What are Emergency Lights?

Emergency lighting is primarily used to help people escape from a building in the event of fire or other emergencies. It can also be used to illuminate safety equipment. Emergency lights are essential in office or apartment blocks or any other buildings in which a loss of normal lighting would significantly hinder escape. Every Building owner should possess an emergency lighting certificate.

Single ‘stand-alone’ escape lighting units may be sufficient in small premises and these can sometimes be combined with exit or directional signs. In larger more complex premises a more comprehensive system of fixed automatic escape lighting is likely to be needed. This will be particularly true in premises with extensive basements or where there are significant numbers of staff or members of the public.

An emergency escape lighting system should normally cover the following:

• each exit door
• escape routes
• intersections of corridors
• outside each final exit and on external escape routes
• emergency escape signs
• stairways so that each flight receives adequate light
• changes in floor level
• windowless rooms and toilet accommodation exceeding eight square meters
• fire-fighting equipment
• fire alarm call points
• equipment that would need to be shut down in an emergency
• lifts
• areas in premises greater than 60 square meters