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How it works

Escape breathing apparatus gives your employees a short, independent air supply so they can leave an area affected by smoke, toxic gas or oxygen deficiency. Its purpose is evacuation. Your staff must understand that it is not equipment for investigating an alarm, finishing a task, rescuing a colleague or returning to the affected area.

Different escape sets also require different actions. BS EN 1146 covers compressed-air escape apparatus incorporating a hood, while BS EN 402 covers lung-governed equipment using a full-face mask or mouthpiece. Activation, air delivery, donning and warning signals therefore depend on the equipment you issue.

At Fire Safe International, we train your employees to use the specific escape breathing apparatus issued at your site, then move immediately along the designated route to a confirmed safe atmosphere.

Testing the human part of your escape plan

A ten- or fifteen-minute rated escape set only helps if your employee can reach it, activate it correctly and complete the escape route within the available air supply. Training empowers your team to examine that complete sequence.

During the course, they will practice locating their sets, checking the case and service indicator, opening the unit, initiating the air supply and fitting the hood, facepiece or mouthpiece. They then move along the designated route and respond to the equipment’s end-of-supply warning.

This practical work can expose delays created by access restrictions, reduced visibility, stairs, ladders or assembly-point arrangements. You’ll gain a clearer basis for deciding where sets should be located and what duration your escape assessment requires.

Your staff leave the course knowing exactly what their equipment should feel and sound like when activated, and understanding why it must remain in place until they have reached an atmosphere confirmed as safe.

The value for your organisation: 

Faster evacuation from smoke, toxic gas or oxygen-deficient areas

Trained employees can recognise the alarm, put on their escape set promptly and begin moving towards safety without losing critical time working out how their equipment operates. 

A more dependable escape plan for the people and routes involved

Training gives you a realistic view of how long evacuation takes from the furthest work area, accounting for donning time, stairs, restricted movement, poor visibility and congestion. 

Who needs this training? 

The course is designed for organisations responsible for employees who may need to escape quickly from a sudden toxic, oxygen-deficient or otherwise hazardous atmosphere. Typical users include process operators, refrigeration engineers, marine and offshore contractors, laboratory teams and employees working in enclosed plant areas.

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Working with Fire Safe International: breathing apparatus training specialists with evacuation experience

Our training team’s expertise extends across various escape sets, self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), airline systems and confined-space response protocols. That breadth gives the instructors a clear understanding of where escape equipment fits within your emergency arrangements, and how your user responsibilities differ from those of an intervention team. Your training will include detailed practical and scenario-led information about activation, facepiece type, air duration and warning behaviour in the context of the equipment your employees carry day-to-day.

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How do we know whether a 10-minute or 15-minute escape set is sufficient?

Choose the duration from the longest credible escape time, not the nominal distance alone. To do this, time the route from the most remote work position to clean air, allowing for alarm recognition, donning, poor visibility, stairs, restricted movement and foreseeable congestion. The selected set must provide air beyond that time, with a suitable safety margin.

Does escape breathing apparatus require face fit testing?

Not if your escape set uses a loose-fitting hood, because protection does not depend on a seal against the face. However, face fit testing may be required when the equipment has a tight-fitting mask or facepiece.

Can escape breathing apparatus be worn with glasses or facial hair?

This depends on the facepiece. Many constant-flow hooded escape sets are designed for spectacle wearers and people with facial hair because they do not rely on a tight face seal. Tight-fitting masks are different: glasses, beards and even stubble can interfere with the seal, so an alternative facepiece or equipment type may be required.

Can escape breathing apparatus be used in an oxygen-deficient atmosphere?

Yes, provided it is genuine breathing apparatus carrying breathing-quality air from an independent air source. Filter-based escape respirators cannot protect users against oxygen deficiency because they only clean the surrounding air. The equipment must also have enough duration for the planned escape route and be approved for the atmosphere and conditions identified by your risk assessment.

Find out more

To find out more about course availability and pricing, please phone 01743 761000 or contact us to request a call back.