New safety and fire signs, including fire exit signs

[Tom Sutton]

We now have one standard for safety signs which includes fire safety and fire exit signs and it is an International (ISO) European (EN) and British (BS) Standard, BS EN ISO 7010:2012. It is envisaged The Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations will be amended soon and the new signs will become law and the so called euro-sign will be no more. It appears anybody with BS 5499 pt 4 signs will conform to the new standard.

[Guest MariaAnt]

Hello

we need to install statutory signage in a building we are currently refurbishing and we have specified signs to comply with EN 60598 and to be installed as BS 5499-4. COULD YOU CONFIRM IF SIGNS COMPLIANT WITH BUILDING REGS COULD BE USSED INSTEAD? WHEN WILL BE THE EUROPEAN REGULATION TAKE PLACE IN UK? WE ARE TRYING TO AVOID HAVING TO CHANGE THE SIGNS IN THE FUTURE..

MANY THANKS IN ADVANCE

REGARDS

Maria

[Tom Sutton]

EN 60598 is current standard for luminaires which will include illuminated fire exit boxes but the sign is covered by BS EN ISO 7010:2012 which is the current standard for the EEC and will soon be written into UK law by amending The Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations. When the HS(SSS)R is amended the so called euro- sign will be illegal and I suspect a period of grace will be given (up to 5 years) to change from the old sign to the current.

They should be installed in accordance with BS 5499-4 which require minor amending but should not cause any problems providing you use BS EN ISO 7010:2012 signs.

Check out http://www.firesafe.org.uk/fire-exit-signs/ and http://www.firesafe.org.uk/fire-safety-signs/

[Messy]

Is there a date when the signage changes take place and most importantly, when the Euro sign becomes 'illegal'?

I look after fire safety several buildings. This includes a very large building with hundreds of Euro signs. Each sign has been amended to show an escape route designation within each door symbol (A,B,C etc). This allows messages to be sent over a voice alarm system in the event that exits routes should be avoided and is required by the FRA due the nature of work carried out and the layout of the premises

The cost of replacing these signs will be enormous and will need to be factored in to the estates budget, plus staff will need to be informed of the change and emergency plans redrawn. I doubt whther this can be achieved within 5 years

Personally I think the whole signage change fiasco is a farce. The most important thing is that people understand what the sign is telling them. Whilst I accept that the 'man running into a fridge' Euro sign is not as good as the BS versions, do the legislators really think that the British public are so stupid, they can't understand understand the Euro sign. If that is the case, where are the stacks of dead bodies?

[Tom Sutton]

Sorry Messy I do not have have any idea it has been going on for years and until the Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations 1996 is amended it will carry on and even then the chances are that a period of change will be allowed of a number of years. The main problem is illuminated exit boxes and the ICEL appear to be reluctant to using the BS EN ISO standard until the euro-sign is made illegal, I am afraid it is a case of wait and see.

I know that members of the FireNet Forum will carry on using risk assessment and will only change the signs if they constitute a risk.