Planning Egress
December 1st 2006 The implementation of the Disability Discrimination Act has created headaches for everyone attempting to meet the legislation as far as access is concerned, but the 'Achilles heel' for most is the problem of safe egress. UK Health & Safety Law 1989 states: 'Employers also have duties to take precautions against fire, provide adequate means of escape …'. This includes those within their scope of responsibility such as visitors, contractors, sub-contractors and customers. But, stairway descent can be impossible, not just for the obviously non-ambulatory population, but also for many other conditions often known only by the individual. The Evac+Chair is an universal evacuation solution, widely accepted as an ingenious device for stairway descent. According to Fruin's Law, an able-bodied person can descend stairs at 0.70 meters per second. Using the Evac+Chair during trials the rate of descent is 0.62 meters per second. Allowing for impeded egress due to the number of people on a staircase at any one time, this can vary for able-bodied persons to approx. 0.50 meters per second. There are few products which meet the criteria of being a stairway evacuation device: the Evac+Chair offers the best means of fast and efficient escape for those with walking difficulties without hindering other stairway users. The smooth operation is achieved by intelligent design using continuous rotating v-belts to provide a controlled descent over stair nosings. No heavy lifting is necessary; it requires only one person to evacuate another after a short training session, and considerably improves the security for all in any facility above one storey. Risk Assessment In order to determine exactly what challenges and problems you face – and how these difficulties can be solved – it is essential that you carry out a risk assessment. While many employers have made provision to allow access to upper levels and toilets, far fewer have considered the implications of fire precautions and facility evacuation when, for example, lifts may not be accessible or non-existent. The provision of the correct equipment will assist management in providing adequate means of escape for all mobility impaired persons. The strategic placing of Evac+Chairs throughout the facility, together with required escape drills, will help organisations meet the requirements of the D.D A., the new Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (R.R.O), the 89/391 EEC, other legislative requirements, answer everyone's fears concerning emergency evacuation and save personnel from unnecessary injury. Adding value The Evac+Chair is designed to allow an adequate means of escape for all visitors and staff during an emergency situation. Operated by just a single able-bodied individual, the chair enables anyone with restricted movement to be moved down stairs and out of the facility in a fast and efficient manner. But the Evac+Chair is not just a safety product which an employer can buy to show compliance. It is both a tool and a service. "Employers are beginning to realise the value of the service we offer," says Barry Scholes, Managing Director of Evac+Chair International. "We aren't just manufacturing and supplying a product; we're providing a service to our customers." One aspect of this service is the annual maintenance contract, known as Servicare, provided by Evac+Chair International, which helps to remove some of the administrative burden from employers. The company will diarise your maintenance requirements and visit your offices once a year to give your chair a complete and thorough service, and currently services over 6,000 chairs a year. However, the product will only fulfil its potential if staff know how to use the chair correctly and safely, and feel confident in their ability to do so. In order to address this issue, Evac+Chair offers certificated competency training, confirming that individuals are capable of using the chair in an emergency situation. This basic level training qualifies the employee to be known as a 'dedicated escort', and involves two hours of hands-on training in the practicalities of using Evac+Chair. Employees can be trained and assessed in groups of up to four people, and those who successfully complete the course receive a certificate proving their competency with the chairs. Scholes explained, "In facilities, you already have first aiders and fire marshals for staffs to turn to in an emergency. But if there is an emergency, companies don't want to tie up their first aiders with assisting evacuations, and security guards are often based on lower levels so are not available to readily help on upper levels. We are trying to establish a new role called dedicated escorts, who will help those with mobility problems to use the Evac+Chairs." Evac+Chair also offers a higher level of training for 'Key Trainers'. An employee who has received this training is entitled to train other employees in turn. This can be a useful method of sharing information for larger organizations which are based across several sites – a large high street retail store, for example, put 16 people through this training course so that information could be shared across each of its branches. Key Trainers are validated for a period of two years, and need to be retrained every two years to ensure their skills and knowledge remain up to date. Where possible, training is carried out on site, though it can be arranged at a nearby hotel if this is preferred. However, it makes sense for employees to learn to use the equipment on their own stairs, if this can be arranged. More articles from Evac+Chair International Ltd: | 
