Normal power and emergency power—both are essential!

For some reason or other (and all-too-often, the rationales are lost in the mists of time), the folks responsible for the initial design and installations of emergency power supply systems are not as conversant with the standards-based requirements as one might expect/hope for. And it seems that there has been a spike in findings related to having code compliant remote stops for emergency generators. So, in the interest of keeping folks informed, I am (once again) glomming on to other folks’ content; in this case, the Life Safety News column on LinkedIn penned by Dale Lyman, senior fire protection consultant at Telgian Engineering.

After reading this column, at your next lunch break, take a walk out and see what’s what with your remote stop button—it might save you some aggravation next survey.

While we’re on the subject of emergency power supply systems, it’s never a bad idea to review the care and feeding of these beasties—they’re the only thing standing between a flicker of the lights and complete darkness (yes, that’s a little hyperbolic, but not by much). The good folks at the Motor and Generator Institute (per usual) have some excellent and compelling information on the inspection, testing, and maintenance of these most critical pieces of our utility systems infrastructure. I think you’ll find this article and this article useful and worth sharing with the folks in your organization responsible for keeping things running smoothly.

About the Author: Steve MacArthur is a safety consultant with The Chartis Group. He brings more than 30 years of healthcare management and consulting experience to his work with hospitals, physician offices, and ambulatory care facilities across the country. He is the author of HCPro's Hospital Safety Director's Handbook and is an advisory board member for Accreditation and Quality Compliance Center. Contact Steve at stevemacsafetyspace@gmail.com.