Fire & Safety Yet while surface-mounted fire alarms and carbon monoxide detectors
are already accepted as a necessary safety product, surface-mounted emergency lighting is lagging behind, and is still seen as obtrusive (or just plain ugly). As a result, emergency lighting installers are tasked with the more disruptive, messy and time-consuming task of drilling large holes to house the light fitting and hide the battery – despite recent improvements to surface mounted models dramatically changing their visual impact, efficacy and reliability.
LED technology Traditional emergency lighting luminaires, such as a fluorescent, suffered from battery compatibility issues which reduced their lifespans. As such, many emergency lights were only effective in an emergency for a limited number of times, before they needed to be replaced. LED eradicates these issues, requiring much less power to run, with much more compact lamps and drivers making them easier to incorporate into smaller fittings.
Better batteries In the past, emergency lighting batteries were based around SLA (Sealed Lead Acid) technology, leading to much bulkier fittings and subsequently more requirement for the battery to be hidden away during installation. These were replaced by Nickel Cadmium batteries, a more compact alternative. Now, Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries are revolutionising the size and longevity of batteries: not only are they much smaller, but they are longer lasting in terms of recharge and discharge cycles. As a result, they can be incorporated into much smaller emergency lighting fittings and stand-alone products such as illuminated signage.
Advantages of surface mounted These technological advantages have made all types of emergency lighting more discrete, reliable and energy efficient, but it’s surface-mounted emergency lighting that has really been transformed. Surface-mounted models are now slimline and compact, making them less noticeable once they are installed, as well as simple to install, replace and maintain. For instance, a surface mounted non-maintained emergency light is much quicker and easier to identify during fire safety inspections than the small green indicator light found on a maintained light.
For awkward installations, such as listed buildings, architectural
anomalies or jobs where time is of the essence and disruption needs to be minimal (such as care homes or schools), surface-mounted emergency lighting provides a low-impact, fast, and reliable option compared to fitting recessed models. It’s time for installers and commercial property managers to see how much has changed since the days of unreliable fluorescents and bulky battery packs, and recognise surface mounted emergency lights as the best option for a wide range of properties. Much like seatbelts or anti lock brakes, emergency lighting should be
easy to forget it’sthey are there until you need it– but it’s crucial that it works as intended when you do. Discrete, slimline surface mounted emergency lights fulfil both functions, providing a safe and reliable but unobtrusive solution. Red Arrow’s Sentinel range of LED emergency light fittings, for example,
are available in both recessed or surface mounted options, for Escape Route or Open Area requirements. These standalone Emergency Lights are a more cost-effective and energy efficient alternative to maintained emergency lights.
ewnews.co.uk
February 2022 electrical wholesaler | 29
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