Fire Safety in the United Kingdom: Principles of Means of Escape within a Commercial Building - Case Study Example

FIRE SAFETY 4TH August, 2008 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Abstract…………...………………………………………………………... 3.0 2. Introduction………………………………………………………… ……... 3.0 3. Significance of Fire Risk Assessment…………………………….………. 4.0 4. Principles and Application of ‘Means of Escape’ within a Commercial building………………………….…….……………. 5.0 5. Mechanical and Electrical means of fire safety…………………………… 6.0 6. Assistance of Building Regulations in fire prevention……………………. 7.0 7. Analysis of Fire Safety Order 2005…………………………………………9.0 8. Conclusion……………………………………………………..………….. 10.0 9. Bibliography…………………………………………………….……….. 11.0 ABSTRACT It is of utmost importance for every organization, whether commercial, residential or industrial to incorporate a proper and systematic fire risk assessment plan for meeting the future incontingencies and unexpected fire hazards. Prevention and rescue operations for fire events require a detailed study of the principles and application of 'Means of Escape' within a commercial and non-commercial building along with the enclosure of various means of electrical and mechanical fire prevention equipments and methods. The following report deals with the above mentioned issues along with the significance of the Fire Safety Act 2005 in U.K. and the prevention of fire by applying the Building Regulations. INTRODUCTION In Great Britain, previously, fire certificates were handed out by the authorized fire services but from 2006, individual business identities are required to carry on their own fire risk assessment procedure. It is very difficult to control and eradicate the evil of fire blaze altogether from the building structures etc, however one can definitely reduce and diminish the happening of unanticipated and unwanted proceedings and actions. A well formulated and strategized communication policy for immediate alarming and awareness of the occupants can be imbibed in the fire system by using the mechanical and electrical fire safety devices. The implication of the Building Regulation lay down by the Britain government mainly during the construction phases of the building are very crucial so as to avoid and control the spreading of fire in the adjacent areas and prevent the destruction to the stipulated province or borough. The fire risk assessment management deals with the coordination of all the components initiating from the conception to the realization stage of the safety plan for the fire prevention and rescue operations. SIGNIFICANCE OF FIRE RISK ASSESSMENT Risk is a term used to comprehend any kind of loss or destruction which can be caused in future due existence of some undesirable event. Risk assessment reveals the quantitative and the qualitative factors of obliteration and annihilation which a future risk entails. However, the Fire risk assessment strategy or management deals with the procedure or course of action to prevent and control the manifestations of fire menace. The fire assessment could be conducted in different means and can be broken down in numerous sections; however the complete process of risk assessment can be summarized into few steps such as firstly the potential fire risk hazards which can be encountered in future need to be identified, secondly finding out all the people who can be harmed or affected by occurrence of such disastrous events, thirdly different methods and techniques for mitigation of risks and threats needs to be explored, a complete fire safety document with a pre-panned action plan to combat the threat needs to be chalked out, and last but not the least the fire safety risk assessment needs to be modified and updated as per the changes in the environment and the incorporation of latest tools and technology of the time (Mackintosh I, 2008). It is quintessential to carry the approach of fire risk assessment in a practical and systematic manner. The whole of the building must be taken into account rather than a consolidated area, even the outdoor locations or rarely used vacant areas must be considered. A Multi hazard approach needs to be implemented clearly categorizing the degree of fire intensity such as low, medium, and high, so as to counter all loopholes of fire incidents. A formula for calculation of risks and its level can be used according to which a strategy can be framed. Risk = Threat Rating x Asset Value x Vulnerability Rating. A Risk Based approach is required to be implemented by the legislation to ensure fire safety in the commercial buildings. It is mandatory for the ‘responsible person’ who may be the owner, employer or the occupier to meticulously carry out the fire risk assessment and implement the fire precautionary and protection measures along with the well framed fire fighting action plan.. Fire risk assessment involves a shift from the cultural to the traditional approach to fire safety. It is necessary for the risk assessor to have a good founding knowledge about the principles of safety, fundamental knowledge about the causes of fire and the means of prevention. PRINCIPLES AND APPLICATION OF ‘MEANS OF ESCAPE’ WITHIN A COMMERCIAL BUILDING As per the Building Regulations 2000, Part B, fire safety all buildings have to be structured in such a manner so that the occupants must have different channels to free themselves and move out of the trap without being overcome by smoke and fire. The design and positioning of doors, corridors, stairways all are constituted within the means of escape. Special provisions are required for commercial buildings where people may not be able to escape by their own unaided efforts. For ensuring satisfaction means of escape for the building occupants the following issues must be strictly considered, sufficient routes and enough capacity to enable persons to escape to a place of safety in the event of fire must be created, proper enclosure for protection, aptly lighted routes with clear signage on the exit doors, facilities to limit the ingress of smoke, and sufficient means of giving early warning of fire becomes obligatory. The staircase should be fully protected for its full height for atleast 30 minutes.Emergency evacuation floor plans should be posted in all of the buildings. For means of escape mainly travel distances, alternative routes, stairways, doors, lifts are the prime considerations (Revington John, viewed on 4th August, 2008) MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL MEANS OF FIRE SAFETY To safeguard against the injury or destruction which can be caused to the electrical and mechanical means, standards have been established in the National Regulation codes, fir instance all electrical installations whether new or replacement of the old must abide by the requirements of the National Electrical Code (NEC) of the National Fire Protection Association. All electrical equipments must be properly grounded and insulated to prevent danger of electric shocks (as per the Environment at MIT, Electrical and Mechanical Safety, Aug 2008). Where the electrical and mechanical equipments are interfaced with the fire alarm system, such information is supposed to be indicated on the fire alarms as per the guidelines of the Fire safety Technical Guide, 2007). To pass early sins of alarming signals to the occupants the installation of smoke alarms or automatic fire detection/alarm systems can significantly increase the level of safety. It is important for the commercial buildings to properly install the fire detection/warning systems taking care about the quality and the reliability aspects. Devices such as Building Bulletin, audio induction loop, lighting protection, constant gas and water supply for the maintenance of the plant rooms and buildings can be employed to prevent and control fire. Radio communication devices, smoke alarms, heat detectors, sirens, emergency evacuation plans, sprinkler system can also be put to use. ASSISTANCE OF BUILDING REGULATIONS IN FIRE PREVENTION The Building Regulations are national regulations operational across England & Wales with discrete regulations applicable in the regions of Scotland & Northern Ireland respectively. The prime reason for following the code of conduct laid down by the National Building Regulation act is basically to ensure health and safety standards pre and post construction phases, to conserve the environment, fuel and power and to make sure that adequate facilities for disable people are provided in the buildings. The applied standards cover the subsequent areas such as the building structure, fire safety measures like providing safe means of escape, fire spread control, access for fire fighting, fire resistance of construction etc. All these issues are of utmost importance to restrict the spreading of fire from one part of the building to another. To provide minimum sound insulations, resistance to the passage of sound, means of ventilation for commercial buildings, controls of all forms of heating appliances, electrical safety etc are deeply catered to in the building control act for controlling the spread of fire. The current developments in the standards of the building regulation concentrate more on preventing fire movement and successful evacuation within the building (Building Regulations News Roundup - May 2007). Part B of the regulation especially spots the fire precautionary measures for safeguarding the building occupants, persons in the neighboring areas and even the fire fighters. The main focus sphere of Part B includes the means of escape in case of fire, fire detection & warning systems, fire resistance of structural elements, fire separation, protection, segregation of units and isolation to prevent fire spread and control of flammable materials (Slater J, 2006.) To restrict the fire blaze or the acceleration of fire in a building, the surface of walls and ceilings should be fashioned with materials which are not flammable and cause the rapid spread of flame, Part B3 of Fire safety focuses on the fire resistant construction. The period of time during which a building should resist collapse is specified according to size and risk associated with it. The little cavities such as the chimneys etc need to be provided for controlling fire breaks. A building should be able to contain a fire which breaks out in any part of it. In most large buildings this is achieved by providing fire tight compartments. Special provision for the access for the disabled people is specified in part M of the Building Regulation which states that “Adequate provision shall be made to enable people with disabilities to safely and independently access and use a building”. . ANALYSIS OF FIRE SAFETY ORDER 2005 General fire safety in England and Wales is realized through the acquiescence with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (‘the Order’). In Scotland, fire safety norms are enclosed in Part 3 of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005, as amended, and the Fire Safety (Scotland) Regulations 2006. Fire safety order wad enforced on 1st Oct, 2006 replacing almost 118 pieces of fire legislation. Under this order all previous fire regulations were amended or replaced, making all traditional fire certificates invalid and ineffective. New fire certificates were replaced with the current date for fire risk assessments. Fire-Risk-Assessment-UK specializes in fire risk assessments to help in application of the new order. Special emphasis is laid on “responsible person” who is required to aptly introduce the means of escape, fire fighting, detection and warning and reducing the risk of fire etc. The order focuses on the compartmentation to mitigate the risks of fire. Article 15 includes highlights the importance of safety drills. Article 21 features the training aspect upon employment, exposure to new /increased risk, new working equipments etc The safety order deals with the following points to safeguard the commercial buildings, such as appointment of a responsible person who could carry out a fire risk assessment procedure effectively, identifying the people who may get affected, providing general fire precautions, taking additional measures to ensure safety where flammable or explosive material is used. CONCLUSION The fire risk assessment is basically an organized and long term visionary perspective or outlook applied in the workplace or at the time of the conduction of activities, to avoid all sorts of harm and injury which may be caused to the workers or the occupants of the building. A proper risk analysis is a means to rationalize whether proper and satisfactory safety techniques have been employed or not. A fire risk assessment will help in determining the chances of fire occurrence and the dangers from fire that the building poses for the people who use it. Compliance with the fire safety order ensures that the design of the building including the new constructions or any alterations or extensions made , are not relied on the external rescue by the fire agencies at times of need rather self sufficiency in all aspects of prevention and control must be a imbibed in the building structure. The occupants must be in such a position to escape safely without any external assistance. Proper disaster and risk management takes care of each and every aspect of safety and fortification. BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Revington John, Fire Risk Assessment, Practical Applications, viewed on 4th August, 2008, Identifying Fire Hazards, Managing Fire Precautions, http://www.gov.im/lib/docs/dlge/fireriskassessmentpowerpoint.pdf 2. Mackintosh I, 31st May, 2008, Undertaking A Fire Safety Risk Assessment , viewed on 4th August, 2008, http://www.articlesbase.com/management-articles/undertaking-a-fire-safety-risk-assessment-433464.html 3. The Environment at MIT, Electrical and Mechanical Safety, modified on 8th April, 2008, viewed on 4th August, 2008, http://web.mit.edu/environment/etis/electrical_mechanical.html 4. Fire safety Technical Guide, Electrical/Mechanical Building Mechanical Services Interfaces and Smoke Control , modified on 20th March, 2007, viewed on 4th August, 2008, http://www.ucl.ac.uk/efd/maintenance/fire/documents/UCLFire_TN_o38.pdf 5. Fuel Safety Regulations made under Section 51 of the Fire Safety Act, S.N.S. 2002, c. 6, last modified on 29th April, 2008, http://www.gov.ns.ca/JUST/REGULATIONS/regs/fsfuelsf.htm 6. Building Regulations News Roundup - May 2007 , Passive Fire Protection Federation edited by Building Talk 04/05/07, viewed on 4th August, 2008, http://www.thenbs.com/buildingregs/newsEvents/roundup2007-05-02.asp 7. Jim Slater ,October 2006, Design And Project Management , Building Control, viewed on 4th August, 2008, http://www.designandprojectmanagement.co.uk/index.php?page=13 Read More