Maintenance Contracts in Buildings-Why should we have them?

is there a law on the distance a car or wagon can park at the workplace with regards to fire safety

Ernest,

The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulation 1998 require that equipment provided for use at work is safe for use and maintained in a safe condition. There are also numerous references in specific health and safety legislation relating to the fact that equipment must be maintained in safe working order.

With regards heating systems, the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare)Regulations 1992 require employers to provide a reasonable working temperature. I would suggest you download the Heating and Ventilating Contractors' Association (HVCA) checklist for the inspection of heating systems:

http://www.hvca.org.uk/hvcapdf/ia/Technical/checklists/maintenanceintro.pdf

The HVCA also publishes several other inspection checklists for building services, which can be found on www.hvca.org.uk under the heading 'Inspection and Assessment'. You can also call the HVCA on 020 7313 4900.

With regards fire alarms, the Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997 make provision for the maintenance of frire safety devices. To be considered suitable, a fire alarm system must be designed, installed, commissioned, maintained and tested in accordance with the requirements BS 5839. If you have specific queries about maintenance of fire alarms, you could try the British Fire Protection Systems Association (BFPSA), 020 8549 5855, www.bfpsa.org.uk

Different building services have different maintenance requirements and standards, and I would suggest that your best source of information would usually be the supplier. Hope the information above helps point you in the right direction. Please don't hesitate to ask if you have any further questions.

Ciaron Dunne

Workplace Law

Legal requirement - may be not, but consider the consequences if something fails and you?re in the dock. Did you take reasonable precautions to maintain the safety of the installation? You can not abdicate your responsibility, but you can reduce your liability. By employing a technically competent company or individual to undertake a task (maintenance) you are sharing the liability, that is unless you know that they are not completing the work to the required standard (is it possible for them to complete the task to the required standard in the time allowed by the premium they charge? If it works out to be a ridiculously low hourly rate you are wasting money and could easily be considered as liable as you did not take reasonable steps to ensure competency). If you are an informed client (one that has access to the correct level of expertise) you could be still be held liable for the incompetency of others, even if you were paying the going rate.

You are probably aware that British Standards are not mandatory, but should you fail to copy with them you will have to justify your actions if the need arises. Therefore consider the requirements of the relevant British Standards. Emergency lighting, Fire alarms (life safety equipment, etc), Electrical installations. Consider such documents as L8 ? The Control of Legionella in Buildings, Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000, etc. Seek guidance from your insurers as they may stipulate what must be maintained or regularly inspected.

Why should we have maintenance contracts? What is the legal requirement with regards to the maintenance of heating systems, fire alarms and other sevices found in buildings. I just some quick reference to the various legislation governing these issues