LED Light Emergency Light Installations: Help and Advice
LED emergency lighting explained
When the lights go out – at work or at, say, the cinema or hospital – LED emergency lighting is the vital backup system that takes over and maintains power to all automatic lighting systems. Such systems ensure that people have a safe, well-lit exit along elected routes when needed. Also known as ‘egress lighting’, LED emergency lighting systems have to be fitted and maintained to the standard set down in BSB regulations for Emergency Lighting.
Where is LED emergency lighting used?
Modern LED emergency lighting is installed in most commercial and multiple occupancy residential buildings across the country. Hotels, care homes, train stations and hospitals are all required to have emergency backup lighting systems installed to the BSB 5266: Emergency Lighting standard. Whether it’s a commercial or residential building, the necessity for safe egress is the same.
Options for emergency LED light installation
Each emergency lighting installation is unique. Each design is tailored to a particular building’s or organisation’s emergency lighting demands. Much depends on the type of building and what safety systems are planned, or already in place. Emergency lighting equipment is often wired into existing mains lighting provision, saving time and money.
Larger areas may benefit from high-lumen emergency floodlighting. However, areas like corridors used for egress might be better served by smaller lights.
How does LED light emergency lighting work?
Today, the technology behind LEDs, or light-emitting diodes, is vital when mains power isn’t an option. It’s perhaps most valuable when part of emergency lighting configurations. Modern LED light emergency lights can be single or multiple heads of incandescent bulbs, or clusters of high-intensity LEDs. The units contain a device that helps focus and concentrate the light that they produce. Units can rotate, so that light can be directed where most effective.
Many modern installations use a low voltage between 6 and 12 volts, requiring smaller batteries and reducing circuit loads where emergency lights are connected. A small transformer within the lighting fixture automatically lowers the voltage from mains power to the voltage needed by the lights when providing the required lumen power for safe egress.
In existing buildings, battery ballasts can be installed that utilise lighting fixtures already in place. Built-in sensors ensure that power automatically switches from mains to emergency lighting when needed. This cost-saving method means that no extra wiring is necessary, yet still meets BSB regulations for mains and emergency lighting.
As technology has moved on, the whole concept behind emergency lighting provision has evolved and the options are much more sophisticated than previously; today emergency LED lights are often incorporated into building architecture at the planning stage, making systems comparably more effective, energy-saving and manageable.
Getting the best advice and services
So, whether you’re talking about a public or commercial building, or ensuring the safety and security of your home, getting the right professional help when planning and implementing your emergency lighting installation is vital.
When selecting a contractor, look for badges of professionalism, like a City & Guilds in Electrical Contracting, or the ‘Approved Contractor’ badge awarded by industry training and regulation authority, the National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting (NICEIC).
Surrey Tech Services’ team of highly trained and experienced professional electrical contractors offers all that, and more. These experts have carried out numerous successful installations, both commercial and residential. Also skilled in fire alarms installation and fire detector installation, the team have provided emergency LED light installations for many satisfied clients.
Get honest, professional advice about LED emergency light installations by calling the Surrey Tech Services team today.
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