Annual Essential Safety Measure Reports in Class 2 Apartment Buildings

An essential safety measure is the passive and active safety features required in a building such as as automatic fire sprinklers, fire detection and alarm systems, building occupant warning systems and mechanical services, but also include passive fire safety such as fire doors, fire resisting structures and other building infrastructure items such as means of egress.

Essential Safety Measures are installed in buildings and maintained to safeguard the occupants in the event of a fire or other emergency.

Typically the maintenance requirements for each ESM is set out in the Occupancy Permit (for buildings constructed after July 1, 1994) or a Maintenance Determination1 for buildings constructed before July 1, 1994.

These documents set out the following;

• each required essential safety measure; and
• the standard of performance to which the essential safety measure must achieve to fulfill its purpose; and
• the standard of performance to which each essential safety measure is required to be maintained; and
• the frequency of the maintenance.

While an Occupancy Permit and Maintenance Determination are different documents, their intent is the same, that is to provide a framework for the periodic maintenance of each essential safety measure necessary to fulfil their intended purpose.

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  Building Regulations (Vic) 2018, r215

In Victoria, each Essential Safety Measure is required to be maintained in a state to achieve its purpose.  Generally, the standard of performance for maintenance is set out in the Occupancy Permit, Maintenance Schedule or Maintenance Determination for the building or structure.

In general, the routine servicing of essential safety measures in Class 2 buildings is confined to the public areas and spaces within the building such as lobbies, corridors, car parks, plant rooms and the like. In practical terms, this means that contractors who undertake this maintenance do not need access to private spaces such as within each sole-occupancy unit or dwelling.

For many Essential Safety Measures, Australian Standards (AS 1851 & AS 2293) provide guidelines for the routine servicing of active and passive fire safety systems and equipment.

• AS 1851 – 2012  Routine Servicing of Fire Protection Systems and Equipment
• AS 2293.1 - 2018 Emergency Lighting and Exit Sign Systems for Buildings, Part 2: Routine Service and Maintenance

Within the sole-occupancy unit or dwelling a smoke alarm (different to smoke detectors) is required to be installed to comply with the National Construction Code of Australia. While the maintenance of a smoke alarm system is covered in AS 1851, their maintenance is specifically excluded from the maintenance provisions of the Building Regulations (Vic) 2018 within each SOU.

For Class 2 Buildings, these maintenance requirements are generally overseen by the Owners Corporation Manager on behalf of all lot owners.

An Owners Corporation Manager, on behalf of the Owners Corporation, is responsible for ensuring that each required essential safety measure is regularly inspected, tested and maintained.

Routine servicing and maintenance must be completed by a professional such as Firewzie with a good understanding of the building‘s Essential Safety Measures.

In the flowchart on the right, we illustrate a typical process for conducting the routine servicing of fire and essential safety measures in buildings. This flow chart provides a series of steps to guarantee compliance and facilitate the production of the Annual Essential Safety Measures Report for the building.

In certain circumstances, it may be beneficial for the Owners Corporation Manager to engage the services of a specialist ESM consultant to help prepare a scope of work and select each of the relevant specialist contractors necessary to carry out the required maintenance.  An experienced OC Manager may not require the services of this specialist consultant.

A typical engagement of specialist Essential Safety Measures contractors will follow these steps;

1. Get a copy of the occupancy permit or maintenance schedule or maintenance determination for the building.  Where either of these documents does not exist, a private building surveyor should be engaged to prepare a maintenance determination, that lists each of the required essential safety measures in the building. (Ref: How to prepare a Maintenance Schedule).
2. Prepare an asset and equipment register.  This is necessary to help determine the scope of work for the building.  A typical register will detail quantities of equipment such as the number or quantity of fire extinguishers (of each type), fire hose reels, fire hydrant valves, fire alarm panels, heat detectors, smoke detectors, sprinkler alarm valves, flow switches, pressure switches, valve monitoring devices, fire pumpsets (electric and diesel), occupant warning system or emergency warning system zones, fire smoke and exit doors, penetrations in fire resisting elements and the like. If you would like a template for this, feel free to request a copy, as well as our free scope of work and engagement template.
3. Identify each Essential Safety Measure and group them according to the contractor who can deliver the service.  Typical examples are Fire Contractor (such as Firewize), Mechanical Services Contractor, Passive Fire Contractor. Let us know if you would like a referral to other like-minded contractors who
4. Provide each contractor with a scope of work (based on the asset and equipment register) and request a fee proposal.  Typically a fee proposal is for a period of three years with a two year option.  A five year term is common so that can be aligned with the five-year cycle set out in Australian Standards AS 1851 and AS 2293.2.
5. Receive and review costings, compare details against the scope of work and prepare a gap analysis, and appoint a contractor for each essential safety measure.
6. Meet the contractors, and schedule routine service activities for the following five years.  The anniversary date of the occupancy permit or maintenance schedule or maintenance determination for the building should form the basis for all scheduled maintenance activities.
7. Ensure each contractor conducts the routine service activities they have been contracted to undertake.  Contractors are required to prepare logbooks and maintenance records which must be left on site (prior to departure).
8. At least one month prior to the anniversary of the occupancy permit or maintenance schedule or maintenance determination for the building, undertake the routine yearly service activities and systems interface test (also known as the full function fire test (FFFT).  If any defects are identified, ensure they are rectified and if required, re-test each affected system.
9. Request each contractor prepare a yearly condition report (set out in Australian Standard AS 1851) that provides details and evidence that each essential safety measure is working and has been maintained.
10. Prepare and review the Annual Essential Safety Measures Report.

Under Regulation 225 of the Building Regulations 2018 (Victoria), building owners must ensure that specific documents related to essential safety measures are readily available for inspection within 24 hours upon request by a municipal building surveyor or chief officer.

These documents include all annual essential safety measures reports from the past 10 years, maintenance schedules, maintenance determinations, and records of inspections, testing, and maintenance (including repairs) of any essential safety measures. Non-compliance with this regulation can result in a penalty of 20 units.