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July 6, 2022

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Opinion

“Human behaviour must be a key consideration for Protect Duty legislation”

Marc Gaunt, Category and Segment Marketing Manager at Eaton UK&I, underlines the importance of understanding human behaviour in crisis situations and why it will be an important facet to consider as the Protect Duty progresses through the legislative process this year.

Marc Gaunt, Category and Segment Marketing Manager at Eaton UK&I

The Government’s highly anticipated legislation on Protect Duty was laid to Parliament in the recent Queen’s Speech, promising to introduce new security requirements for certain public locations and venues to ensure preparedness for and protection from terrorist attacks.

The legislation aims to provide clarity over preparedness responsibilities, expand support to those with that responsibility, and enhance the public’s trust in the systems designed to keep them safe.

We know human behaviour is one of the most important considerations in any evacuation response. Inaction or ‘the bystander effect’ is a real issue in attacks that happen in high density venues – with some people not responding to alerts out of panic.

As laid out in the introduction to the protect duty consultation, security plans, procedures, training and awareness are reasonable and appropriate measures to improve safety in public buildings. However, in buildings accessed by potentially large groups of members of the general public, in high stress, fast changing emergency situations, adaptive evacuation technology can play a crucial role.

Human behaviour in a crisis scenario can be broken down into three parts: interpret, prepare, and act. However, these actions do not always follow the same sequence and this brain process can be repeated as occupants adjust to the unusual and threatening situation around them, wasting crucial seconds.

The clearer the signals and instructions are at the earliest stage, the faster the human brain can process the emergency, and the need to respond. This requires rich information, for example, through live directives telling people about the nature of the threat and pulsating emergency lighting drawing people to safe evacuation points. By doing this, evacuation technology is able to mimic the human brain in crisis mode to ensure evacuation happens as swiftly and safely as possible.

Another important human consideration is disability. Animating exit signage and making it as visible as possible is crucial to help people with both sight and hearing disabilities, who might otherwise not be able to see static signage or hear audio directives. Evacuation technologies must work for everyone, just as public spaces are designed for everyone.

The evolution of emergency lighting systems means they no longer need to be static and discreet. Requiring only minimal additional investment in hardware and with little variation to standard installation practices, adaptive systems can provide impactful alerts to occupants and support direction from danger in fast moving, high stress environments.

Instead of thinking of simple security measures as being just physical, responsible persons must consider which measures can be used to protect occupants via a deeper understanding of psychology. This, coupled with a holistic view of security where systems are interconnected, can provide the potential for much higher levels of safety.

Human psychology and crisis behaviour must therefore be front and centre as businesses and venues consider the implementation of plans, procedures, and security measures.

Ongoing innovation and leveraging connectivity is crucial to meet the changing nature of risk and the needs of building occupants.

 

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