Reflection on Fire Safety: Cancer Council - Assignment Example

REFLECTION ON FIRE SAFETY Student’s name Code & Course Professor’s Name University City Date Cancer Council Executive Summary This retrospect paper introduces building fire safety with respect to fire detection and protection devices. Building and construction codes are brought out as important aspects in fire safety. The paper proceeds to look into two lectures. The first lecture entails fire alarms and detection systems. It expounds on various alarm systems and how they can be applied for building fire safety. Lecture two majors on fire sprinkler systems, their production, features and their places of application. Four assignments are reviewed. These assignments provide for the application of the Australian Standards as well as the corresponding clauses in specific building classes. Plans and recommendations concerning fire safety and application of devices are included in the assignments. Australian Standards are then reviewed concisely with respect to previous research concerning the standards. Finally, a conclusion is presented with a general outlook of fire safety in the contemporary world. Introduction Building fire safety entails establishing guidelines aimed at reducing destructions by fire. This includes detecting a fire before it ignites as well as when it starts and spreads. This calls for fire detectors and protection devices. Some of the safety measures are included in the construction of a building while others are installed on an already constructed one. Countries, notably Australia have fire codes that are mainly embedded in building construction codes (Shih, Sher & Giggins 2013). Failure to comply with these codes deems a building not appropriately constructed. In the modern world, building construction includes installation of fire safety devices such as automatic fire alarms. These alarms are triggered by supplementing smoke and fire detectors installed in a building. Building and construction codes require that buildings be fitted with accessible firefighting tools such as fire extinguishers at accessible locations. This retrospect paper reviews lessons from two lectures and four assignments regarding building fire safety. Lecture 1 Alarms and Fire detection systems are crucial during fire emergencies. They help in timely detection of fires either manually or automatically. Manual fire detection systems have been useful for a long time and are the most basic methods of detecting fire. On the other hand, there exists a pool of automatic systems to choose from. They can be strategically positioned for early fire detection at significantly low costs. From the lecture, it is evident that technology has been a major input in fire detection ranging from the analogue to the digital world. It is also clear that addressable systems and analog addressable systems are most preferred to conventional systems. With all these tools at hand, any company or organization that fails to install fire detection and alarm systems has failed on its part. This is due to the accessibility, cost-effectiveness, and efficiency of the devices. As much as the lecture gives much detail of how the devices work, people in a building do not need all the complex knowledge. Only a few individuals are needed for programming, monitoring, and control while others remain safe and updated on any fire incidences, in a timely manner. Lecture 2 This lecture provides relevant information concerning fire protection systems. An in-depth analysis of these systems reveals that most of the protection techniques adopted in most building are water-based. Though there are those that have added chemicals that help in fighting fires, it is evident that water is the main element used in protection against fire. As such, a variety of systems including wet sprinkler systems, dry sprinklers, deluge sprinklers and pre-action sprinklers are studied. Of these, the wet sprinkler system is the most widely used in buildings. It is endorsed based on its reliability, simplicity, and automatic sprinklers. Alongside these four systems, sprinkler heads are available in more than 50,000 designs based on the requirement of any system. These systems are also designed to cater for needs such as places that may freeze. Highly volatile areas are also covered by the deluge system. The lecture displays the technological perspective of protection against fires. It is therefore arguably true that any building that catches fire with no internal means of protection should be reconstructed in line with the available pool of technology for protection. Assignment 1 The assignment focuses on class 2, class 6, class 7a and class 7b buildings. The building design is a significant factor in protection against fire. The assignment gives specifications concerning such classes of buildings with regard to fire safety. To begin with, buildings should be partitioned accordingly where the kitchen and sanitary compartments are directly proximate. For additional safety, doors must swing in the egress direction. Buildings should be designed in such a way that exits are within a 40 meters range while large buildings should have fire hydrants. Assignment 2 Assignment 2 concerns itself with the installation of emergency lighting and smoke detectors as well as their relevance in various areas in building classifications 7a and 5. First, emergency lighting is crucial in fire-isolated areas, notably stairwells. Photoelectric Smoke detectors and alarms should be installed in the stairwells in all floor levels accessing a stairwell. Correspondingly, these detectors are not relevant in open places such as car parks, overhanging roof areas, open sided walkways, balconies, and verandas. Sanitary places do not require smoke detectors. Areas with open ceilings and various electrical equipmentS have special directions for installation of smoke detectors. Assignment 3 For buildings with a car park, solo occupancy units and retail units, internal and external fire hydrants are necessary. External attack hydrants should be located on the ground floor such that they cover the basement and that ground floor. Internal fire hydrants should be installed in every fire-isolated exit at each storey level. Non-fire isolated areas require specified attack hydrants to provide added supply to various units on the ground floor. The same case applies to the first floor of the building with the accompanying units. Assignment 4 AS 2118.1 1999 provides the requirements for installation of automatic fire sprinklers. In this assignment, these specifications are applied. First, sidewall sprinklers have been fitted in accordance with clause 5.5.Clauses 5.1 and 5.2 give specifications for standard and staggered spacing for other sprinklers. The sprinklers should have an interface of more than 2m always except where the building has baffles that prevent any adjacent sprinklers wetting each other.With regard to pressures at different sprinklers, specifications are given concerning various hazard systems. Australian Standards In accordance with Australian standards, all installed devices should have operator’s manuals, ‘as installed drawings and installers statements. The system equipment should be installed and located in line with the ‘as installed drawings’. The equipment should be constructed with respect to the relevant Australian standards. Installation of devices should consider compatibility with the environment, particularly suitability, and should not exceed the allowed number of detectors. The alarm zone requirements of AS 1670.1 clause 2.4 should be adhered to. Primary and secondary power sources must be suitable for type and capacity. The alarm zone circuit should be within the scope of the manufacturer’s specifications. Alarm reset facility, isolate, fault test and alarm test should be operational and accurate. Fault response should be limited to 100s for each device. Flame detectors should be installed in such a way that they offer enough protection for the area. The detectors should be fixed rigidly without any blind spots in an area under protection. To avoid false alarms, the lenses of the detectors should be clean, dust-free and protected from any radiation. The sound system and intercom system are crucial for fire safety in buildings. In the case of a fire, the systems help in evacuating personnel from a building in a fast and orderly fashion. These systems should, therefore, be in a position to receive alarm signals originating from an installed detector, particularly smoke and flame detectors in this context. The systems should deliver intelligible directions concerning the emergency at hand. For fire alarm systems, automatic and manual devices should be available to proximate and reachable places for access by personnel. AS 35 clearly gives the requirements and procedures necessary for sound and intercom systems as well as personnel response. AS 2484.2 provides the building code of Australia to be used in the construction of all classes of buildings. Electrical requirements for safety are provided in AS/NZS 3000. AS 2118.1 1999 provides the requirements for automatic fire sprinkler systems. The sprinkler systems are vital in the provision of protection of the building structure, occupants and the environment. Conclusion In the contemporary world, fire safety is a vital consideration. With the call for globalization and sustainability, being safe from fires can be an important milestone. Buildings in Australia and globally should adhere to building codes established by the governing bodies. This way, all buildings will be constructed in an eco-friendly manner, inclusive of fire-protection systems. In essence, when a building catches fire, it does affect not only its construction and occupants but also the environment and society. Adhering to building codes is therefore a vital tool for such globalization, sustainability and social responsibility (Ashe et.al 2013). Additionally, building owners should invest in up-to-date fire safety methods such as installation of automatic smoke and fire detectors and automatic sprinklers. The governing bodies should ensure that they regularly revise various standards to align them with the dynamic technological world. Use of outdated technology for fire safety is a lethal hazard in itself. Reference list Ashe, B, Newton, PW, Enker, R, Bell, J, Apelt, R, Hough, R, & Hargreaves, R 2003, Sustainability and the building code of Australia. Shih, S, Sher, W., & Giggins, H, 2013, ‘Assessment of the building code of Australia to inform the development of BIM-enabled code checking system’, In Proceedings of CIB World Building Congress. Read More