Emergency Lighting by Sector: From Offices to Car Parks

Why do requirements differ by sector?

Emergency lighting requirements follow the risk: how many people are in the building, whether they know their way around, whether they sleep there, have limited mobility or work at hazardous machinery. Requirements therefore come from three sources:

• Workplace legislation: based on the EU Workplace Directive 89/654/EEC and transposed nationally. In Germany, for example, through the Workplace Ordinance with ASR A2.3 (escape routes and emergency exits) and ASR A3.4 (lighting, including safety lighting). Whether safety lighting is needed follows from the risk assessment.
• Building and fire safety law: national or regional building codes and special-use building regulations, for example for assembly venues, retail premises, accommodation, car parks, schools, high-rise buildings and industrial buildings. They differ from country to country and, in Germany, from state to state.
• Technical standards: EN 1838 (lighting performance), EN 50172 (operation and testing), EN 60598-2-22 (luminaires), ISO 7010 (safety signs), complemented by national standards such as DIN VDE V 0108-100-1 in Germany.

The following sections describe typical requirements, using German rules as concrete examples. They do not replace a case-by-case assessment or legal advice; what counts is the building permit, the fire safety concept and the applicable national or regional regulations. For the basics, see When is emergency lighting required?.

Solutions per building type have their own pages: hotels, retail, offices, warehouse and industry, restaurants, commercial units and new builds.

Offices and administration

Typical requirements: Standard office buildings are usually not special-use buildings. Whether safety lighting is required follows from the workplace risk assessment. Reasons include many employees, several storeys, long or confusing escape routes, areas without daylight or visitor traffic. High-rise buildings are subject to their own rules, which generally require safety lighting.

Specifics: Stairwells, internal corridors and basements are the typical candidates. Exit signs must show the route to the nearest exit without gaps.

Common mistakes:

• After refurbishments with new partitions or open-plan areas, exit signs and luminaire positions no longer match the layout.
• The monthly function test lapses because nobody is responsible for it.
• Exit signs are obstructed by cupboards, room dividers or suspended elements.

Retail premises

Typical requirements: Larger retail premises are treated as special-use buildings in many countries. In Germany, the model retail ordinance applies to premises whose sales areas, including malls, exceed 2,000 m² in total, and safety lighting is generally required there. Smaller shops follow workplace legislation, the risk assessment and the building permit.

Specifics: Customers unfamiliar with the building are the defining risk. In retail premises, exit signs are often operated in maintained mode, meaning they are lit even when mains power is present. For special-use buildings, a duration of three hours is often required.

Common mistakes:

• Shelving, advertising displays and decorations obstruct exit signs or emergency luminaires.
• Storage and staff areas behind the sales floor are forgotten.
• Escape routes are narrowed by goods or promotional areas, so the design no longer matches the use.

Hospitality, hotels and accommodation

Typical requirements: Accommodation premises are a classic special-use building type. In Germany, the model accommodation ordinance applies to premises with more than twelve guest beds; safety lighting on escape routes and illuminated exit signs are generally required. Restaurants with dining rooms for more than 200 guests may fall under assembly venue rules. Smaller restaurants follow workplace legislation and the building permit.

Specifics: Guests sleep, do not know the building and are disoriented in an emergency. For accommodation, durations longer than the one-hour minimum are required, in Germany up to eight hours depending on the regulations and operating mode. Details in Emergency lighting duration.

Common mistakes:

• Tests in guest-room corridors are skipped to avoid disturbing guests.
• Dimmable ambient lighting is confused with emergency lighting.
• Kitchens and cold stores with specific hazards are not considered.

Schools and childcare

Typical requirements: In Germany, schools are assessed under the states' school building guidelines, based on a model guideline. Safety lighting is typically required for halls and auditoriums, escape routes without sufficient daylight and areas with many people. For nurseries and childcare centres there is no nationwide special-use regulation in Germany; requirements follow from state law, the building permit and the fire safety concept. Other countries have their own rules for educational buildings.

Specifics: Children need clear, easily recognisable routes and are led by staff. Auditoriums and sports halls are often used for events and may then be subject to assembly venue rules. Sports halls call for ball-impact-resistant luminaires.

Common mistakes:

• Exit signs are covered with artwork, posters or curtains.
• The auditorium is used for events without the emergency lighting being designed for it.
• Tests are skipped during school holidays because the caretaker is away.

Medical practices, care homes and hospitals

Typical requirements: Medical practices are usually workplaces; the risk assessment and building permit decide. Care homes and hospitals are generally special-use buildings under national or regional law. In medical locations, the requirements of HD 60364-7-710 (in Germany DIN VDE 0100-710) for the safety power supply apply as well, and go beyond escape route lighting.

Specifics: Patients and residents often cannot walk unaided, evacuation takes longer, and horizontal evacuation into adjacent fire compartments is common. This calls for adequate durations and well-lit corridors.

Common mistakes:

• Escape route lighting and the safety power supply for medical equipment are mixed up in the design.
• Beds, wheelchairs and care trolleys stand in corridors and obstruct luminaires or signs.
• Tests in areas with night-time operation are postponed.

Industry and warehouses

Typical requirements: The basis is workplace legislation, plus industrial building regulations for larger facilities (in Germany, the states' industrial building guideline). Besides escape route lighting, high-risk task area lighting is important here: it allows hazardous activities to be shut down safely during a power failure, for example at running machinery. EN 1838 requires at least 10 % of the normal illuminance, but no less than 15 lux, reached within 0.5 seconds. More in Types of emergency lighting.

Specifics: High ceilings make installation and testing harder. In halls with LED high-bay luminaires, an emergency driver can make existing luminaires usable in emergency mode; Series 19 offers an IP65 version for LED high-bays up to 300 W. Dust, moisture and temperatures determine the required IP rating.

Common mistakes:

• High-bay racking obstructs exit signs or shadows the escape route lighting.
• High-risk task areas are not identified separately in the design.
• Luminaires mounted high up are rarely tested because a lift platform is needed; self-testing luminaires solve this problem.

Underground and multi-storey car parks

Typical requirements: Enclosed car parks are often subject to specific regulations. In Germany, the model car park ordinance and the state car park ordinances generally require safety lighting in enclosed large car parks (usable floor area over 1,000 m²). For smaller car parks and open multi-storey car parks, requirements depend on regional law and the building permit.

Specifics: Vehicle traffic, exhaust fumes, moisture and road salt call for robust luminaires with a higher IP rating, such as IP65. Exit signs must be recognisable from the driving aisles despite low ceilings and downstand beams. Exits to stairwells are the critical points.

Common mistakes:

• Luminaires with an inadequate IP rating fail prematurely due to moisture.
• Luminaires are damaged by tall vehicles.
• Exit signs are mounted too high or behind beams and cannot be seen from a vehicle.

Assembly venues

Typical requirements: Assembly venues are special-use buildings almost everywhere in Europe. In Germany, the states' assembly venue ordinances apply to venues with assembly rooms for more than 200 visitors. Safety lighting is generally mandatory there, as are exit signs that remain lit during operation. Special-use buildings are also inspected periodically by approved experts, often every three years. See Authority inspections.

Specifics: Many people unfamiliar with the building, darkened rooms during events, stages and stands. Steps in stands and seating rows need their own marking or lighting. A duration of three hours is often required.

Common mistakes:

• Temporary stages, exhibition stands or seating obstruct exit signs.
• Exit signs are covered or dimmed for events.
• After a change of use, for example from hall to event space, the design is not updated.

Sectors at a glance