Fire Safety Management for the Academic Building - Term Paper Example

FIRE SAFETY MANAGEMENT Insert Name Fire Safety Management Introduction 1.0 Identification of Fire Hazards 1.1 Identification of Ignition Source 1.2 Identification of Fuel Source 1.3 Identification of Oxygen Source 2.0 Identification of At-Risk Persons 3.0 Evaluation, Removal/Reduction, and Protection from Fire Risks 3.1 Evaluation 3.1.1Evaluate the Probability of a Fire Incident 3.1.2 Evaluation of the Fire Risk to the Building’s Occupants 3.2 Reduction/Removal of the Fire Risk 4.0 Record, Plan and Instruction Conclusion References Introduction During the preliminary building construction stages, it is important to acknowledge the occurrence of varied disasters and their effect on the building’s occupants. Disasters of huge impacts such as fires ought to be put into consideration during the construction phase. As a result, the design of fire systems and strategies in buildings is important where the two elements constitute fire engineering (CIBSE Guide E, p1-1). On the other hand, fire management comprehensively entails fire safety engineering by analysing the fire hazards, the probability of the occurrence of fire disaster, its impact on the building’s occupants and outlines how an actual fire disaster will be contained. Fire safety management involves:- 1.0 Identification of Fire Hazards Fire hazards refer to the potential elements within the building and its external environment that have the capacity to result into a fire and hence place the occupants in immediate danger. Towards fire management, the identification of fire hazards is the first step as this practice provides basic data that is used to develop the fire safety plan. In identifying the fire hazards, the identification of the fuel, oxygen and ignition sources is important as the three elements support combustion (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p.12). 1.1 Identification of the Ignition Source The ignition stage is the first stage in the fire development cycle and involves a source of energy that provides the initial combustion heat. For the academic centre, the sources of ignition are multiple ranging from electrical to mechanical due to the presence of several electrical equipments within the learning centre. The Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide highlights several ignition sources such as cooking equipment, smoker’s materials and/or faulty electrical equipment among others (p12). Within the building’s compartments, fire hazards can be identified searching for indications such as scorch marks on wooden furniture, charred electrical sockets and cigarette burns. 1.2 Identification of the Sources of Fuel Fuel refers to anything combustible and has the capacity to accelerate the rate of heat transfer. From the academic building, fuels exist in gaseous, solid and liquid forms since much of the building’s structure and fittings are made of combustible material. Additionally, the quantities of fuel within the compartment/building have a positive impact on fire disasters. Sources of fuel such as liquefied petroleum gas that is mainly used in the centre’s kitchen and furniture and fittings within the classrooms/labs as well as wall and ceiling linings provide sufficient fuels to accelerate the fire development process (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p13). 1.3 Identify Sources of Oxygen This is determinant on the building’s ventilation profile that is classified into two within the academic building. The first classification is based on natural airflow within the building and secondly, the mechanical air conditioning and handling systems. These systems are meant to complement one another by introducing or extracting air into and out of the building (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p13). The main aim of the identification of fire hazards is to identify areas where the three fire elements namely the ignition source, fuel and oxygen do not interact. According to the Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, this will significantly reduce the chances of a potential fire disaster in occurring (12). Recommendations for reducing the fire risk of the building overall are given in Part One above, with special notice given to the need to replace the wooden ceiling and ensure the installation of appropriate cavity barriers in the outer walls. 2.0 Identification of People at Risk This is the second most important process of the fire risk assessment that involves the identification of individuals at risk upon the occurrence of a fire disaster. Towards this end, it is important to identify the areas with a large number of students at any given time. These locations should be given priority as they exhibit a high number of casualties in the event of a fire. The protection of human life is the central objective of the fire safety engineering concept (CIBSE Guide E, p2-3). Majority of the building’s users are students with an estimated population of 300 during either of the sessions. Other users include teachers, workers and visitors who can easily be present within the building during a fire disaster. During the identification of people at risk exercise, the location of persons unfamiliar with the building’s layout should be given priority to ensure their safe escape from the building before they succumb to the toxic fumes. As an academic centre, the building may be host to a number of visitors and they should therefore be guided during their stay within the building to reduce the number of casualties during a fire emergency. Additionally, clearly marked fire exits and warning devices ought to be placed strategically within the building’s compartments to ensure immediate fire response. The second category of persons at risk includes isolated employees who either work alone, for example IT personnel working in the building’s IT hub located in the basement or work in secluded areas such as the stores in the basement. It is impossible for such employees to identify fires at their initial stages thus necessitating preventive measures such as the presence of fire suppression, detection and warning systems within the area (CIBSE Guide E, p2-2). On the other hand, fire escape routes in the area should be easily accessible and clearly marked as provided in Part A. Thirdly, unaccompanied children within the academic building are at immediate danger since they can easily succumb to the toxic fumes emitted during a fire incident. As a result, children movements within the building ought to be restricted to minimise instances such as the loss of life. Additionally, children have a tendency to panic in the event of a fire disaster and are less likely to successfully access the escape routes. The fourth category includes persons with physical disabilities and those with sensory impairments. Due to the limitations in their movements and sensory abilities, these people are most likely to be unable to access the fire escape routes or even detect the presence of a fire. Approved Document B requires the presence of fire warning systems within the building’s compartments to facilitate quick evacuation processes (p23). For this category, the presence of display and sound warning systems should be considered in order to direct them on the direction to move to during a fire emergency. On the other hand, commotions during the fire evacuation process may make it impossible for the physically impaired to escape using the stairways. Therefore, the presence of protected refuges within the building should be conveniently located to assist the physically impaired in escaping the fire. Lastly, the building’s occupants may be unable to leave the building hurriedly because of one reason or another. The Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide specifies these people to include the elderly, pregnant women and parents with their children among others (p15). Their inability to vacate the premises within a short period of time may negatively impact on the rescue efforts hence resulting into increased loss of lives. As a result, the Approved Document B provides the presence of multiple stairways as well as protected escape ducts within the building. According to the CIBSE Guide E, fire resistance within the building’s internal environment should be provided to prevent fire spread across site boundary lines (p3-4). This can be achieved by sub-dividing the building into compartments that reduce the radiation area at the building’s boundary. For planning purposes, it can be assumed that majority of the building’s population is largely comprised of students that can either be physically fit or otherwise. This will enables the assessors develop sound fire management plans for the evacuation procedures. 3.0 Evaluation, Removal/Reduction and Protection from Fire Risks With the identification of potential fire hazards and the people at risk in the event of a fire disaster, it is prudent to conduct regular routine checks to ensure fire safety. Towards evaluating the fire risks, it is important to acknowledge the learning centre’s management and the various ways the centre’s facilities are put into use by the various categories of occupants (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p15). 3.1.1 Evaluate the Probability of a Fire Incident Firstly, the building has several ignition sources distributed across the five levels that are either mechanical or electrical. According to the Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide (p15), buildings with high numbers of ignition sources have high probabilities of triggering a fire disaster. With the presence of books, furniture and other combustible material within the compartment that act as fuel, fires are most likely to spread quickly within the compartments as well as adjacent building facilities. Electrical ignition sources within the building exist within the kitchen area and the laboratories where electrical equipments are widely used. The classrooms also have sockets that may act as electrical ignition sources. These equipments can easily act as ignition sources due to poor maintenance especially the accumulation of combustible material near the source. 3.1.2 Evaluation of the Fire Risk to the Building’s Occupants Secondly, the evaluation of the fire risk to the building’s occupants is based on understanding the spread of fire within the building. Although the building’s interior surface is coated with inflammable linings, fire spread within the building is mainly through conduction (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p16). The ceiling surface on the third level has the capability to fuel the spread of fire to other compartments. Within the compartments, fire spread is basically through convection where room temperatures rise. As a result, the Approved Document B specifies that all compartments should have secondary escape routes to facilitate escape in the event that the primary exit fails. Occupants in the lobbies, laboratories and dining areas should be given priority due to their high number. Adequate stairways that provide the basic means of escape should be provided to facilitate evacuations where fire starts in the escape routes. Additionally, individuals in compartments with wedge doors such as the library should be marked as occupants at great danger and should be prioritised 3.2 Reduction/Removal of the Fire Risk Towards the reduction or removal of the fire risks, the building’s management should consider the following:- The Reduction in the number of ignition sources within the building The classrooms and laboratories should have minimal number of electrical ignition sources where the present ones are properly installed by a qualified electrical contractor. Sockets should be sealed whenever they are not in use to prevent the possibility of a fire incident. Smokers within the building should be designated a secluded area within the building’s external environment to avoid the presence of smoking material within the building. Lastly, the management should enforce restriction in the use of naked flames especially in the kitchen area to avoid ignition through radiation or convection. Removal/reduction of Fuel Sources As a learning centre, majority of the material within the building are flammable hence providing a ready source of fuel. These include furniture, books and other flammable substances such as LPG among others. Furniture and other fittings within the building should be fire-retardant treated to reduce their availability for fires. Additionally, flammable materials should be stored in designated storerooms preferably outside the building (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p18). In the absence of fuels within the building, fire incidents can be easily suppressed where the development of fire within the building is limited. In the storerooms, the flammable substances should be separated and kept at low levels to reduce their impact on fire development. Lastly, combustible waste collected from the building should not be stored in large amounts and should be regularly disposed of. Academic materials such as books, wall charts and displays as well as broken furniture should be constantly disposed off to reduce the availability of fuel within the building (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p19). Removal of Oxygen Sources As earlier identified, oxygen supports combustion and thus its elimination results into slowed down fire intensity. The reduction of potential oxygen sources involves the reduction of openings within the building’s compartments to only those required for ventilation purposes (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p19). Additionally, oxidising material should not be stored near any heat source to avoid accelerating the ignition during the early stages of a fire. Reduce Fire Risk to the Occupants Due to the high number of occupants within the building, adequate display signs to direct individuals to the escape routes should be placed within the building’s interior (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p28). Additionally, the signs should lead the occupants to finding the fire fighting equipment within the building. The Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide provides that the displays should comprise of a pictogram and a text to enhance understanding (28). To protect the occupants from fire risk, call points should be fitted within all the levels of the building with a separation of 7m (Approved Document B). However, an electrical system that links the sounders and/or visuals within the entire builders to ensure the safety of all the occupants in the event of a fire at a single section of the building. Fire extinguishers should be widely available within the building’s levels to gain control over the initial fire development stage. Various types of fire extinguishers should be made available for use depending on their suitability for the risk and should be easily accessible (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p22). Hose reels provide complementary fire fighting equipments that should have the capability to be linked to a reliable water source. These fire fighting equipments however require regular maintenance undertaken by competent personnel. Escape routes such as protected stairways should be made available in the entire building to facilitate escape. Occupants that require special assistance should be accommodated in the building’s ground level to aid their escape during a fire incident (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p24). Assembly points should be identified within the building’s external environment to facilitate a head count. 4.0 Record, Plan and Instruction Due to the size and layout of the academic centre, written policies have to be developed towards the management of fire safety. The Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide provides that it is important to record the findings of the risk assessments regularly conducted on the premises (p32). This includes noting the identified fire hazards, persons at risk and their actions during a fire incident. Additionally, it is important to record the designated actions that have been taken to reduce the occurrence of the identified fire hazards and the spread of smoke within the building especially through the stairways. Due to the element of life safety, it is important to note the training areas that the students among other occupants require to ease evacuation. Information gathered through the risk assessment exercise should be consolidated into a dossier that consists of the emergency plan. The plan specifies the actual actions to be taken during a fire incident and should be distributed to all the employees, the appointees and the senior management (Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guide, p34). However, all the building’s occupants should be informed on the contents of the emergency plan. The applicability of the evacuation plan is important and this can only be proved through regular emergency drills that are conducted to familiarise the occupants with the evacuation procedures. 5.0 Conclusion Fire safety management seeks to enhance the protection of property as well as the preservation of life. The academic centre’s fire protective measures are satisfactory although a few measures have to be put to place to ensure comprehensive compliance with the provided fire safety standards. These include the installation of cavity barriers on the exterior of the building’s walls as well as constructing external stairways that can be accessed from either side of the corridors. References CIBSE, 2003. Fire Engineering, The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers, London: The Dorset Press. Dept. for Communities & Local Government, 2006. Fire safety risk assessment: small & medium places of assembly (PDF document), London: Department for Communities and Local Government, Accessed from < www.firesafetyguides.communities.gov.uk > on April 14th, 2010. Dept. for Communities & Local Government, 2007. Approved Document B, Volume 2 – Buildings other than Dwelling Houses (PDF doc.), London: Department for Communities and Local Government, Accessed from < www.thebuildingregs.com > on April 14, 2010. Read More