Safety First: 3 Reasons to Hire External Help for Your Business's Fire Compliance
Nobody wants to think about the risk of an accident happening in the workplace, least of all something as damaging and dangerous as a fire. Unfortunately, to be safe and compliant with Australian law, you must spend at least some time thinking about and preparing for these unpleasant eventualities. In fact, fire prevention and safety is much more complicated than you might imagine. There are emergency exit routes to plan out, alarm systems to maintain and fire extinguishers to purchase.
However, all of these things present further questions, and you can easily end up dedicating a high proportion of your workday to solving them. Instead, you should consider deferring to experts on these difficult decisions. Here's why.
Fire Extinguishers are Not All Equal
Contrary to popular knowledge, there are a number of different kinds of fire extinguisher. Each type is suitable for a different kind of fire. As such, you can't just purchase a standard fire extinguisher; the risks that are present in your specific workspace will dictate which you need. An expert will be able to make this choice for you easily.
Location is Key
Fire extinguishers cannot simply be placed where it's most convenient to store them. They must be located at strategic junctures, close to potential fire hazards and in easily accessible spaces in case of emergency. Again, this is part of a fire safety specialist's everyday job, so they will be able to help you identify exactly where the extinguisher should be housed. Equally, there are many different ways of storing the extinguishers; some wall-mounted brackets will be appropriate for one kind of extinguisher, but not another.
Visible Information is Vital
Simply having the correct extinguisher in your workplace is not enough. In order to comply with Australian law, your fire extinguishers must be adequately visible in case they need to be found quickly in an emergency situation. This may include posters or signs which describe what kind of fire extinguisher you have, and when and how to use it. Your expert will know where to place these signs for the greatest visibility.
Becoming compliant by yourself is possible, but you would need to conduct plenty of research that saps time away from your workday. Rather than focusing on how to interpret the regulation and comply with it, enlisting an existing expert will get the job done quickly and safely. That way, you don't need to think about those unpleasant possibilities any longer than is necessary. For more information, visit websites like http://www.fireprotectionservices.com.au.