Automatic detection Not every building designed for life safety will necessarily have an automatic detection system, as there are some small buildings which may achieve reasonable standards of health and safety with a fire alarm system based on manual call points. Nevertheless, it is common for fire safety designs to incorporate automatic fire detection to life safety categories (L1 / L2) which are comparable to property protection ones (P1 / P2) to BS 5839-1 11 . Such provisions are particularly common in mass timber buildings. Fire separation and compartmentation Fire safety designs seek to mitigate the extent of fire spread within a building through the provision of fire separation and compartmentation – which is also a provision often identified for property protection. Either informed by the evacuation strategy for the building, or by the height or floor area of the building, sub-division of buildings into multiple fire enclosures or compartments is a typical provision in designs for life safety. Common Perception: Approved Document B is not applicable for mass timber buildings, but the document is law and must be complied with. Reality: While Approved Document B is tailored for “common building situations” e.g. traditional construction methods, it still provides a framework for fire safety that may apply to mass timber buildings of low to medium consequences of structural failure. Approved Document B is not the law but contains practical guidance about how to meet the Requirements of Part B of Schedule 1 to the Building Regulations 2010 (as amended) in buildings within its scope. The Requirements of Part B are what constitute law and must be complied with. Compliance can be demonstrated by adopting design guidance where applicable or through alternative fire engineering approaches.
document has been the standard source of reference for compliance with Regulation B3(1), achieving support from organisations, such as CROSS 7,10 . Within Volume 6, it is posited that two differing structural performance objectives exist for a structure depending upon the failure consequences. For low consequence cases, the structure should remain stable long enough to facilitate the evacuation of occupants and fire service activities. For high consequences of failure, the structure should have a reasonable likelihood of surviving the full duration of a fire event. The distinction between these two objectives is made through a combination of consequence classes and consideration of building height.
SUPPORT IN PROPERTY PROTECTION & BUSINESS CONTINUITY
It cannot be assumed that designing for life safety automatically addresses property protection or business continuity goals as these objectives depend on the goals of the stakeholders of each project and are therefore project specific. Nevertheless, some fire precautions aimed at complying with the requirements of Part B of the Building Regulations 2010 contribute to property protection and business continuity objectives in some manner. As previously mentioned, precautions currently provided as life safety measures like sprinklers and compartmentation have their origins in property protection. Whilst the specific property protection or business continuity objectives will depend on the project, these are typically aimed at: – Reliably detecting fires. – Limiting the extent of fire spread and thus damage within a building. – Mitigating against the risk of building collapse. In fire safety designs aimed only at Building Regulations compliance, the following are examples of provisions and systems that are likely to be in place and contribute to property protection and business continuity goals.
F I R E
6 1
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online