Emergency Lighting: Centralized Management of Self-Testing
Fluorescent Ballasts
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BY ROB SUMNER
Emergency lighting plays a critical – and mandatory – role in
life safety programs. Just like fire extinguishers and smoke
detectors, it is required in commercial, industrial and
institutional environments and governed by local, state and
national codes.
While emergency lighting is not optional, facility managers,
building designers, specifiers and others do have options when
it comes to selecting the emergency lighting equipment best
suited to meet facility needs. Today’s emergency lighting
offers convenient testing features, money savings, energy
efficiency and multi-task-ing product functionality.
Self-Testing and Remote Control Equipment
Testing emergency lighting equipment is a crucial activity.
Because emergency lighting equipment is used only on an
emergency – and therefore irregular – basis, regular testing is
important to ensure that equipment is functioning properly at
all times. An interest in occupant welfare is foremost. However,
liability is also an issue, as is the compulsory nature of
testing.
The NFPA Life Safety Code, a guiding codebook for life safety
practices, requires that emergency lighting equipment be tested
for 30 seconds every 30 days and for 90 minutes annually (see
NFPA 101 Life Safety Code for detailed information). Despite
testing requirements and common-sense reasons to test and
maintain equipment, testing does not always get done as it
should. Time and cost are most often cited in compliance
failure. Self-testing and remote control testing unit equipment
go a long way toward nullifying time and money as reasons not
to test in accordance with code.
Self-Diagnostic Fluorescent Emergency Ballasts
Emergency lighting may be provided by various means. One of the
most common emergency lighting sources is the fluorescent
emergency ballast (FEB), a backup battery supply for fluorescent
fixtures. Self-testing/self-diagnostic FEBs not only test in
accordance with code (30 seconds and 90 minutes), they are
designed to monitor their charging current and battery voltage
and alert maintenance personnel to any problems that arise,
generally via a flashing status light indicator and audible
alarm.
The advantages of self-testing/self-di-agnostic FEBs are clear:
they automatically conduct required testing and provide savings
in time, labor and related labor costs. This type of emergency
lighting equipment is especially advantageous in facilities with
a large number of emergency ballasts to be tested or with
emergency lighting units in difficult-to-access or high-traffic
locations.
Centralized Management Systems
A newcomer to the emergency lighting industry and a step up from
self-testing/self-diagnostic emergency ballasts is a combination
of software and hardware that makes it possible for users to
manage a building’s emergency lighting system from a centralized
PC. Centralized management systems automate and integrate
monitoring and testing of all emergency ballasts within a
network. They are designed to schedule emergency ballast tests,
record test results for review by the authorities having
jurisdiction, provide reports on demand and alert the system
administrator or maintenance personnel to any problems that
occur within the network.
Centralized management systems permit users to direct their
emergency lighting program with just a few key strokes. In
short, centralization simplifies the operation, testing and
overall management of emergency lighting systems, and, as with
self-testing/self-diagnostic systems, centralized systems
provide savings in time, labor and labor costs.
Remote Control Testing
While not offering quite as much convenience as
self-testing/self-diagnostic versions, remote-control testing of
fluorescent emergency ballasts permits emergency lighting to
be tested at ground level and on demand. The remote control
testing technology eliminates the need to use ladders or other
extension devices to manually test emergency operation. This
improvement reduces the time, cost, difficulty and labor that
would otherwise be involved and increases the likelihood that fixtures
will be tested in accordance with code.
As with self-testing and centralized management systems, remote
control testing systems are especially useful in facilities
with a large number of emergency ballasts or with fixtures that
are difficult-to-access because of placement or heavy traffic
volume.
Testing for Exit Signs and Wall Packs
Remote control testing for exit signs and emergency lighting
wall packs is a feature that may be built into the original
equipment or that may be added to existing units. Retrofitting
units for remote control testing is a new idea, and an add-on
product allowing such testing was introduced in late 2005.
Whether the feature is built-in or retrofit, the ability to test
equipment from the ground and on demand is a significant
improvement over manual testing. As with remote control testing
for FEBs, it reduces the time, cost, difficulty and labor
involved, and increases the likelihood that testing will be
done as required.
Demanding Lighting Applications
Emergency lighting applications may involve more than one
product feature specification. That is, the facility manager or
specifier may desire an emergency ballast that is not only
low-profile but also self-testing. He or she may further want an
FEB with universal input capabilities and high lumen output. In
such a case, a multi-feature FEB is required. A multi-feature
FEB eliminates the need to settle for one feature or another. In
addition, because a multi-feature product fulfills a range of
needs, stocking product is simplified. That is, the
multi-feature FEB may be used in an application requiring a
multi-feature product and it may be used in an application
where, for example, only a low-profile or universal input product
is needed.
Generator Switching Devices
Devices that work with generators or central inverter systems to
power emergency lighting without a night lighting component
offer solid financial and resource conservation benefits. These
devices, which transfer or switch fixtures to a backup power
source (a generator or central inverter system) when normal
power fails, make it possible to provide reliable emergency
lighting on standard circuitry, as opposed to night lighting
circuitry.
With night lighting circuitry, fixtures remain switched “on”
24/7 in order to ensure emergency lighting.
On standard circuitry in conjunction with a generator transfer
or switching device, emergency fixtures do not need to be
switched “on” in order to provide emergency lighting when such
lighting is needed. Because fixtures do not need to remain on,
thousands of energy hours can be saved each year in emergency
lighting.
HID Backup Ballasts
HID backup ballasts help eliminate arc loss in metal halide
lighting systems. Metal halides are found in grocery stores,
warehouses, sports facilities, convention centers and other such
locations. Their high lumen output and long service life make
them a good choice for many applications. However, metal halides
are extremely sensitive to even very minor, very brief AC power
interruptions. With little provocation, HID lamp arcs will be
extinguished. It can take up to 15 minutes for an HID metal
halide to cool and restrike. HID backup ballasts interrupt this
cycle by sensing a power disturbance and quickly responding
before the arc is lost.
The backup ballasts “catch” and support the lamp arc for a set
period of time, typically a couple of minutes. A minute or two
is usually enough time for a minor power disturbance to pass or
for a backup generator to begin providing power to the lamp. By
catching and maintaining the arc, backup ballasts prevent light
loss and the need for restrike. Backup ballasts are a better
option than traditional quartz restrike lamps and allow high
illumination during transfer to generator power.
Lighting for Cold, Damp Environments
Often areas exposed to moderate amounts of moisture and to
colder conditions are included in the path of building egress.
In addition, outdoor egress is gaining importance. These areas
might include cold storage facilities or basements within a
building and partially covered walkways outside of a building.
Standard emergency ballasts are not adequate for such areas.
Extended-temperature fluorescent emergency ballasts, however,
allow users to provide emergency lighting under challenging
conditions. Models may operate in temperatures ranging from -20º
C to +55º C (-4º F to + 131º F), in damp locations and in
sealed and gasketed fixtures. Extended-temperature FEBs provide a
simple, reliable means of meeting code requirements in cold,
damp environments and in outdoor egress applications. ❑
Rob Sumner serves as the western regional sales manager for The
Bodine Company. In addition to providing product information
and training for his region, Rob devotes a significant portion of
his time to educating Bodine’s sales force and other interested
groups on the fundamentals of emergency lighting. He is a 1988
graduate of the University of Mississippi.
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