In today’s world there is a possibility of different crisis to arise. Unfortunately, these unplanned events can happen at work as well. It’s always preferable to be ready for anything, whether it’s a security breach that puts your employees and visitors at risk or a natural disaster like a fire, earthquake, or flooding.
Without a strategy in place, emergency circumstances almost always result in panic, which just adds to the confusion and mayhem. What’s even more concerning is that as per the survey by the government it was found that almost 80% of people haven’t actually practiced what to do in an emergency and this is why India is one of those countries where more amount of death happen as people don’t know how to evacuate in time.
The good part is that businesses in India are already taking a more proactive stance when it comes to handling and minimizing emergencies at work. They are using technology to facilitate and put in place more effective emergency operations in addition to ensuring sure they have correct emergency evacuation plan. To guarantee a prompt and successful emergency evacuation, a survey by experts needs to be done so that your company’s emergency evacuation plan or a fire evacuation plan with abundant information.
With this survey done, you’ve taken significant steps to safeguard your staff members and your company’s assets by putting an emergency evacuation plan or fire evacuation plan in place for your company. People tend to panic in an emergency, but with a sound strategy by Visualmitra, you may get ready in advance and increase the likelihood of safe results.
What does your Business need Evacuation Plan survey?
Organizing the right things and adding value is what required for any business to run safely. Every plan should be unique to the business and workspace it is meant to serve. We at Visualmitra have experts who has vast experience in various fields and would consider the following factors when a survey is done:
Carefully analyse the emergency situation
Start by asking these simple questions to determine the main hazards your company would encounter in the event of a fire before developing your business fire evacuation strategy. There are several situations that could be categorized as emergencies. Not every one of these circumstances calls for evacuation. Keep in mind that an evacuation frequently results in fear and panic, particularly if staff members are not properly informed of the reason for the evacuation. Make sure to properly evaluate the necessity to evacuate before leaving.
To respond to the emergency at hand with minimizing alarm, start by thinking about the type of emergency you’re experiencing. A wide range of events, both man-made and natural, may demand the evacuation of a workplace, according to OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration). Fires, explosions, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, toxic material releases, radioactive and biological catastrophes, civil unrest, and workplace violence are only a few examples of these situations.
Identify the roles and responsibilities
Employees will look to their leaders for assurance and direction when a fire breaks out and your company needs to evacuate. Establish a chain of command that is crystal clear and has backups to indicate who has the power to issue an evacuation order or who is the right person to call in.
Make sure your fire safety team is dependable, present, and equipped to act promptly in an emergency as you allocate tasks. Additionally, check to see that one department isn't overrepresented among your organization’s fire marshals. For instance, people of the sales team may be more outgoing and willing to volunteer, but for better representation, you should distribute duties among other departments and locations.
Keep a record of all of these requirements as well as the contacts for your fire safety team which should be added in your emergency evacuation plan.
Procedures for Evacuation that are Clearly Mapped
Employees will need to respond differently to various emergencies. What actions, for instance, are your staff members expected to take when it has been determined that an evacuation is necessary? Will you mandate that staff members gather in one spot on the property before being evacuated to a location outside? Is there a safer method to go about it? Or would it take far too long?
Make it a point to walk your personnel through your emergency evacuation plan. Get them involved, even at the planning stage, to determine which processes are practical and workable. From here, make sure your staff members have the instruction they require to carry out their particular responsibilities and tasks in an emergency situation. Distribute the plan to all staff when it has been created to make sure everyone is informed.
Primary and secondary escape routes should be included in your company's fire evacuation strategy. All fire escapes and exits should be well marked with signs. Furniture and other items that could obstruct your employee’s ability to escape directly should be kept away from exit pathways. Make several floor layouts and schematics for large offices, and publish them so that staff members are aware of the escape routes.
Availability of Required Safety Equipment
In some emergency scenarios, personnel must utilize specialized safety gear to enable a secure escape. These may consist of:
- Face shields, goggles, and safety glasses
- Safety footwear and hard hats
- Gloves
- Chemical hoods or suits etc.
Make sure your staff is aware of their whereabouts and has easy access to them in case of necessity.
Accounting for On-Site Visitors and Employees
You must be able to locate every person on your property quickly and effectively in case of an emergency. To achieve this, be sure to include the following procedures in your evacuation plan: Establish meeting places within and outside the building where you may assemble all of your staff in case of an evacuation. Once all personnel are collected in your allocated zones, make sure to do a head count. With the right technology, you can make sure that you can successfully and precisely keep track of every employee and visitor on your property. The employees in charge of supporting the evacuation can have a complete list of everyone on the premises thanks to a central visitor log.
Make a communication strategy.
Establish a person (such as the assistant fire warden/Managers/Employee etc.) whose main responsibility it is to contact the fire department and emergency responders, as well as to communicate information to important stakeholders like staff members, clients, and the media. Inspect your crisis communication plan to see if it also needs to include community outreach, suppliers, transportation partners, and government officials, as appropriate.
Make a thorough choice for your communication partner. If the main office is damaged by fire, this individual might need to work from a backup office to enable fast and accurate communication. In order to follow best practices, you should also have a fallback in case your crisis communication lead is unable to carry out their responsibilities.
Have Plan in place for Unique Work Situations.
Include customers, contractors, and temporary employees in your plan. Additionally, even though remote workers might not be immediately impacted by a fire, they still need to be informed about the situation at work and with their co-workers.
Make sure to account for any specific requirements, such as those of disabled employees or others who might require help from others to safely evacuate. It’s important to make arrangements for anyone who may be temporarily using crutches or a wheelchair, even if your organization doesn’t have any employees who are permanently impaired. These people can require additional assistance in all types of emergencies, not just fires. The number of people with disabilities who could need special assistance during an evacuation and their primary work location should be updated annually in your company’s emergency response plan.
Know your tools, and check them over.
Have you recently inspected the dusty workplace fire extinguishers? Be sure to regularly remind your staff where the fire extinguishers are in the office, how to check the expiry etc. Establish a routine for checking that all other emergency equipment, such as:
- Fire Alarm System
- Emergency lighting
- Fire Blankets
- fire exits
- ladders for egress etc.
These all information will be accurately placed in your Evacuation plan to avoid any gaps on where the firefighting tools or emergency tools are placed in the company.
Safekeeping of assets
Are there any valuable assets you could readily protect or evacuate? the answer is NOOO!. Important things or those that are too heavy to carry should be kept in a fireproof space or safe. Make the safety of your company's sensitive data an immediate priority if you don't have redundant storage for it.
Conclusion
An unorganized emergency response plan or fire evacuation plan could have disastrous consequences in emergency scenarios if there is a lack of information in your evacuation plan. Without the right procedures in place, carrying out your strategy could cause commotion, harm, damage to property, or worse. For that, a visitor management system is required for your business, for example, a highly informative emergency evacuation plan can assist or ensure people know what is right and respond to it immediately. This emergency exit plan can success efficient execution of processes as well as improve the safety of your staff and visitors.
It’s now time to create an effective evacuation plan strategy to carry out your business safely. This survey and design of your emergency evacuation plan will ensure that you are compliant with all the government rules and regulations.
If you’re interested in learning more about how to improve communication during emergencies like fires, get in touch with us.