how often should fire drills be carried out in a factory employing approx 600 workers?
Asked by ALLAN B
I work in a factory which employs 600 people,most of which do not speak english and do not know the fire drill as they have never been involved in one,the reason they have never practiced one is because the company have not practiced a full fire evacuation drill for about 3 years and the foreign people that work in the factory (400-450 ) have not been employed by the company for this amount of time.is the company breaking the law.

Best Answer:
Factories... Use Group F (F1 and F2), single story, with an occupant load of 500 or less is not even required to have a fire alarm much less fire drills. (ICC 907.2.4). I simplified that a little bit. So the real question is does this factory have all 600 employees working at the same time, or does it run shifts? If they keep the occupant load under 500, then no, no fire alarm and no drills. If they do have a fire alarm system, then it is required to be tested at least once a year (NFPA 72). However, there is nothing requiring a factory to actually have a drill, although they are required to conduct safety training so employees know what to do in the event of a fire. (OSHA)
15 Years as a fire alarm designer http://www.iccsafe.org http://www.nfpa.org http://www.osha.gov
Answered by todvango

You should have a fire alarm test once a week and an evacuation once every few months.
Answered by dadn33

two a year
Answered by internat y

Every half hour of every day. Can't be too careful.
Answered by Alias Smith & Jones

i think there should be at least 6 a year, i would bring that to the attention of health and safety, as you have noticed, could you live a consience, if there was a fire when you have just pointed this out
Answered by racheybaby

fire drill once a week full evacuation drill at least 4 times a year
Answered by GLYN D

No doubt if you were ever to have a fire resulting in fatalities someone would definately find themselves in court. Surely you have inspections from HSE and your Fire Service who would higlight the importance of fire precations and evacuation procedures. Regular fire test are essential to these people and remember that immigrants will not probably know what a fire alarm is. I suggest for around 600 people the more evacuations you have a month the better, i would personnaly aim for about two or three. I think somebody should investigate this quick!!
Answered by grimlock_grimlock

Any company employing more than 5 people must exercise a duty of care toward their employees. This would include a fire policy which everyone needs to be made aware of and fire wardens designated. The company I worked for previous used to test the alarm every Monday @ 0900 (no action) and carry out a fire drill on a monthly basis. In the event of a fire in your factory and loss of life I would suggest the Director responsible for safety and the Safety Officer would be in a difficult situation and are leaving themselves open to Corporate Manslaughter charges.
Answered by daddybear