08 Dec 85% of surveyed organisations have no risk assessment for Lithium-ion batteries
We live in a world where Lithium-ion batteries are dominant in both work and personal lives, present in vehicles, laptops, and toothbrushes – but a recent survey carried out by IFSEC Insider and Firechief Global this autumn has found that 85% of organisations have no risk assessment for Lithium-ion batteries.
“A typical workplace is likely to have many devices containing Lithium-ion batteries,” said Laurie Pollard, Managing Director of Firechief Global. “There will be mobile phones, laptops, e-bikes, e-scooters, and electric vehicles being used, stored, and charged on site and that’s before considering other equipment such as forklift trucks, power tools, and energy storage systems etc.”
Source: Pexels
The Survey Results
Over 500 organisations were surveyed during webinars held by both IFSEC Insider and Firechief Global, 15% of respondents stated they had recently updated their fire risk assessments to cover Lithium-ion battery fires, 14% said they were unsure, and 71% firmly knew they had not.
Different sites have different amounts of Fire risks, regarding this – and the results of the survey, Firechief Global strongly urge businesses to carry out appropriate fire safety checks with the recommended eight-step battery-safe action plan. Which includes such actions as assessing the scale of risk, and setting up reactive protocols during a lithium-ion battery thermal event.