Each year, the week of October 9 (in memory of The Great Chicago Fire) marks National Fire Prevention Week. Some might think of fire safety as being a relatively common-sense proposition, but there are over 100,000 commercial fires annually, costing business owners over $2.4 billion. And, of course, that’s to say nothing of the fact that over one thousand people are either injured or killed in commercial fires per year.
So while you might feel like you have an adequate fire safety plan in place, it certainly never hurts to brush up and make sure your business is properly protected. And with that in mind, here are some of our top tips for keeping people and property safe from fire.
1. Practice your escape plan regularly.
This essential element of any fire safety plan often goes neglected, even though it’s something we all learned about in grade school. In the event of an emergency, every second counts. As such, it is crucial to minimize the amount of time you spend thinking about your exit strategy, and get out of the building quickly. If possible, it is best to know at least two routes out of the building from any room, in case one is blocked by fire or rubble. Practice makes perfect, and when it comes to your escape plan, perfect saves lives!
2. Cable management is key.
While it might seem like another thing that should go without saying, many businesses are guilty of practicing poor cable management all too frequently. Never allow cords to run through water, do not overload outlets, and never daisy-chain extension cords. Do not run extension cords under carpet or rugs – trapping heat can produce a fire hazard – and the same goes for overloaded outlets and cluttered, tangled up cables. Stick to an orderly system of organized cords with one extension cord per appliance – and no shortcuts, not even temporarily in a pinch!
3. Test your alarms and smoke detectors regularly, not just when inspections are due.
This is a big one. Your fire detection technology has one job, and that’s to notify you as quickly as possible in the event of a fire. It’s an important job, but one that the technology is more than capable of doing, provided it’s functioning properly. To make sure your systems are ready to keep your business safe at a moment’s notice, talk to your technology provider about a testing and inspection plan specific to your building and location, and conduct regular visual inspections.
4. Schedule regular equipment maintenance.
Appliances, machinery, and server rooms/electrical closets all represent potential fire hazards in the workplace if not maintained regularly. Grease, dust, and other accelerants or flammable materials can accumulate over time, and must be dealt with. In order to avoid a potential disaster, be proactive about making sure your equipment is clean and well maintained.
5. Get smart about suppression.
Sprinklers do an excellent job at protecting the building itself, but additional fire suppression solutions can go a long way in containing a fire before it ever reaches the point of doing structural damage. Make sure you and your employees are trained on how to use your building’s portable fire extinguishers, and check if they’ve been inspected in accordance with fire code. Also, consider a clean agent suppression solution to protect your business’s high value assets.
