It is required by law. In the event of an incident, it may be important to evacuate a building or the premises and employees gather at assembly points outside the gates. To alert employees that they must leave a building or the premises, an acoustic signal, a siren, has been chosen.

Sirens have been placed in each building and in some places outside on the premises. The sound of the sirens placed outside can possibly be heard in the immediate vicinity of the plant, depending on (weather) conditions.

The test is to check that the equipment is working properly.

During the test, the siren is operated in various ways. At this point, it is checked that the loudspeakers work and the siren can be heard all over the premises.

Is it the first Monday of the month and around noon? Then you know it is a test. Nothing is going on then. You don't have to do anything.

Then there has been a reason to trigger the evacuation alarm. That reason could also be a drill. The moment employees hear the siren, they safely stop work, leave the building they are in and gather at the assembly points. There they wait for instructions. Employees also take care of visitors to the site.

During overhauls, we sometimes deviate from the regular day/time for testing. Or we do not test the alarm for a while.