Business owners and managers spend their days dealing with their clients, employees, finances and other day-to-day operations. While fire protection is obviously important, it’s something that can slip through the cracks… until the day the fire marshal walks in to do an inspection!
Inspections by the fire marshal’s office follow standard regulations by the National Fire Protection Association and the International Fire Code. The fire marshal will check your main systems, but will also look for proper signage, hazardous materials, and more.
A fire marshal verifies that your fire protection systems have current inspection tags or stickers on them. The color of each tag indicates if the system, when tested, is operational as installed or if it has deficiencies. A green tag indicates that the system is operating optimally. If the system has deficiencies but is still operable, it will have a yellow tag. A red tag means the system is inoperable and needs immediate attention.
By having your system inspected and maintained annually, your business will be ready when the fire inspector comes to do the walk-through.
The fire inspector will check the test buttons on emergency lights to verify that the backup batteries are operational. If the building loses power, the backup batteries will provide adequate lighting so that everyone can exit the building safely.
Periodically, there are news stories about people being trapped in buildings during a fire because the exits were blocked. These stories are a tragic reminder of why it is so important that businesses maintain clear pathways to all exits.
The fire inspector will come to your business during your normal business hours. You must have a clear path to and from all standard and emergency exits. Some emergency exits have door alarms that sound when someone opens the door. In addition to being another way to leave the building, emergency exit doors alert others in the building to the emergency.
If your facility has hazardous materials, be sure to have a proper datasheet on-site for each. Most companies have hazardous materials storage lockers to store the materials when not in use. General housekeeping is a best practice for keeping the areas clean and free of debris.
Businesses should check their fire extinguishers monthly to ensure that they have not lost charge or have a damaged cylinder. FPS offers fire extinguisher operation training for you and your employees. For your convenience, we set up classes on-site and let your employees take turns using a fire extinguisher.
Schools, daycares, nursing facilities, and others have specific requirements for regularly scheduled drills. Be sure to keep records of the drills for review when the inspector arrives. FPS is happy to assist with drills if needed.
A business owner or manager shouldn’t panic when a fire marshal walks in. If you've been doing regular checks and planning ahead, even as little as once a year, you'll be prepared for an inspection.
FPS Technologies' regular inspection and maintenance services help business owners and managers prepare for inspections. More importantly, regular inspection and maintenance services keep your customers and employees safe.
For more information or a free estimate, please call FPS Technologies at (405) 842-8708 or email us at support@fps-technologies.com.