FOCUS LIGHTING
In the current climate, facilities
managers are facing constant
changes to how buildings are used
and occupied, particularly in the
commercial o ice, hospitality, retail
and public sectors – and critical
sectors such as data centres and
healthcare. This is why making sure
emergency lighting is e ective has
never been more important.
Having remote,
digital control of emergency
lighting can not only save time and up to
30 per cent on running costs but it can
also provide real-time performance data
to help ensure regulatory obligations are
met and safety is maintained.
With emergency lighting being
a mandatory requirement in any
industrial, commercial or public sector
building that uses artificial lighting,
ensuring it is both managed e ectively
and regularly monitored and tested
are major obligations for facilities or
buildings managers, particularly where
they are managing multiple sites.
As a result, having clear and direct
visibility of robust data on the
performance and maintenance of
emergency lighting is critical and this is
where digitalisation comes into its own.
TESTING, TESTING
Owners, facilities or building managers
are legally responsible and accountable
40 OCTOBER 2020
for their emergency lighting installation.
Both legislation and standardisation
require emergency lighting to be tested
in accordance with local standards,
which provide an explanation of
inspection, maintenance and logbook
records.
All emergency lighting installations
require, just like other building and
home automation solutions such as fire
alarms or heating ventilation and air
conditioning (HVAC) systems - regular
maintenance. This applies to maintained
or non-maintained emergency lighting,
whether it is lit continuously or not.
In practice, ongoing inspection,
maintenance and testing of emergency
lighting is a time-consuming process
that must be carried out regularly
during every year that the installation
is in place.
However, these costs can be
mitigated with a smart centralised
digital system, which can be managed
remotely via an app.
SAVING TIME AND MONEY
Inspecting emergency lighting
luminaires can be a major task.
Luminaires need to be inspected on site,
piece by piece, to check that the PCB,
light source and battery are working.
With the advent of digitalisation, this can
now be done much more e ectively with
an app-based monitoring system, which
o ers users multiple benefits.
Using a smart system allows facilities
managers to concentrate on what
matters - letting the emergency lighting
luminaire system manage itself and
reduce the amount of time monitoring it.
Testing, inspection and maintenance
planning can also be scheduled to
ensure all emergency luminaires are
working properly. In addition, functional
and duration tests can easily be
programed, and faults automatically
detected and reported directly to a
mobile device providing anytime,
anyplace, anywhere notification.
Multiple users can also access the data
held on the emergency lighting system,
which can be emailed, shared and stored
to provide a permanent record of the
health of the system.
This will save a considerable amount of
money on maintenance time, enabling
users to focus on resolving problems as
and when they happen, leading to up to
30 per cent savings on annual costs.
A digital solution gives managers 24/7
control of building safety systems and
improves the ability of occupants to
respond to emergencies and maintain
health and safety.
To further enhance building safety, a
smart system can send maintenance
alerts in the app, allowing faulty
components to be replaced before a
malfunction occurs.
All of this is designed to optimise the
safety of visitors and building users. As a
result, there is no need for unnecessary
equipment handling, complicated
paperwork, or travel for replacement
parts. Documents can also be used to
evidence the safety of the system to
building or insurance companies and
serve as a permanent cloud-based
record of maintenance and testing.
USING THE CLOUD FOR
PEACE OF MIND
For FMs that are responsible for
managing single or multiple sites –
potentially across several geographical
locations – a smart emergency lighting
system allows them to monitor any
building installation from anywhere in
the world, at any time, so that resources
can be concentrated where they are
needed most.
Through the use of an app, selfcontained
emergency luminaires can be
easily installed and programmed into a
building in a fast and intuitive way. The
system also provides a digital overview
via the cloud, giving instant information
to assist resource planning and enhance
building safety, which can be managed
from any smart handheld device.
This allows users to control their
emergency lighting system, while
keeping a record of all activity safely
in the cloud, giving complete peace of
mind on the safety of the installation
and allowing the potential for connected
emergency lighting solutions in the
future.
From a geographical perspective,
the fact that all emergency luminaire
data is stored in the cloud allows for a
24/7 overview of all smart monitored
buildings via Google maps. To give
real-time status and provide a clear
and precise location of the emergency
lighting luminaire, building maps can
be uploaded and overlaid onto Google
maps. Users can also upload floorplans
directly into the app, so that they can
view all emergency luminaires on the
floor or select one luminaire and locate
its precise location in the building.
CONCLUSION
E ective emergency lighting is key
to ensure that buildings comply with
standards and Government regulations.
It is also essential to ensure the safety of
its occupants.
Harnessing the power of digitalisation
gives building owners and facilities
managers total control over their
luminaires, to not only reduce operating
and maintenance costs by up to 30 per
cent, but, more importantly, to make
sure that buildings are as safe as they
can be.
With digital solutions now providing
anytime anywhere visibility on how
their emergency lighting is performing,
we have the tools to not only reduce
the administrative and time burden of
meeting regulatory obligations, but to
operate remotely and quickly respond to
any issues.
This connected approach, providing
a 24-hour view of the building from
anywhere in the world, puts control
firmly back in the hands of the operator,
driving both cost and energy savings
and putting safety firmly at the top of the
agenda.
Light the way
Thorsten Mueller, Head of Global Product Group Building and
Home Automation Solutions explains why the digitalisation of
emergency lighting is vital