Fire Alarms

British Standard - 5839

Trying to get your head around what type of system or extent of coverage your business or premises requires isn't not always straight forward. Every building is different and certain types of system may be more practical for your site than others. Here we'll break down some of the fundamentals of fire alarm systems to help you on your way.

Do I need a fire alarm system?

Current UK regulations state that all businesses must have ‘an appropriate fire detection system’. This basically means that in the event of a fire, it can be quickly and easily detected and all occupants given the earliest possible warning.
In some rare instances, this does not necessarily mean that you require a fire alarm system. However, this would be determined by your Fire Risk Assessment, taking into account such factors as; size of premises, possible storage of hazardous substances and vulnerability of occupants.

What type of fire alarm do I need?

There are a number of types of fire alarm available.

Conventional - Most commonly found in small buildings. The site is split into various zones, with the panel lighting a corresponding LED to indicate the location of the fire.
Addressable - More sophisticated than the aforementioned, addressable systems specify which individual devices have triggered and display detailed information via a LCD or colour screen.
Wireless - Increasingly more popular as they dramatically cut down install time. Wireless system typically work like an addressable system, but negate the need for long and often intrusive and expensive cable installation.

What category do I need?

Categories assigned to fire alarm systems denote what areas within the building are covered. Principally, there are eight categories in effect, the key ones are:

L5 - A ‘custom’ category. With detection often limited to high risk areas/custom areas.

L4 - Detection covering escape routes and areas of circulation.
L3 - Detection on escape routes and all rooms that open onto escape routes.

L2 - Similar to L3 but with additional detection in high risk areas and rooms adjacent to escape routes.

L1 - Full coverage. This will include nearly all spaces and voids.

Your Fire Risk Assessment or insurer should determine what category of system you require.

Anchor 1

All commercial and non-domestic premises must install and maintain a suitable fire detection and fire alarm system under the appropriate fire safety legislation across the UK. For England and Wales this is the The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

There are four stages of establishing and maintaining a suitable fire detection and fire alarm system - design, installation, commissioning and maintenance.

1. Design

As mentioned above, there are different system categories for fire detection and alarm systems. Some building and contents insurers will determine which category you should have, but most commonly your risk assessor will advise on which will be best suited for your premises. With this information, a suitable system design can then be established.
British Standard 5839-1 (BS 5839-1 Fire detection and fire alarm systems for buildings Part 1: Code of practice for design, installation, commissioning and maintenance of systems in non-domestic premises) states: “whether there is a need for automatic fire detection and, if so, the extent to which it needs to be provided is often determined by a fire risk assessment carried out on behalf of the user; such a fire risk assessment might be required by legislation.” -

BS 5839-1, Section 2: Design considerations, 8.1.2 Protection of life

Fire detection and fire alarm system providers can be overlooked in this department, but with the design process of these systems, a thorough assessment of the building is included in this. The designer must be confident they are proving a quality specification of what is required. This is to detect any outbreak of fire and alert people of this outbreak as quickly as possible to enable safe evacuation, whilst also reducing the possibility of any false alarms.

When it comes to the protection of property, BS 5839-1 states “if the objective of the system is property protection, there needs to be sufficient provision of automatic fire detectors to ensure that fire is detected at an early stage, that an effective warning is given in time for firefighters to take action before unacceptable damage to property occurs and that an indication of the location of the fire is given to those responding to the alarm signal. The value of the system depends on a combination of the speed of detection, the delay before firefighters are summoned, the attendance time of trained firefighters, and the probable rate of fire spread.” - BS 5839-1, Section 2: Design considerations, 8.1.3 Protection of property

2. Installation

The installation of any fire detection and fire alarm system should follow the thorough design plan to confirm the system is appropriate for the building. In any instance where the design cannot be followed, the installer should consult the designer to ensure any required changes continue to protect life and the property as best as possible.

“The nature and quality of the installation work needs to be such as to maintain the integrity of the fire detection and fire alarm system and minimize the duration and extent of disablement of the system during maintenance or modifications. Installation practices and workmanship need to conform to BS 7671 [for the electrical safety of the installation].” - BS 5839-1, Section 4: Installation practices and workmanship, 37.1 Commentary

3. Commissioning

BS 5839-1 states that “the process of commissioning involves thorough testing of the installed system to ensure that it operates correctly in accordance with the recommendations of this standard and with the purchasing specification. At completion of commissioning, it also needs to be confirmed that all relevant documentation has been handed over to the user.” - BS 5839-1, Section 5: Commissioning and handover, 39.1 Commentary

The recommendations from BS 5839-1 notes that “the system should be commissioned by a competent person, who has access to the requirements of the designer (i.e. the system specification) and any other relevant documentation or drawings.” It continues that “any person responsible for commissioning a fire detection and fire alarm system in accordance with the recommendations of this standard should possess, at least, a basic knowledge and understanding of Section 2 [design], Section 3 [limitation of false alarms] and Section 4 [installation] of this standard.” - BS 5839-1, Section 5: Commissioning and handover, 39.2 Recommendations

4. Maintenance

Weekly and monthly maintenance of the fire detection and fire alarm system falls onto the responsibility of the user (i.e. the appropriate person appointed responsible for the premises). These routine tests will “ensure that fault indications at the panel are identified for appropriate action. It is also vital for a regular test to be carried out to ensure that there has not been any major failure of the entire system, or a significant part of the system.” - BS 5839-1, Section 6: Maintenance, 44.1 Routine testing (Commentary)

British Standard 5839-1, Section 6 outlines the weekly and monthly recommended routine testing of the system. These include (but is not definitive to):

A weekly test (carried out at approximately the same time each week)
Operation of a manual call point every week (tested in rotation)
Monthly test to simulate loss of power (if an emergency generator is used)
Recording information in a logbook

Your chosen Third Party Certificated fire detection and fire alarm system provider will be able to advise further on all recommended responsibilities. This will demonstrate ongoing due diligence to fire safety legislation for the system in place.

The standard adds however that “periodic inspection and servicing needs to be carried out by a competent person with specialist knowledge of fire detection and fire alarm systems, including knowledge of the causes of false alarms, sufficient information regarding the system, and adequate access to spares.” - BS 5839-1, Section 6: Maintenance, 45.1 Inspection and servicing (commentary)