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Local Battery Emergency Lighting Suitability

me1899
Hi All, hope all well


Got a query on em lighting.


Got a 16m high new build storage racking warehouse where I am proposing central battery emergency lighting.


2 units, fire rated feeds to busbars (the busbar system and associated plug in lights being certified as acceptable to use internal conductors for the emergency feeds as opposed to separate cabling to every luminaire).


Someone is now suggesting to go local batteries - 124 of them which I think is bonkers mounted at 16.5m.


Is there a reg to throw back at them in addition to the obvious comments on maintenance, effect of elevated ambient temperature up there (lots of rooflights present)?



  • 0
    There must be a concern,

    if there is a counter proposal that the proposer is attempting to satisfy.

    Can you not simply address the concern.... ?


    even if that is simply upfront costs v long term cost of ownership.

    or that they want the alternate lamps fed from different feeds (should one fail be it fire or other event)


  • 0
    It's purely cost mate, we are working for the builder who is providing the warehouse for the tenant - not quite shell as they will be installing the racking aisles.


    They have privately admitted that their costs are wrong and are starting to panic.


    Another one of their bright cost saving (rejected) ideas was asking to omit containment that was shown at the perimeter and sling cables through the structure of the warehouse - all the way round the 100m x 140m building.
  • 0
    Where I am at the moment there are some emergency lights that run off the solar PV storage batteries, but there is not a formal requirement for emergency lighting and how you could make that meet formal requirements is beyond me.


    Andy B.
  • 0
    If long term costs come back on them... their call I guess.

    else,

    if tenant pays maint' costs...

    the owner should offer lower cost of ownership/potential disruption costs for a supplement to the quote.


  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    Could you credibly get a self contained battery unit system to meet the illuminance requirements at 16m in the air, given that the smoke will tend to collect at the top and fill downwards - there certainly wouldn't be test data at that height for sure, as you are already beyond the height of point source fire detection anyway.


    It would be far easier to light from the perimeter (glare being taken into account) and a decent IP rating to avoid a good drenching from the sprinklers


    Regards


    OMS
  • 0
    Hi OMS


    The warehouse is just chock a block with racking. They basically almost reach the roof. About 30 aisles 70m long and 1.75 wide (for those vna type forktrucks) so perimeter would be difficult I think. 


    Lux targets are 1 lux because of being narrow aisles and multiple defined escape routes. 


    Funnily enough there are no sprinklers, as the fire engineer has justified omission in their report. 


    In fact he said manual call points were all that was required initially. 


    ​We are proposing Vesda though. 


  • 0
    I agree, 124 batteries seems bonkers.


    Any chance of a cheaper cabling system than busbar? Is MICC still used? Would fire rated cable tucked into the web of the roof beams be secure?


    If I remember correctly, Em lighting is required to come on in the event of failure of the local circuit not just for an overall supply failure but this can still be arranged with a couple of central batteries and one NC contactor for each lighting circuit.
  • 0
    Well the busbar is actually reasonable cost wise - it is one of those Zumtobel Tecton jobbies that is quick as anything to install and the fittings just clip on.


    The manufacturer's quote had 32 quid for a 4 metre run - amount of cable to run to each emergency fitting would have been over 2,000m without the busbar.


    And the internal conductors can be used as the emergency feeds so only  cabling to the ends of the busbars - saves a lot of material.


    The central battery units are coming out about 8k for 2 of them.




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