Electrical Compliance for Businesses
A lot of business processes rely on electricity to operate effectively. Thus, there are a lot of legislation, standards, and regulations that must be adopted to ensure electrical safety in your workplace. Therefore, electrical compliance is essential to ensure your business is operating efficiently in a safe environment.
Regular and periodic testing and inspection of electrical and portable appliances, carried out by qualified electricians, is the right way to ensure compliance and safety. In this article, we will discuss the importance of electrical compliance and what tests you should carry out. Let’s dive in.
Why Test & Inspect
Testing must be carried out on all electrical appliances, safety systems like fire alarms & emergency lighting, as well as electrical installations regularly to ensure your business is fully compliant while operating.
Types of Electrical Testing for Businesses
Inspection of your electrical and portable appliances will help identify any defects before it becomes full-blown. Thus, you must carry out these comprehensive tests and inspections regularly.
An EICR test is an Electrical Installation Condition Report, and it is an essential part of being a property owner. It is carried out to make sure that every property’s electrical installations are in a safe and secure condition and it can’t cause danger. It was made a legal requirement for every business owner
Portable Appliance Testing (PAT) is a term used to describe the examination of electrical appliances and equipment to ensure their safety. The testing frequency depends on the equipment and the environment it is used in. For instance, a power tool on a construction site should be more frequently examined than a lamp in a office.
Regular fire alarm tests help ensure you are safe in the event of a fire. Also, it prepares you for emergencies. To test your alarm system, check for functionality and pre-inform your office. That way, everyone will be calm and understand that you are testing it when the alarm sounds.
Also, ensure your employees can hear the sound regardless of where they are in the office. If there is any place where the alarm sounds muffled or weak, you need to install more sounders or alarms.
Emergency lighting is mandatory in all residential and commercial buildings because it is designed to save lives by guiding occupants to safety. Emergency light testing must be carried out every;
- Month to make sure of required illumination.
- 3-hour test every 365 days.
The testing includes cutting the power to the facility's emergency lighting units. While the test is ongoing, all emergency lighting will be in operation.