Straight answers about fire, safety and security
Plain-English guides written by the engineers who do the work. No jargon for its own sake, and no sales pitch dressed up as advice.
Fire safety
Detection, alarms, escape lighting and what the standards actually ask of you.What is a fire risk assessment, and who can carry one out?
The starting point for every other fire safety decision you will make — what it covers, who is qualified to do it, and how often it should be revisited.
Read the guide →How a wireless fire alarm system is installed
What actually happens on site when a radio-linked system goes in, why it suits occupied and listed buildings, and where the honest limitations lie.
Read the guide →Fire alarm categories explained: L1 to L5, P1, P2 and M
The letter-and-number code on your certificate decides how much of your building is covered. Here is what each category means in plain terms.
Read the guide →Emergency lighting testing: what the law actually requires
The monthly check, the annual three-hour discharge test, and why the second one is the test that finds real faults.
Read the guide →Compliance & the law
Your duties as a responsible person, and the records that prove you have met them.The golden thread explained: digital building safety records
What the Building Safety Act 2022 means by a golden thread, who must maintain one, and why it is quietly becoming best practice for buildings well below the legal threshold.
Read the guide →The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022: a plain-English guide
New duties for responsible persons in blocks of flats, from quarterly fire door checks to secure information boxes — set out without the legal jargon.
Read the guide →Security
Intruder alarms, CCTV and access control — grading, evidence and data protection.Intruder alarm grades explained: which grade do you need?
Grades 1 to 4 under BS EN 50131, what each assumes about the intruder, and why your insurer probably has an opinion.
Read the guide →CCTV and UK GDPR: what you must have in place
A camera that records identifiable people processes personal data. Signage, retention, subject access and where your cameras may lawfully point.
Read the guide →Smart buildings & networks
Automation, connectivity and the infrastructure everything else depends on.Cat6 or Cat6a: which cabling does your building need?
The difference between the two, where each is the sensible choice, and why the cable is the one thing you should not economise on.
Read the guide →KNX or Lutron: choosing a smart home system that lasts
Two engineered systems, two different philosophies — and why either beats a drawer full of consumer gadgets that stop working when a cloud service closes.
Read the guide →Still not sure where you stand?
Ask us. We would far rather answer a question properly than sell you something you do not need.
Ask a question