Emergency lighting is crucial for any commercial building in the UK, providing essential illumination if primary lighting fails, ensuring a safe evacuation. UK legislation, notably the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, mandates emergency lighting with few exceptions. There are two main types of emergency lighting systems: maintained and non-maintained.

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Maintained vs. Non-Maintained Emergency Lighting

Both maintained and non-maintained emergency lighting systems aim to ensure safety during an emergency, but they function differently:

• Maintained Emergency Lighting: This system operates continuously, providing constant illumination as part of the regular lighting setup. It serves a dual purpose, offering both standard and emergency lighting. For example, an illuminated exit sign is a type of maintained emergency lighting.
• Non-Maintained Emergency Lighting: These lights remain off under normal conditions and activate only during a power failure or emergency. This system is generally more energy-efficient as it is inactive most of the time.

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Power Usage of Emergency Lighting

Maintained emergency lighting runs continuously, so it consumes more power. Non-maintained lighting only activates during an outage, using less energy, though its batteries still need a small trickle charge. Safety should guide the choice: use maintained fittings in public or unfamiliar areas such as shopping centres, and non-maintained in familiar spaces like offices.

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Book an Emergency Lighting Inspection.

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