Introduction to Fire Safety Management

15.30.3 Minimum requirements for safety signs 
and signals
Schedule 1 to the Regulations specifi es the minimum 
requirements covering colour, shapes and symbols to 
be used in safety signs as illustrated below:
Example safety signs
Type Example 
Meaning
Prohibition
No
sign
smoking
Warning
Flammable
sign
material
Example use of safety signs
Signifi cant
Safety sign 
Example
risk
Flammable
Prohibition
materials
sign– no 
catching
smoking
fi re
Contact
Warning
with live
sign –
electrical
danger
systems or
electricity
equipment
Outbreak
Acoustic
of fi re 
signal – 
fi re alarm

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Introduction to Fire Safety Management
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➤
Provide information on the identifi cation or location 
of fi re fi ghting equipment
➤
Give warnings in case of fi re.
Note:
Where employers use fi re safety signs that com-
ply with BS 5499, or other safety signs that comply with 
BS 5378, the regulations do not require any changes to 
those signs.
15.31
The Supply of Machinery (Safety) 
Regulations 1992 (SI 3073)
These regulations require that no person should supply 
machinery unless:
➤
It satisfi 
es relevant essential health and safety 
requirements
➤
It has been subject to the appropriate conformity 
assessment or a declaration of incorporation has 
been issued
➤
A declaration of conformity has been issued (unless 
a declaration of incorporation has been issued)
➤
It carries CE marking and other information (unless 
a declaration of incorporation has been issued)
➤
It is in fact safe.
The manufacturer of the machinery must also carry out 
necessary research or tests on components, fi ttings or 
the whole machine to determine whether it is capable of 
being erected and put into use safely.
In most cases (other than machinery listed in 
Schedule 4 of the regulations), the manufacturer must 
also draw up a technical fi le which comprises:
➤
An overall drawing of the machinery and the control 
circuits
➤
Detailed drawings (including calculation notes, test 
results and similar data) to check conformity with 
the essential health and safety requirements
➤
A list of the following which were used when the 
machinery was designed:
➤
The essential health and safety requirements
➤
Transposed harmonised standards
➤
Standards
➤
Other technical specifi cations
➤
A description of methods to eliminate hazards pre-
sented by the machinery
➤
Any technical report or certifi cate obtained from a 
competent body
➤
The technical report and results of tests carried out 
(where the manufacturer declares conformity with a 
transposed harmonised standard)
➤
A copy of the machinery instructions.
Mandatory
General
sign
mandatory 
sign 
usually 
accompanied 
by 
another 
sign or text, 
e.g. Fire Door 
Keep 
Shut
Fire safety
First aid sign
and fi rst 
aid signs
Acoustic signs need to be set at a considerably higher 
level than the ambient noise (e.g. 10 dB above) although 
this must not be excessive or painful. They must also be 
easily recognisable.