutely vital to diminish this risk with correct housekeeping and storage procedures.
How Can the FireArrest App Benefit Factory & Warehousing Environments?
Our app has been designed to offer all the features and technology that anyone working on a warehouse or factory fire risk assessment would require.
This intuitive range of tools and features have been developed to ensure that any responsible person is able to accurately report the results of their fire risk assessments intuitively and collaboratively.
For more information on our app, or to find out more about our referral programme, contact the team today