Here are 5 top tips for safely unlocking lockdown
As businesses re-open, returning to some sort of normality will be critical to employers, but the safety of staff and customers alike should play a key part in the ‘unlock’ plan.
Here are 5 tips to ensure your building is safe, and reduce the risk of spreading infection:
1. Re-think your fire risk assessment
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If premises have been left unused during lockdown, extra measures may have been taken to protect the property from unwanted intruders or arson. Ensure these increased security measures do not compromise fire safety on re-opening.
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Where staffing and building layout has changed this may affect evacuation arrangements in the event of fire. Test any new evacuation procedures and think about social distancing at evacuation rendezvous points
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Review fire safety equipment such as fire alarms, emergency lighting and firefighting equipment which may not have received their routine testing or servicing during lockdown.
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Staff training – if this has not been undertaken for some time or new staff have started, then they should be provided with appropriate fire safety training
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If premises have been left unused during lockdown, extra measures may have been taken to protect the property from unwanted intruders or arson. Ensure these increased security measures do not compromise fire safety on re-opening.
-
Where staffing and building layout has changed this may affect evacuation arrangements in the event of fire. Test any new evacuation procedures and think about social distancing at evacuation rendezvous points
-
Review fire safety equipment such as fire alarms, emergency lighting and firefighting equipment which may not have received their routine testing or servicing during lockdown.
-
Staff training – if this has not been undertaken for some time or new staff have started, then they should be provided with appropriate fire safety training
2. Don’t touch!
Think about how people enter and move around your building. How much touch is required to get through doors?
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Consider switching from entering codes or pressing buttons on communal keypads to key cards or tags.
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Control your intruder alarm from an app on your smartphone.
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Consider moving away from push-to-exit (PTE), or release-to-exit (RTE), solution, to one that recognises movement such as a hand wave or simply walking towards an exit.
3. The temperature test
Thermal imaging cameras can help to identify those entering a building with a high temperature – a key symptom of COVID-19 – helping you to ensure individuals are further tested before returning to the building.
Thermal Temperature Monitoring Solutions can range from hand-held devices, fixed imaging camera solutions to those that integrate with access control systems, denying entry to those with elevated temperatures.
Depending on areas and volumes of people you wish to monitor, there are several solutions and the costs vary substantially.
The most accurate solutions monitor the core body temperature and not just skin temperature, It is the core body temperature that will indicate if someone has a temperature/fever and the best systems offer an accuracy of ±0.3° C.
Check out our video for more information; https://youtu.be/pF05sDzJ2O4
4. Keep count
For businesses that have a high volume of people coming and going, it is imperative that they can control the number of people allowed inside. Shops, shopping centres, supermarkets, banks, gyms, cinemas, entertainment venues and restaurants are all businesses that face the challenge of controlling the number of people inside the building.
A Density Control Solution automatically counts and displays the number of people in a building, reducing the need for a member of staff to control the entrances.
Solutions can range from those that count the traffic through a single door and use signage to indicate stop/go, to multi-door systems that are integrated into an automated access control solution that grants or denies access into the building.
5. Check your integrity
‘Integrity’ is the ability to prevent the passage of fire and smoke. If you’ve taken the opportunity during lockdown to give your building a ‘face lift’ ensure the building work has not compromised fire compartmentation such as fire doors and walls, and that an approved ‘fire proofing’ substance is used for sealing any gaps.
Also, with recent events and so much business disruption, it would be easy to forget those fire or smoke dampers lurking unseen above the ceiling. They are a crucial and potentially life-saving element of your passive fire protection and need regular servicing.
For an informative and easy-read on passive fire protection check out our blog.
At Meritas Fire and Security Protection we have worked hard throughout the pandemic to keep our clients’ businesses safe and secure. We have the knowledge, expertise and technical solutions to help you safely re-open your business and maximise your chances of staying open.