This is a very reasonable question to ask, but despite its directness, the answer can vary. Together, we will try to clarify how you can find the right answer for your needs and explain the reasoning behind how we built our training program.
Laws, Regulations, and Certifications
There are a vast number of rules to navigate in both private and professional life. Sometimes it feels like there are so many regulations that it’s impossible to keep track of them all—not because they lack relevance, but because the sheer volume makes it hard to distinguish what is critical from what is less so. In developing our training, we have primarily relied on our expertise in preventive fire protection and operational emergency services, but we have also closely examined existing international regulations.
USA
In the United States, regulations are issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). These regulate various safety areas, including fire protection. Some of the standards we have integrated into our training include:
OSHA 1910.157: Regulates portable fire extinguishers, defining both technical requirements and employee knowledge requirements.
OSHA 1910.38: Describes requirements for Emergency Action Plans (EAP), which are vital for building safety. This includes requirements for written plans and annual training.
OSHA 1910.39: Focuses on fire prevention measures, ensuring staff can identify and prevent fire risks.
You can read these regulations in full at osha.gov. We have designed our training with OSHA regulations in mind and believe it meets these requirements.
Additionally, the NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) publishes standards in the US. NFPA 10 provides detailed requirements for portable fire extinguishers. We have selected the parts most relevant to basic fire safety and adapted our training accordingly.
India
In India, fire safety requirements are largely based on the National Building Code of India, published by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
The standard sets out comprehensive requirements for fire protection in buildings and businesses, including organization, procedures, and preparedness. While training requirements aren’t always explicitly detailed, they are implied through mandates for fire knowledge, alarms, first-response actions, firefighting, and evacuation. These rules are clear that every business must identify its specific risks.
Our training provides the fundamental tools necessary to meet these requirements.
United Kingdom
In the UK, fire safety is regulated by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.
The legislation clearly requires employers to ensure that employees receive “adequate and relevant” fire safety training. The training must be tailored to the specific risks of the business and updated as necessary. Unlike India, the training requirement is more direct in the legislation, while the content is largely driven by the company’s risk assessment.
A fire safety course that meets UK legal requirements should cover fire science, alarms, first response, firefighting, evacuation, responsibilities, drills, and risks.
Our training provides the fundamental tools necessary to meet these requirements.
Summary of Regulations
We have studied the rules in several of our markets to ensure our training maintains a high and sufficient standard. Following this review, it is our opinion that these regulations are remarkably similar across different continents and countries. This isn’t surprising—fire doesn’t care about national borders. Basic knowledge and response actions remain largely the same wherever you are in the world. With these various regulations in mind, we have designed a general fire safety course that serves as a solid knowledge base for you and your colleagues.
Is an Online Course Enough?
This is a highly relevant question that we explore further in our blog post Is Online Fire Safety Training Enough? The short answer is no—but in our view, that answer also applies to on-site training. Any training you purchase needs to be supplemented with specific knowledge regarding your unique environment, evacuation drills, and—in the case of online training—a practical extinguishing exercise.
Our online training will give you an excellent foundation to meet various regulations, but above all, it will increase your knowledge and your ability to prevent and handle fires.