Information about Fire Protection
Fire protection is the prevention and reduction of the hazards associated with fires. It involves the study of the behaviour, compartmentalisation, suppression and investigation of fire and its related emergencies as well as the research and development, production, testing and application of mitigating systems. In structures, be they land-based, offshore or even ships, the owners and operators are responsible to maintain their facilities in accordance with a design-basis that is rooted in laws, including the local building code and fire code, which are enforced by the Authority Having Jurisdiction. Buildings must be constructed in accordance with the version of the building code that is in effect when an application for a building permit is made. Building inspectors check on compliance of a building under construction with the building code. Once construction is complete, a building must be maintained in accordance with the current fire code, which is enforced by the fire prevention officers of a local fire department. In the event of fire emergencies, Firefighters, fire investigators, and other fire prevention personnel called to mitigate, investigate and learn from the damage of a fire. Lessons learned from fires are applied to the authoring of both building codes and fire codes.
In the U.S.A., this term is used by engineers and code officials when referring only to fire sprinkler systems, not fire alarm or advance smoke detection. Often the American public will assume it is all-encompassing. How it is used, and by whom, will usually indicate how it is meant.
Some jursidictions operate systems of classifying fires using code letters. Whilst these may agree on some classifications, they also vary. Below is a table showing the standard operated in Europe and Australasia against the system used in the United States.
Lobby groups are typically divided into two camps favouring active or passive fire protection. Each camp tries to garner more business for itself through its influence in establishing or changing local and national building and fire codes. At present, the camp favouring AFP appears to be leading.
A balanced approach between all three parts, Education, AFP and PFP, is generally recognised to be the best overall approach, but there are disagreements in emphasis. This is to be expected, considering that many of the proponents of one camp or another have a vested interest in the outcome, as they are involved in the sales or construction of one of the systems. Many insider in the trade, who know how much field conditions can influence matters, conclude that no one side has all the answers.
The relatively recent inclusion of performance based or objective based codes tend to support AFP initiatives, and can lead to the justification for less substantial construction. Some proponents of PFP feel that this new approach is not properly balanced, as the use of automatic suppression with codes allowing performance based designs often favours the cost savings resulting from less solid structures. At times it works the other way around, as firewalls that protrude through the roof structure are used to "sub-divide" buildings such that the separated parts do not require sprinklers.
The decision to favour AFP versus PFP in the design of a new building may be affected by the lifecycle costs. Lifecycle costs can be shifted from capital to operational budgets and vice versa. AFP, may initially require less capital to install, but due to its nature requires significant operational resources to maintain. PFP on the other hand, may be more costly to install but less costly to maintain. Planners consider the expected life expectancy of a building to make the most beneficial long term decision.
There are many things that can and often do go wrong prior to and during the construction of a building. What happens afterwards, however, can also be substantially hazardous, to the point of entirely defeating the fire protection plan that was put in place during the design-phase of a building. Common operator errors include, but are not limited to, the following: failure to regularly clean grease ducts in commercial kitchens (usually every 3 - 6 months), re-entering firestops without proper repairs, damaging and removing spray fireproofing [1] from structural steel elements, changing of the use or occupancy [2] of parts of a building. Any changes that affect the overall fire protection plan, however small they may appear to the layman, legally require the owner to either gain the approval of the fire prevention officer at the municipal fire department or to apply for a building permit with the local, municipal building department. The permit fee is intended to cover the time and expenses for the Authority Having Jurisdiction to evaluate the contemplated change against applicable code requirements. Failure to obtain such approvals make the owner vulnerable to charges of negligence and culpability in a court of law.
The former question tests the owner's knowledge of his or her structure's fire protection and continued compliance with the code by bringing up the example of a common deficiency: the firestopping of existing and new openings in wall and/or floor assemblies required to have a fire-resistance rating. Answers to the latter question expose an owner's ability to keep the fire protection system set up correctly under normal operations and remedial work. The documents are necessary as nobody (including members of an Authority Having Jurisdiction), can be expected to know an entire code by heart. Both fire codes and building codes will refer to one another (to avoid duplication of text).
Examples for remedial work are plumbing work (a new toilet for instance, which could cause the need for a dozen new firestops to be made and breaches of fire barriers), electrical work (say a new recepticle in a wall, which necessitates a conduit and cable), new doors, changing the use of a room, etc.
These materials need to be known by the operators and staff of the building as any routine, seemingly small act, can defeat the overall fire protection plan, which forms the design basis for the building. For example, the installation of some piece of equipment in the building such as a water pump. Depending on where this is installed, it could be construed as a change in occupancy, which in turn requires a building permit to ensure compliance with regulations. Likewise, added piping or cable to run the equipment might necessitate the breaching of a fire-resistance rated wall or floor, where now a firestop is required, which would also necessitate a building permit. If no application for a building permit is made, the Authority Having Jurisdiction is unaware of the change and if the change is not immediately apparent to a fire prevention officer, nobody is the wiser but the owner is culpable.
It is important to remember that even when a fire prevention officer who conducts an inspection does not find anything amiss, this does not mean that the building is in full compliance with the fire code. There is a limit to the amount of searching and disturbing that a fire prevention officer is legally allowed, financed by the municipality, and able to do. For instance, an inspector may only be given one hour to inspect a school, which would not be enough time for an in-depth check. An inspector may be limited to a quick check on fire extinguishers and maintenance records of the sprinkler system. The written OK given after an inspection is only an "OK" for the parts inspected, which may not include things overlooked which severely breach the code. A passed inspection does not absolve a building owner of his or her responsibility to maintain the entire facility in compliance with the fire code, nor does it give them carte blanche that everything is OK with the Authority Having Jurisdiction.
In the U.S.A., this term is used by engineers and code officials when referring only to fire sprinkler systems, not fire alarm or advance smoke detection. Often the American public will assume it is all-encompassing. How it is used, and by whom, will usually indicate how it is meant.
Goals
Fire protection has three major goals:- Life safety (minimum standard in fire and building codes)
- Property protection (typically an insurance requirement, or a regulatory requirement where the protection of building components is necessary to enable life safety)
- Continuity of operations (typically an insurance requirement or an item of self-motivation for building owners - not a regulatory issue). Interruption of operations due to fire damage can be very costly. For instance, a nuclear reactor may cost about one million US dollars per day, if it is not making power that is being sold.
Classifying fires
When deciding on what fire protection is appropriate for any given situation, it is important to assess the types of fire hazard that may be faced.Some jursidictions operate systems of classifying fires using code letters. Whilst these may agree on some classifications, they also vary. Below is a table showing the standard operated in Europe and Australasia against the system used in the United States.
| Type of Fire | Australasian | European | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fires that involve flammable solids such as wood, cloth, rubber, paper, and some types of plastics. | Class A | Class A | Class A |
| Fires that involve flammable liquids or liquifiable solids such as petrol/gasoline, oil, paint, some waxes & plastics, but not cooking fats or oils | Class B | Class B | Class B |
| Fires that involve flammable gases, such as natural gas, hydrogen, propane, butane | Class C | Class C | |
| Fires that involve combustible metals, such as sodium, magnesium, and potassium | Class D | Class D | Class D |
| Fires that involve any of the materials found in Class A and B fires, but with the introduction of an electrical appliances, wiring, or other electrically energized objects in the vicinity of the fire, with a resultant electrical shock risk if a conductive agent is used to control the fire | Class E | (Class E) now no longer in the European standards | Class C |
| Fires involving cooking fats and oils. The high temperature of the oils when on fire far exceeds that of other flammable liquids making normal extinguishing agents ineffective. | Class F | Class F | Class K |
Components
Structural fire protection (in land-based buildings, offshore construction or onboard ships) is typically achieved via three means:- Passive fire protection (use of integral, fire-resistance rated wall and floor assemblies that are used to form fire compartments intended to limit the spread of fire, or occupancy separations, or firewalls, to keep fires, high temperatures and flue gases within the fire compartment of origin, thus enabling firefighting and evacuation)
- Active fire protection (manual and automatic detection and suppression of fires, as in using and installing a Fire Sprinkler system or finding the fire (Fire alarm) and/or extinguishing it)
- Education (ensuring that building owners and operators have copies and a working understanding of the applicable building and fire codes, having a purpose-designed fire safety plan and ensuring that building occupants, operators and emergency personnel know the building, its means of Active fire protection and Passive fire protection, its weak spots and strengths to ensure the highest possible level of safety)
Balanced Approach
Passive fire protection (PFP) in the form of compartmentalisation was developed prior to the widespread use of active fire protection (AFP), mainly in the form of fire sprinklers. During this time, PFP was the dominant mode of protection provided in facility designs. With the widespread installation of fire sprinklers in the past 50 years, the reliance on PFP as the only approach was reduced. There is a perception by some fire protection engineers and some members of the fire protection construction industry that the model building codes have changed with too much reliance on AFP.Lobby groups are typically divided into two camps favouring active or passive fire protection. Each camp tries to garner more business for itself through its influence in establishing or changing local and national building and fire codes. At present, the camp favouring AFP appears to be leading.
A balanced approach between all three parts, Education, AFP and PFP, is generally recognised to be the best overall approach, but there are disagreements in emphasis. This is to be expected, considering that many of the proponents of one camp or another have a vested interest in the outcome, as they are involved in the sales or construction of one of the systems. Many insider in the trade, who know how much field conditions can influence matters, conclude that no one side has all the answers.
The relatively recent inclusion of performance based or objective based codes tend to support AFP initiatives, and can lead to the justification for less substantial construction. Some proponents of PFP feel that this new approach is not properly balanced, as the use of automatic suppression with codes allowing performance based designs often favours the cost savings resulting from less solid structures. At times it works the other way around, as firewalls that protrude through the roof structure are used to "sub-divide" buildings such that the separated parts do not require sprinklers.
The decision to favour AFP versus PFP in the design of a new building may be affected by the lifecycle costs. Lifecycle costs can be shifted from capital to operational budgets and vice versa. AFP, may initially require less capital to install, but due to its nature requires significant operational resources to maintain. PFP on the other hand, may be more costly to install but less costly to maintain. Planners consider the expected life expectancy of a building to make the most beneficial long term decision.
Common items to check for to avoid systemic problems
If any one of the three components of Fire Protection fail, the fire safety plan can be immediately and severely compromised. For example, if the firestop systems in a structure were inoperable, a significant part of the fire safety plan would not work in the event of a fire. Since the overall plan depends on all pieces, it is important to see that each item is in fact functional. Likewise, if there were a sprinkler system or an alarm system, but it's down for lack of knowledgeable maintenance, or if building occupants prop open a fire door and then run a carpet through, the likelihood of damage and casualties is markedly increased. It is vital for everyone to realise that fire protection within a structure is a system that relies on all of its components.There are many things that can and often do go wrong prior to and during the construction of a building. What happens afterwards, however, can also be substantially hazardous, to the point of entirely defeating the fire protection plan that was put in place during the design-phase of a building. Common operator errors include, but are not limited to, the following: failure to regularly clean grease ducts in commercial kitchens (usually every 3 - 6 months), re-entering firestops without proper repairs, damaging and removing spray fireproofing [1] from structural steel elements, changing of the use or occupancy [2] of parts of a building. Any changes that affect the overall fire protection plan, however small they may appear to the layman, legally require the owner to either gain the approval of the fire prevention officer at the municipal fire department or to apply for a building permit with the local, municipal building department. The permit fee is intended to cover the time and expenses for the Authority Having Jurisdiction to evaluate the contemplated change against applicable code requirements. Failure to obtain such approvals make the owner vulnerable to charges of negligence and culpability in a court of law.
Questions for inspectors
These two questions can be used as a litmus test for a building, offshore construction or ship owner's degree of due diligence:- "How many firestops are there in your building/ship, where are they and where do you keep copies of the certification listings that cover each opening?"
- "Where is your local copy of the current fire code and the construction code(s) that were in effect when you applied for the permit(s)."
The former question tests the owner's knowledge of his or her structure's fire protection and continued compliance with the code by bringing up the example of a common deficiency: the firestopping of existing and new openings in wall and/or floor assemblies required to have a fire-resistance rating. Answers to the latter question expose an owner's ability to keep the fire protection system set up correctly under normal operations and remedial work. The documents are necessary as nobody (including members of an Authority Having Jurisdiction), can be expected to know an entire code by heart. Both fire codes and building codes will refer to one another (to avoid duplication of text).
Examples for remedial work are plumbing work (a new toilet for instance, which could cause the need for a dozen new firestops to be made and breaches of fire barriers), electrical work (say a new recepticle in a wall, which necessitates a conduit and cable), new doors, changing the use of a room, etc.
These materials need to be known by the operators and staff of the building as any routine, seemingly small act, can defeat the overall fire protection plan, which forms the design basis for the building. For example, the installation of some piece of equipment in the building such as a water pump. Depending on where this is installed, it could be construed as a change in occupancy, which in turn requires a building permit to ensure compliance with regulations. Likewise, added piping or cable to run the equipment might necessitate the breaching of a fire-resistance rated wall or floor, where now a firestop is required, which would also necessitate a building permit. If no application for a building permit is made, the Authority Having Jurisdiction is unaware of the change and if the change is not immediately apparent to a fire prevention officer, nobody is the wiser but the owner is culpable.
It is important to remember that even when a fire prevention officer who conducts an inspection does not find anything amiss, this does not mean that the building is in full compliance with the fire code. There is a limit to the amount of searching and disturbing that a fire prevention officer is legally allowed, financed by the municipality, and able to do. For instance, an inspector may only be given one hour to inspect a school, which would not be enough time for an in-depth check. An inspector may be limited to a quick check on fire extinguishers and maintenance records of the sprinkler system. The written OK given after an inspection is only an "OK" for the parts inspected, which may not include things overlooked which severely breach the code. A passed inspection does not absolve a building owner of his or her responsibility to maintain the entire facility in compliance with the fire code, nor does it give them carte blanche that everything is OK with the Authority Having Jurisdiction.
See also
- Authority Having Jurisdiction
- Occupancy
- Building code
- Bounding
- Fire test
- Passive fire protection
- Compartmentalization
- Firestop
- Intumescent
- Endothermic
- Firestop pillow
- Fire door
- Fireproofing
- Fire-resistance rating
- Active fire protection
- Fire Sprinkler
- Fire alarm
- Fire alarm system
- Fire alarm control panel
- Manual call point
- False alarm
- Sprinkler Systems
- Hydrant Systems
- Smoke Alarm
- Gaseous fire suppression
- Clean agents
- Fire protection engineering
External links
- Journal of Fire Protection Engineering
- National Fire Protection Association
- ULC
- DIBt
- detailled DESCRIPTION of different fire extinguishing systems
- National Fire Sprinkler Association
Fire is an oxidation process that releases energy in varying intensities in the form of light (with wavelengths also outside the visual spectrum) and heat and often creates smoke. It is commonly used to describe either a fuel in a state of combustion (e.g.
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Compartmentalization or compartmentalisation (UK) refers to an action or process of organising diverse populations into discrete , or "compartments" —each of which has the properties of boundary and isolation, but also has some limited or controlled relation with other
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Fire is an oxidation process that releases energy in varying intensities in the form of light (with wavelengths also outside the visual spectrum) and heat and often creates smoke. It is commonly used to describe either a fuel in a state of combustion (e.g.
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System (from Latin systēma, in turn from Greek σύστημα systēma) is a set of entities, real or abstract, where each entity interacts with, or is related to, at least one other
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A building code, or building control, is a set of rules that specify the minimum acceptable level of safety for constructed objects such as buildings and nonbuilding structures.
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construction is the building or assembly of any infrastructure on a site or sites. Although this may not be thought of as a single activity, in fact construction is a feat of multitasking.
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construction is the building or assembly of any infrastructure on a site or sites. Although this may not be thought of as a single activity, in fact construction is a feat of multitasking.
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firefighter (also called a fireman or firewoman, although these terms have gone out of use in many countries) is trained and equipped to extinguish fires. Increasingly a firefighter is also a rescuer, trained and equipped to rescue people from car accidents, collapsed
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This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling.
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building may refer to one of the following:
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- Any man-made structure used or intended for supporting or sheltering any use or continuous occupancy, or
- An act of construction.
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This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling.
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You can assist by [ editing it] now. A how-to guide is available, as is general .
This article has been tagged since August 2007.
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Fire is an oxidation process that releases energy in varying intensities in the form of light (with wavelengths also outside the visual spectrum) and heat and often creates smoke. It is commonly used to describe either a fuel in a state of combustion (e.g.
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A solid object is in the states of matter characterized by resistance to deformation and changes of volume. At the microscopic scale, a solid has these properties :
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- The atoms or molecules that comprise the solid are packed closely together.
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The WOOD callsign may refer to:
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- WOOD-TV – an NBC-affiliated television station in Grand Rapids, Michigan
- WOOD (AM) – an AM radio station in Grand Rapids, Michigan
- WOOD-FM - an FM radio station in Grand Rapids, Michigan
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textile is a flexible material comprised of a network of natural or artificial fibers often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw wool fibers, linen, cotton, or other material on a spinning wheel to produce long strands known as yarn.
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Natural rubber is an elastic hydrocarbon polymer that naturally occurs as a milky colloidal suspension, or latex, in the sap of some plants. It can also be synthesized. The entropy model of rubber was developed in 1934 by Werner Kuhn.
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Paper is thin material used for writing upon, printing upon or packaging, produced by the amalgamation of fibres, typically vegetable fibers composed of cellulose, which are subsequently held together by hydrogen bonding.
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Plastic is the general term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic polymerization products. They are composed of organic condensation or addition polymers and may contain other substances to improve performance or economics.
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Liquid is one of the four principal states of matter. A liquid is a fluid that can freely form a distinct surface at the boundaries of its bulk material.
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Characteristics
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Gasoline or petrol is a petroleum-derived liquid mixture consisting mostly of aliphatic hydrocarbons and enhanced with aromatic hydrocarbons toluene, benzene or iso-octane to increase octane ratings, primarily used as fuel in internal combustion engines.
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Petroleum (Latin Petroleum derived from Greek πέτρα (Latin petra) - rock + έλαιον (Latin oleum) - oil) or crude oil
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Paint is any liquid, liquifiable, or mastic composition which after application to a substrate in a thin layer is converted to an opaque solid film.
Paint is used to protect, decorate (such as adding color), or add functionality to an object or surface by covering it
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Paint is used to protect, decorate (such as adding color), or add functionality to an object or surface by covering it
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Wax has traditionally referred to a substance that is secreted by bees (beeswax) and used by them in constructing their honeycombs.
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Gas is one of the four major states of matter, consisting of freely moving atoms or molecules without a definite shape. Compared to the solid and liquid states of matter a gas has lower density and a lower viscosity.
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gas, especially when compared to other energy sources such as electricity. Before natural gas can be used as a fuel, it must undergo extensive processing to remove almost all materials other than methane.
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1, −1
(amphoteric oxide)
Electronegativity 2.20 (Pauling scale) More
Atomic radius 25 pm
Atomic radius (calc.) 53 pm
Covalent radius 37 pm
Van der Waals radius 120 pm
Miscellaneous
Thermal conductivity (300 K) 180.
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(amphoteric oxide)
Electronegativity 2.20 (Pauling scale) More
Atomic radius 25 pm
Atomic radius (calc.) 53 pm
Covalent radius 37 pm
Van der Waals radius 120 pm
Miscellaneous
Thermal conductivity (300 K) 180.
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Propane is a three-carbon alkane, normally a gas, but compressible to a liquid that is transportable. It is derived from other petroleum products during oil or natural gas processing. It is commonly used as a fuel for engines, barbecues, and home heating systems.
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Butane, also called n-butane, is the unbranched alkane with four carbon atoms, CH3CH2CH2CH3. Butane is also used as a collective term for n
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Combustion or burning is a complex sequence of exothermic chemical reactions between a fuel and an oxidant accompanied by the production of heat or both heat and light in the form of either a glow or flames.
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The Macro Expansion Template Attribute Language complements TAL, providing macros which allow the reuse of code across template files. Both were created for Zope but are used in other Python projects as well.
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