Fire safety tips...how not to burn down the office

Office fires are a real thing. According to the National Fire Prevention Association (NFPA) over 14,500 fires occur in office buildings each year. That's significant. Not only are fires dangerous, but the damage they can cause can be significant. While your commercial cleaning company may be a safety net in fire prevention by catching and eliminating some risks, it is ultimately up to your employees to take ownership and follow fire safety. Developing clear guidelines for your employees, training and reinforcement of those guidelines will greatly reduce the risks of office fires from happening.

Our teams observe lots of fire safe no-no's. We've compiled the three most common potential risks that we see on a regular basis. We've also included some tips on how to prevent these issues from occurring in your office. If your employees adopt three simple practices, you'll be able to reduce your fire risk.

Leaving The Coffee Pot Turned On

It's never a good idea to leave a coffee pot plugged in over night. The wiring can easily overheat causing a fire. While we totally advocate the consumption of coffee throughout the day, it's also a good idea to turn the coffee pot off before leaving for the day. Get your team on board by:

• Appointing a team member to turn the coffee pot off at a certain time. 
• Asking your employees to turn off the coffee pot off after making each pot of coffee. 
• Use coffee makers that automatically turn off when not in use.​

Leaving on Space Heaters

Offices can feel like the arctic circle and sometimes a sweater just isn't enough. To keep warm, your employees will naturally bring in mini space heaters to keep warm. While the use of space heaters pose many other risks (and probably isn't making your IT team happy.), fires are at the top at the list. To reduce the risk associated by these appliances:

• Ban space heaters from your facility. (But keep in mind employees will still sneak them in anyway.)
• If you ban space heaters do random sweeps of work spaces to check for their presence and confiscate any that are found.
• Require that employees use space heaters with an auto-off and tumble-off features. Heaters with these features will turn off automatically after being left on for a certain time or if knocked over.
• Unplug all space heaters at the end of the day or when not in use. 

Leaving the Stove or Toaster Oven On

It's nice to provide these amenities for employees use in break rooms. It's very convenient to reheat lunch of cook up something for the office pot luck. These same appliances when left on over night or for extended periods of time become a safety risk. To stay safe and protect your property:

• Use signage to remind employees to turn off stoves and ovens.
• Assign an employee to inspect the break room at the end of the day to ensure these appliances are turned off and/or unplugged.
• Use your company disciplinary policy to manage employees that frequently leave on appliance or restrict their usage. 

The most effective way to prevent an office fire from happening is being vigilant and educating employees on the risks. Also setting clear boundaries on the use of appliance and using wisdom in deciding which to restrict will also be of great benefit. These three suggestions are a good place to start building a solid fire prevention plan for your commercial office space.