Severe power crisis in the country & growing awareness on the need for safe emergency exit

Emergency lighting, used for lighting up escape routes during emergencies and power outages, generally makes up 5 to 10 percent of the total lighting units used in buildings. The increasing construction of shopping malls, theatres, airports, IT office complexes and hotels, are pushing the demand for these products, especially maintained signages that show the exit route even when there is power supply. Emergency lighting manufacturers should take advantage of this trend by offering conversion kits that enable battery-backed LED lighting in case of emergencies, along with the complete package of emergency lighting products for both new and retrofit projects.
 
New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, Indian Emergency Lighting Market Analysis, finds that the market earned revenues of INR 1.32 billion in 2013 and estimates this to more than double to INR 2.99 billion by 2019. The study covers signage, anti-panic and escape route emergency lighting solutions.
 
“The severe power crisis in India especially in states such as Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Orissa is boosting the uptake of emergency lighting mainly in high-rise buildings,” said Frost & Sullivan’s Environment & Building Technologies Practice Analyst. “End users are particularly looking for well maintained signage with centralized battery systems and light emitting diode (LED)-based emergency lamps.”
 
However, the dearth of skilled personnel to ensure the regular maintenance of the emergency lighting systems in buildings across India is leading to failure during emergencies. In India, even though the National Building Code (NBC) and the National Lighting Code (NLC) specifies on installation of emergency lighting, they are not strictly imposed in the country. Further, the lack of awareness among most residential and commercial end users on the benefits of installing emergency lights is prompting building developers, particularly in the low-end segment, to use cost-effective alternatives such as portable emergency lights, signage boards (without lighting support) and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) power back-up.
 
Manufacturers must educate end users on the importance of emergency lighting systems especially in the event of UPS failure or fire accidents. They will also do well to push for stronger government regulations and remind commercial and industrial enterprises of their corporate responsibility to provide a safe environment for employees. Indian Standards (IS) specify emergency lights in any building as those that have emergency power source with minimum battery back-up capacity of at least 90 minutes. The standards specify the installation of emergency lights in areas such as staircases and corridors having exit signs with emergency illumination, in the event of normal power supply failure. So far these standards have not been made mandatory in the country, leading to low penetration. Making these regulations/standards mandatory is the need of the hour, to help improve awareness about the benefits of emergency lighting here in India.
 
“Moreover, market participants should offer emergency lights with monitoring and controlling systems that alert end users of battery malfunctioning or end of lamp’s life, allow them to control brightness, and switch the emergency lights on and off at will,” suggested the analyst. “They could include flame-proof technology as an add-on specification in emergency lighting, to withstand fire accidents”.