Every year, around 700 school fires occur in the UK. This figure only takes into account school fires that were attended by the fire brigade; in reality, this figure is probably much higher. London Fire Brigade stated in 2018 that school fires in London had increased by 34% in just one year.
Having the ability to react swiftly in the event of a fire can reduce collateral damage and save lives as well as minimising the impact on the local community. It is, therefore, crucial that you have the right equipment at hand and that staff have adequate training. In 2010 the FIA (Fire Industry Association) found that 88% of fires were successfully extinguished with a fire extinguisher.
Many schools, colleges, and universities have reduced budgets and are now trying to find cheaper ways to meet all their legal duties under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety 2005) Order, without compromising on safety. The P50 service-free fire extinguisher is one way that can help you reduce costs and meet your legislative requirements.
Improve your extinguisher provision and save costs
The range of P50 service-free extinguishers can not only offer you a dramatic reduction in the cost of your extinguisher provision they can also provide you with much better coverage across your site.
Manufactured from an aramid fibre similar to Kevlar, the material bullet-proof vests are made from, a P50 extinguisher is lighter than a traditional extinguisher and will not corrode. These extinguishers are manufactured to BS EN3, the British standard for fire 
extinguishers. They do not require an annual service by an external extinguisher technician and don’t need refilling after five years. All that is needed is a simple annual visual inspection that can be completed by your handyman or site manager, significantly reducing your costs. You will no longer have to cope with the disruption of escorting an external technician around your premises.
As well as saving money by eliminating the need for an external extinguisher technician to carry out an annual inspection, the P50 can offer you further cost savings. This is achieved through the manufacturer’s 10-year warranty, which after refurbishment can be extended for a further ten years, giving you an extinguisher with a 20-year service life!
When installing P50 service-free extinguishers, it is often possible to reduce the number of extinguishers that you require, as, for example, the P50 foam extinguisher has a much higher rating than a traditional foam extinguisher (P50 foam rating: 13A 183B, traditional foam rating: 13A 113B). In addition to this, a P50 foam extinguisher can be used on live electrical equipment of up to 1000 V, meaning that you don’t need to install any additional CO2 extinguishers to tackle any electrical equipment fire hazards. This is a great benefit. With only one extinguisher covering all your fire hazards, your staff can be confident that they are using the correct extinguisher for all types of fires that may face them.
Save time as well as money
With traditional extinguishers, you will need to ensure that the technician attending your premises has the correct DBS check. If the technician does not have an enhanced DBS, you will have to arrange for a staff member to accompany them around your site to service each extinguisher. This can put a strain on staffing resources and is not cost-effective. The annual visual check for a P50 extinguisher is instead completed by one of your staff, meaning you do not need to worry about these issues. Your staff member can work independently, already having their DBS clearance as part of their role with you.
Case study
An education complex and primary school in Darlington made the switch to P50 service-free extinguishers. The educational complex now saves around £1,500 per year. That equates to a staggering £15,000 over the 10-year life span of the P50 extinguishers! This complex had a total of 65 extinguishers on site.
This educational complex also has a swimming pool and some outside locations that they needed covering. The non-corrosive P50 were ideal for these areas as well.
Reduce your carbon footprint
We are all being asked to consider ways that we can contribute to reducing our carbon footprint, and the education sector is no different. The P50 reduces CO2 emissions, as no engineers have to travel to site and the P50 extinguisher also halves chemical usage, as the contents have to be exchanged only after 10 years instead of the normal 5 years.
Phase-in P50 extinguishers
To ensure that you are not replacing existing extinguishers that still have service life left, we can offer you a phase-in approach to their replacement. You only replace those extinguishers that are at the end of their service life.
For further information about the P50, please call Safelincs 0800 612 7954
http://www.safelincs.co.uk/p50/
service@safelincs.co.uk
