World Day for Safety and Health at Work is celebrated every April 28, a key date that serves as a reminder of the importance of creating safe and healthy work environments.
On the occasion of this day, we at Komtes Group want to highlight the dimension of this potential problem that is often underestimated, but which is absolutely essential within any prevention strategy: fire protection.
Not just a standard: fire as an occupational hazard
Although many associate it exclusively with major disasters, fire is one of the most present and lethal risks in industrial, logistics and tertiary environments. From a spark in an electrical panel to a gas leak in a technical environment, the risk of fire is latent in many more situations than we imagine. In addition, in today's offices, according to Honor in 2024, each employee uses an average of 3 electronic devices, another potential source of danger.
Therefore, fire prevention must be an integral part of any Occupational Risk Prevention Plan (ORP). It is not just a matter of complying with regulations, but of protecting what is most valuable: people.
How can you integrate fire prevention into your company's ORP?
At Komtes Group, we have been developing fire detection, control and extinguishing solutions for more than 20 years. Based on our experience, here are some key principles to effectively integrate fire protection within a PRL system:
- Fire-specific risk assessment: Include in the occupational risk assessment an exhaustive analysis of the factors that could generate or aggravate a fire: combustible materials, ignition sources, distribution of spaces, etc. In addition, each space and each type of risk requires a specific extinguishing solution. It is not enough to apply a standard ratio of extinguishers per square meter: systems adapted to the use of the space and possible emergency scenarios must be considered.
- Active and passive protection systems: Install early detection equipment (such as smoke or heat sensors), automatic extinguishing systems, manual extinguishers, fire barriers, luminous emergency signage and accessible evacuation exits. In other words, include all possible mechanisms for the earliest possible fire detection.
- Continuous personnel training: Knowledge saves lives. In our understanding of firefighting education, all workers should receive periodic training on the use of fire extinguishers, evacuation protocols, and what to do in case of fire.
- Maintenance and periodic reviews: Periodic checks by specialized and certified personnel ensure that each component of the system will work when needed. Fire equipment that has no guarantee of working if the situation requires it is useless.
- Drills and preventive culture: Safety education is part of the organizational culture. Conducting regular drills, assigning people responsible for evacuation and encouraging the reporting of potential hazards helps to create a safer and more proactive environment.
A commitment that transcends our internal use.
At Komtes Group, we understand security as a value that begins at home and is projected to the world. That is why we work every day not only to protect infrastructures, but also to accompany companies, institutions and professionals on their way to a solid and effective preventive culture. To this end, our team of professionals advises hundreds of companies every year to ensure that their workspaces are safe in the event of a possible incident and, more importantly, with the most appropriate technology for this purpose.
This April 28, we want to emphasize a key idea: Fire prevention is not an add-on, it is a strategic necessity in occupational safety.
To work safer, is to work with confidence. #AlwaysProtected