Month: September 2022

In 2017, the Grenfell tower tragedy highlighted in devastating fashion the fire safety failings of many high-rise properties across the UK.

In response to these findings, waking watch was introduced, with trained fire marshals patrolling affected properties 24/7 on the lookout for potential fire hazards.

 If you live in, or manage, a high-rise property that has been found to have the same cladding as that responsible for the Grenfell tower fire spreading so rapidly, or similar failings within the external wall system, a waking watch system may be required.

Waking watch officers allow for a simultaneous evacuation policy to replace the existing stay-put advice given by the fire service until such time as remediation work has been complete and flammable materials removed.

But what exactly do these fire marshals do on a day-to-day basis? This guide will tell you all you need to know about the role of a waking watch officer, why they are so effective, what they need from you as a resident, and why they are required on your property:

What do waking watch officers do?

Waking watch officers are tasked with protecting the property they are stationed in against the risk of fire.

Many believe that their sole purpose is to act as a human fire alarm, patrolling the building looking for fires, but the truth is that whilst this is a crucial part of what they do, the job description of a waking watch officer is much more detailed.

The tasks performed by waking watch officers include:

Fire detection

The primary, and most important role of a waking watch officer. 24 hours a day 7 days a week waking watch officers will continually patrol your site looking for any signs of an ongoing fire.

These patrols will be conducted at a minimum every 15 minutes and will include a close examination of both the exterior of the building and each interior corridor to ensure the earliest possible identification and response.

Waking watch fire marshals are experienced and highly trained so will often be able to spot the more subtle indications that would otherwise go undetected until the situation had escalated out of control.

Evacuation

Should a fire be detected, waking watch officers will alert all residents to the situation immediately.

They will then oversee the safe evacuation of the building through established evacuation routes.

Once outside they will take attendance to ensure that all residents have managed to vacate the building and alert the emergency services if anyone is thought to still be inside.

Liaising with the emergency services

As soon as a fire is detected, waking watch officers will alert the fire service to the situation.

Once they arrive on the scene, fire marshals will give them a report on the current state of the crisis, including the location of the fire and the progress of the evacuation.

This could save crucial time and allow the fire service to respond in the most effective manner.

Improving the building’s fire safety

A waking watch officer is just as effective in preventing fires as they are in responding to them.

During their patrols, waking watch officers will keep an eye out for any potential fire safety hazards that could either result in a fire, increase the speed at which it spreads, or may impede with an evacuation.

They will then either resolve the issue themselves or make recommendations to the building management.

Some of the most common potential hazards a waking watch officer may spot, could include a fire door which is wedged open, or obstacles in hallways that are blocking essential fire escape routes.

Following their patrols, waking watch officers will also submit detailed reports of their findings and observations which can then be used to help fine-tune the fire safety protocols in the future.

Educating residents

No matter how effective a waking watch service is, a successful evacuation relies on the cooperation and responsiveness of the residents themselves.

Waking watch officers will help building management to develop a carefully designed bespoke fire safety plan for the property and assist with its distribution among residents.

They will also be on hand at all times should any residents have queries or concerns about the precautions in place or what they should do in the event of a fire.

Monitoring alarm systems

Whilst continually patrols can be effective in identifying fires, this is the 21^st century and any competent modern security team will utilise the latest fire detection equipment available to them.

Prime Secure Waking Watch officers will have full access to your building’s fire alarm system, giving them instant notice should an internal fire be detected on site.

If your startup or small business doesn't have a dedicated website, you risk falling further behind the competition. You may believe that you're creating a fan base on Facebook (if you're purchasing fans on Facebook through advertising, you're very likely wasting your money), sharing small bits of content on Twitter, and posting photographs on Pinterest.

Without a central digital home, however, you scatter your efforts and miss a wonderful opportunity to engage and connect with your consumers and future clients through a dedicated website. Ultimately, your clients will want to learn more about your company's products and services, and a dedicated website will facilitate this.

Today, we will discuss web design best practices and recommendations in Manchester. Markustudio a freelance web designer in Manchester providing web design, logo branding, print, SEO and digital design services. We have a passion for serving successful small businesses and big brands across the UK. If you need help creating a style guide or staying consistent with your branding, our team of experts is here to assist you. We’ll work with you to create a unique and unforgettable brand that will help you stand out from the competition.

We'll lead you in the direction of useful resources and examples, as well as highlight recent developments in web design. And if you currently have a website and are considering a redesign, your homepage is a fantastic place to start. Currently, several business owners are concerned that the price of website design may be exorbitant.

Here are our top ten tips to help you construct an outstanding website.

1. Keep the design basic, innovative, and new.

Your website effectively portrays your brand. It is the first impression a visitor will form while visiting your website for the first time. If you pick an off-the-shelf template and your website resembles thousands of other sites on the Internet, you will miss out on an opportunity to make a memorable impression.

Why would a potential buyer remember your website if she has visited dozens of other websites that are identical to yours?

Over the past few months, we've heard from a number of business owners who initially built their website using a template site.

As their firms have grown, these entrepreneurs have realized that they must distinguish themselves from the competitors. Their needs are no longer met by the template websites. This is not surprising.

The homepage is often the most essential page on a business website; prospective clients will likely see it first when they visit your site.

Furthermore, because the majority of small business and startup websites have fewer than a dozen pages in total, the homepage is a crucial anchor for the entire site. It must answer a number of crucial questions, including who you are and what you do.

Advanced Tip 1: Once you've designed your homepage, you may do fairly basic testing to see which buttons, colors, and content receive the most clicks. In the end, marketing is equal parts art and science. Particularly on your homepage, but also on pages where you’re attempting to convince the user to take action, consider what action you want the user to take and build a visible call-to-action button.

The call-to-action (CTA) on your homepage is crucial for luring people deeper into your website.

When designing your CTA, you should consider the following factors: (a) location (above the fold; visible on the screen when the page first loads is ideal); (b) make sure the CTA stands out from the other content on your site; (c) create a link to another page so that your call to action draws the visitor deeper into your site; (d) create a less-emphasized alternative variation; and (e) test design, content, and placement. It is essential not to overstuff your homepage (or any other page) with calls to action. Concentrate on one or two options. If you have too many, you will produce a great deal of noise for users, which will lead to significant confusion.

2. Showcase your products and services.

You are attempting to sell a product or service. Ensure that the product or service is highlighted prominently on your homepage.

I’ve encountered some small business web designs that failed to successfully display their products or services, as well as numerous others that attempted to exhibit an excessive number of products or services on a single page. You only have a few seconds to make a good first impression, so make sure it's a good one.

If you offer things and your clients will purchase them online, you must ensure that the product photographs, or graphical images and descriptions, are clean, crisp, and acceptable. Even if you have a well-designed website, if your product photographs are subpar, prospective buyers will be hesitant to make a purchase. Consider how Amazon, Apple, and Zappos display their products online.

If your product or service is web-based, consider using images of mobile devices or laptops and embedding your showcase images within them. This will assist individuals in anticipating how they will interact with your product or service. Do not overstuff your website with images. It has been said that a picture is worth a thousand words, but images may also confuse and divert attention. Choose a handful of high-quality product photographs and feature them on the homepage. On inside pages, you can feature your additional products.

3. Pay Attention To Loading Times.

People are impatient when exploring websites, and poor load times have a negative influence on conversions (getting people to purchase your products or services). If your website's design is graphically intensive, you must ensure that you have the necessary physical infrastructure and bandwidth to support it. This is particularly important if you have a broad customer base and anticipate a high volume of website visitors.

By selecting reliable hosts, you can decrease your website's load time.

Importantly, keep in mind that the cheapest monthly hosting service is not always the greatest value. It may be inexpensive, but it is probably also slow and unreliable.

4. Make sure your website is easily navigable.

Consider how individuals with specific disabilities, such as color blindness, can learn about your products and services if they visit your website. Consider how users with slower Internet connections will view your website. This is particularly crucial for small businesses, notably rural small enterprises, that cater to local customers; accessibility is one of the finest methods to win over such customers.

Tip: Ensure that the site's design and navigation are uniform throughout. Don’t build unconnected designs for different pages on your site. The layout and design of all the pages should be comparable. This is among the most prevalent reasons business owners may consider a website overhaul in 2016.

5. Organize your website in order to improve the user experience.

Search engines favor websites with correct structure.

People also value orderliness.

Remember that when prospective clients visit your website, they are often seeking specific information. Rarely will they read complete pages; instead, they will scan headlines, short parts of text, and photographs or graphics (though not all at once).

A well-structured website that displays information in an orderly and ordered manner will be far more successful than one that appears chaotic.

Tip: Use bold, easy-to-read fonts and bullets to present vital information and emphasize what you want readers to focus on.

Use text color to emphasize the most vital information, but limit the use of text color and fonts as much as possible. You want to elucidate, not confound.

Remember that most people will disregard content if the headline above the content does not pique their interest; therefore, don’t ignore good headlines (more on this in tip 6 below)

6. Don't forget about search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM).

For a small business, time spent on one marketing initiative typically detracts from other initiatives.

Both search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) are highly specialized fields that require a substantial time commitment to master.

However, SEO and/or SEM campaigns can provide great leverage for small businesses and should not be overlooked.