Fire Equipment Training

Employers, main contractors, self-employed persons and persons in control of a workplace are required in accordance with Regulation 3.10 to:
• develop an evacuation procedure for fire or other emergencies at the workplace;
• display the evacuation procedure and a diagram, showing the exits and the position in relation to the exits, clearly and prominently at the workplace, where practicable;
• practice the evacuation procedure at reasonable intervals, where practicable; and
• train persons who would be required to help control or extinguish a fire and provide appropriate protective clothing and equipment to these persons.

AS 1851 (stands for Australian Standards 1851) is a set of rules and regulations that ensure building owners are compliant in meeting the safety standards imposed on fire protection systems. These rules and regulations help to ensure all state and Work Health & Safety rules are met so the building owner can be sure they are in compliance with all applicable laws.

Employers have a duty of care to ensure people are trained to safely operate a fire extinguisher and so employees know what type of extinguisher should be used for different types of fires.

To ensure that fire extinguishers meet compliance, it is essential to have them serviced regularly. The Standard AS1851 requires all fire extinguishers to be tested and tagged at six monthly intervals, with replacement after 3-5 years. Therefore it is essential that servicing is left to trained service technicians who know testing and tagging requirements and service requirements.

Generally speaking, if you have one or more employees or volunteers working in your business, you have a legal duty as an employer to provide fire safety training. So, this means that everyone on your team should take a fire safety training course.