DDA Regs - Fire Beacons

[David Rooney]

We've been asked to install a system and the usual "consultant's" spec says to install xenon beacon in areas to "satisfy" the DDA.

Being your average 6 storey London office block, we would normally install beacons simply in toilets/rest rooms etc.

But to satisy the DDA should we really install beacons throughout, including the open plan floor areas, as well as plant rooms/ lift motor rooms etc, in case a deaf engineer is employed ?

Surely it's down the the "consultant" to provide a DDA policy and tell us where he wants the beacons ??

[Chris Houston]

My personal opinion is that it would be acceptable to install beacons only where people with hearing difficulties currently work and where they may be alone.  A system of providing visitors with hearing difficulties with vibrating equipment could be used in addition to this.

Even people with no hearing will see everyone else respond to a fire alarm.

And I agree that it's the consultant's role to advise the installer about this.

[jokar]

DDA is about being reasonable.  It is reasonable to assume that when updateing, as I assume you are, the FA system in the premises that thought is given to users who may have hearing and visual impairment.  Tha answer of course is yes, but where and when is a difficult issue.  People with disabilities should have Personal Evacuation Plans dependent on their disability and their location within the premises.  Being reasonable is speaking to each individual about their needs, if there are no hearing impaired persons within the premises why bother and if it is acase of visitors then they should have a host.  Providing there is a sound robust evacuation plan there may be no need to do more.

[David Rooney]

Thanks men, it seems to make sense.

It just niggles that these "consultants" who write the specs never actually tell you anything more than the bloody obvious, charge a fortune and then blame everyone else when things don't comply by using the Holy get out, "I advised you to make it comply with the regulations.... !"

No, just me then !

[Graeme]

The DDA asks that all with hearing problems are made as much aware of the fire alarm as normal hearing people.

So if you install visuals in toilets only where you think deaf people may be alone,this still discriminates as they could be anywhere in the building alone.
If you put one beacon in a toilet to satisfy the DDA then you will have to install them every where to comply.

The consultants draft seems like a "cop out" and has passed the buck onto you.

[AnthonyB]

Fortunately with LED technology it is easy to incorporate visual warnings in detector bases (just like is now commonplace with sounders) so it is easier to install them throughout a building (if it has L1 which seems to be more & more common) with cost being limited to the devices themselves usually.

If someone asked for a DDA compliant system, then just as a whole building must comply with part M for disabled access, I would expect the whole fire alarm to comply as well.

Of course you could risk assess - a publically accessible building may well need visual devices throughout, but in some buildings, where only staff & some vistors will resort, fire alarm vibrating pagers are issued to the actual hearing impaired employees

[Nearlybaldandgrey]

And what about the individuals personal evacuation plan?
Surely this must play a part in deciding what level of alarm warning is needed in terms of audible/visual?

Can you operate a buddy system?
Are members of the public allowed access to this office?


Requirements should be based on the outcomes of the Fire Risk Assessment.

[Graeme]

Fortunately with LED technology it is easy to incorporate visual warnings in detector bases (just like is now commonplace with sounders) so it is easier to install them throughout a building (if it has L1 which seems to be more & more common) with cost being limited to the devices themselves usually.

If someone asked for a DDA compliant system, then just as a whole building must comply with part M for disabled access, I would expect the whole fire alarm to comply as well.

Of course you could risk assess - a publically accessible building may well need visual devices throughout, but in some buildings, where only staff & some vistors will resort, fire alarm vibrating pagers are issued to the actual hearing impaired employees

agree. Pagers are another option other than beacons everywhere and not all buildings require them.

[Allen Higginson]

Public buildings are throughout.
As a side question - why do sparkies and consultants put beacons in the disabled toilets only?? Unless the person with impaired hearing also has a physical disability then they're going to use the male or female loo!Muppets!!

[OneOffDave]

I work for an organisation that has a higher than average number of employees with hearing impairments (and other disabilities) and we occupy two floors in a 20 odd floor office block. We did have beacons co-located with all the fire alarm sounders until a few months ago when the system was upgraded to a voice announcement system. Following this, we switched to pagers for those staff as it enabled them to differentiate between the 'standby', 'evacuate' and 'non-fire evacuate' messages, something the beacons never did.

We have a small pool of spare pagers for use by visitors, who although usually are escorted, may be alone when using the toilets for example.

As everyone has mentionioned earlier, the DDA only requires reasonable adjustments and for organisations with fewer resources the buddy system and escorting for visitors should be adequate.

[jokar]

Just a thing on the pagers, most women do not have pockets to carry them about and put them with thier other devices in their handbags which they may or may not have with them at all times.  Also, some women have pagers of their own, which is the most iomportant and can you have a normal pager realigned for the fire alarm system?  Thats why PEEP's are so important, it takees account of the individual and the Company.

[David Rooney]

Fortunately with LED technology it is easy to incorporate visual warnings in detector bases (just like is now commonplace with sounders) so it is easier to install them throughout a building (if it has L1 which seems to be more & more common) with cost being limited to the devices themselves usually.

If someone asked for a DDA compliant system, then just as a whole building must comply with part M for disabled access, I would expect the whole fire alarm to comply as well.

Of course you could risk assess - a publically accessible building may well need visual devices throughout, but in some buildings, where only staff & some vistors will resort, fire alarm vibrating pagers are issued to the actual hearing impaired employees

But I thought the "DDA" requirements for beacons meant they need to be fitted on walls, therefore not necessarily so easy to add onto a detector base.

Also thought there was a minimum illuminescence which LED beacons don't always meet ??

[wee brian]

Point to note.

There are no specific technical requirements in the DDA. It is not possible to specify a system that complies with Act.

As has been said, all you can do is what is reasonable. One way to demonstarte this is to use a recognised book of words. BS 5839 Part 1 says something along the lines of put them in places where people may work alone etc.

It's a bit open to interpretation but its better than nowt.

B

[Thebeardedyorkshireman]

Just a point on pagers for the DDA. This is our view:
  As a general principle, fire alarm sounder transmission circuits and their associated power supplies are fault monitored and provide a warning in the event that the sound will not be given ( yes I know that the noise is not allways monitored). If you provide a pager warning for a disabled person then you are discriminating against them if their warning does not have the same integrity. Thus the radio signal must be monitored and provide warning if they 'wander' out of range or have a signal degregation.
The battery must be monitored to the same standard as that which provides the general fire warning.
Any views?

[Graeme]

http://www.deaf-alerter.com/website.htm