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Important Considerations When Buying an Evacuation Chair

01 September 2017

In our last post, we discussed the importance of ensuring evacuation chairs have trained operators who regularly undergo refresher training to make certain there is a competent person on hand at all times to operate the chair in an emergency.

We’ve also talked in the past about how essential it is to ensure evacuation chair training is comprehensive enough to guarantee safety, and we’ve also provided guidance on how to choose the right evacuation chair handling course.

Something else that comes to mind on our evacuation chair operator and train the trainer courses is the number of different models of chairs we see.

Does your evacuation chair suit your building and your people?

These chairs tend to vary greatly in terms of various elements. Firstly, the working mechanism can differ quite significantly from chair to chair. The safe working load – the weight of the person the chair can safely handle – will also fluctuate between models.

Some evacuation chairs are only designed for straight-running stairs, whereas others will also cope with spiral staircases. Some will have restrictions on the width of the stairs they are suitable for, and others will only be appropriate for handlers up to a certain height.

These variations are rarely appreciated by those responsible for purchasing evacuation chairs, which can often result in a chair that is inappropriate in one or more ways.

Buying decisions based on price alone can be very dangerous

Sometimes, and we actually see this quite a lot, the task of choosing an evacuation chair is allocated to someone who has never used one or had any sort of training in how they work. Unfortunately, price becomes the leading factor in making the selection. But the cheapest evacuation chair on the market is rarely going to be the one that saves a life.

At Alistair Bromhead Ltd, we offer practical training in evacuation chair handling as well as a course for evacuation chair trainers. This training is designed to cover a variety of models of chairs, and crucially, also includes impartial advice on the pros and cons of different models, so that an informed – and safe – buying decision can be made.

For businesses looking to wisely invest in their own in-house trainers, our one-day IOSH Evacuation Chair Train the Trainer course results in a nationally recognised qualification, with the passing student able to conduct relevant training to other team members in the safe and correct use of evacuation chairs. The newly qualified trainer will also possess the competency to select the right evacuation chairs to suit the individual needs of the organisation, its people and the building from which it operates. A comprehensive course manual including a lesson plan and PowerPoint presentation template as well as illustrative video clips, reference material and other helpful extras are also included.

Please get in touch for full course details or to check availability.

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