Special Inspection following the Appointment of a new Servicing Organisation

1. When a new servicing company takes over the servicing arrangements for an existing alarm, a special inspection should be carried out, all existing records should be studied, to obtain sufficient information so that a documented system is effective for servicing of the alarm.
2. Major areas of non-compliance with BS5839 should be documented and identified to the responsible person. Classification of a non-compliance as major is subjective, but the following non-compliances should be regarded as major:

   Non-compliances need to be rectified. This is a matter for the user to determine, based on the advice of the alarm company, the enforcing authorities, the insurer and any third party advisers engaged by the user.

• An inadequate number of call points.
• Inadequate provision of fire detection for the Category of system that the system was designed to meet.
• Sound levels that fail to meet dB levels.
• Standby power supplies that fail to meet the required backup.

NB Systems that incorporate no standby supply breach the Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations 1996 [2].

• Cables with fire resistance that fails to comply.
• Monitoring of circuits that do not have correct zone wiring.
• Connections that do not comply with electrical safety recommendations.
• Exposure to, or experience of, false alarms, such as to preclude compliance with section three of part 1 2002.

3. If no logbook is available for enabling compliance with the standard, a suitable logbook should be provided by the servicing Company.

Recommendations for arrangements for repair of faults or damage

1. When a fire alarm maintenance company carries out maintenance, there must be an agreement      for emergency call out. Any variation from the recommendations of this Part of BS 5839 in respect of maintenance arrangements should be recorded in the system logbook.
2. The name and telephone number of the maintenance company should be prominently displayed at the main control and indicating equipment.
3. The user must record all faults or damage in the system logbook, and should arrange for repair to be carried out as soon as possible.

Modifications to the system

This can arise for a number of reasons.  For example:

1. Extension of the alarm due to a risk assessment or a new extension.
2. Change of detector type as a result of changes in occupancy or the occurrence of false alarms.
3. Re-siting or increase in the number of detectors to take account of changes in the layout of the building.
4. Reconfiguration of the system (in hardware, software or both) to change the cause and effect logic in order to facilitate filtering of false alarms. Since modification of a system effectively involves an element of re-design, responsibility for modification of a system should rest with a person who has a sufficient degree of design competence. Even simple modifications can give rise to the need for significant re-testing of the system. This isparticularly the case in software- controlled systems. For example, a software change to facilitate a different cause and effect for a single automatic fire detector can result in the introduction of software errors that affect the operation of entirely non-related parts of the system.
5. It is possible, in some systems, for modification of the system configuration to be carried out remotely, via a modem. Great care should be taken, regardless of whether modifications are undertaken on site or remotely, to ensure that:
   • That the system continues to comply in full with Part of BS 5839, or that existing non-compliances are not made more non-compliant; if new variations are introduced, it should be ensured that a new certificate, reflecting the variation, is issued.
   • Suitable tests are carried out at the protected premises to confirm that, after modification, the system operates as intended and that errors have not resulted in changes to other parts of the system.
   • The “as fitted” drawings and other records are updated as appropriate.
   • Details of the modification are documented and provided to the responsible person.

In many cases, although the modifications may be carried out remotely by the maintenance organization, it will be appropriate for a competent person from the maintenance organization to visit the premises before the modification is carried out, to confirm the validity of the modification and consider its effect on compliance with this Part of BS 5839. It may also be necessary to visit the premises to undertake certain tests immediately after the modification has been carried out.

Recommendations applicable to all modification work

The following recommendations are applicable to all modification work, regardless of whether it is carried out on site or remotely:

1. Responsibility for modification of a fire alarm system should rest, ultimately, with a person who is competent in at least the basic principles of fire alarm system design and is conversant with BS 5839.
2. The responsible person should be aware of, and agree to, any modifications proposed for the system. Where appropriate, modifications should also be subject to the agreement of the enforcing authorities and/or insurers.
3. All components, circuits, system operations and site-specific software functions known to be affected by the modifications should be tested for correct operation following the modifications.
4. In addition to the tests recommended, the following tests should be carried out to ensure that there is no adverse effect on the overall system:
   • If one or more devices have been added or removed from a circuit, at least one other device on the same circuit should be tested.
   • If the control equipment has been modified, at least one device on every circuit should be tested.
   • If any additional load has been placed on the system, tests should be carried out to prove that the rating of the power supply unit and the capacity of the standby batteries remain adequate.
   • If software has been modified, further random testing of other parts of the system should be carried out to ensure that seemingly unrelated parts of the system have not been adversely affected.
   • On completion of the modifications, all “as fitted” drawings and other relevant system records should be updated as appropriate.
   • When commissioning of the work and completion of the tests, a modification certificate must be issued, confirming that the work has been carried out in accordance with the recommendations of this Part of BS 5839-1, or identifying any variations.

Action to address an unacceptable rate of false alarms

• An investigation to determine the reason for the unacceptable rate of false alarms should be carried out and modifications made to the system.
• Following such modifications, the system should continue to comply with BS 5839-1.

Recommendations for inspection and test of the system following any fire

1. As soon as possible after any fire:
2. Every manual call point, automatic fire detector and fire alarm device that may have been affected by the fire should be inspected and tested.
3. A visual examination and suitable tests should be carried out on any other part of the system that lies within the fire area and that might have been damaged by the fire (e.g. power supplies, control equipment and cable). Where there is evidence of damage, suitable action should be taken.
4. Circuits external to the control and indicating equipment that could have been affected by the fire should be tested for correct operation.
5. On completion of the work, any defects found should be recorded in the system logbook, and the responsible person appointed by the user should be notified accordingly.

This document is an abridged version of BS 5839 pt1 2002 and should be used for guidance purposes only and is not a substitute for reading the standard, which should be purchased from British Standards.

User Daily and Weekly Inspections

Fire Alarm Inspection and Servicing

Six Monthly Inspection Fire Alarm System Test

Annual Inspection and System Test