What are Essential Safety Measures?

Essential Safety Measures are the primary life and fire safety systems required and installed in buildings to help ensure the health and safety of the occupants in the event of fire and/or evacuation. These include active items such as sprinklers, fire extinguishers, fire hose reels and hydrants in addition to passive elements of a building such as fire/smoke doors, means of egress and building fire integrity items. Essential Safety Measures encompasses all safety measures, essential services, safety fittings under the one definition.

The Victorian Building Regulations 2006 provides the following definition of an Essential Safety Measure:

Clause 1202: In this Subdivision- ‘Essential Safety Measure’ means-

(a) Any of the following items required by or under the Act or these Regulations to be provided in relation to a building or a place of public entertainment-

(i) An item listed in Tables I1.1 to I1.11 of Volume One of the BCA, except the item in Table I1.4 relating to artificial lighting;

(ii) An item listed in clause I1.2 of Volume One of the BCA; or

(b) Any other item that is required by or under the Act or these Regulations to be provided in relation to a building or place of public entertainment for the safety of persons in the event of fire and that is designed by the relevant building surveyor as an essential safety measure; or

(c) Any other item that is an essential safety measure within the meaning of Division 1 of Part 12 of the Building (Interim) Regulations 2005 as in force before their revocation.