1、THE FIRE SAFETY DESIGN OF APARTMENT BUILDINGS 13 FIRE SAFETY MATRIX The objective of this fire safety matrix is to provide a guide for the fire engineering design of apartment buildings. The matrix is only intended for guidance and an appropriately qualified fire safety engineer should verify the fi
2、nal design. The three main fire scenarios that should be considered in the design of apartment buildings are: a smouldering fire in an apartment, a flaming fire in an apartment and a fire in common spaces (ie stairs and corridors). Irrespective of the building and occupant characteristics, some mini
3、mal fire safety measures should be implemented in all apartments. The following is a list of essential fire safety measures that should be provided in all apartment buildings: Smoke detectors Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system to shut down on fire alarm A 30-minute minimum fire
4、resistance between apartments, vertical shafts and floors. 13.1 Emergency strategy Brief descriptions of the emergency strategy, or emergency plans used in the matrix are provided below. Evacuation on alarm all occupants evacuate the building. Non evacuation occupants in the room of fire origin evac
5、uate the building. Other occupants remain in their rooms, waiting for fire brigade assistance and advice, and carry out protect-in-place activities. Staged evacuation occupants in the room of fire origin and on the fire floor evacuate first. The remaining occupants are directed to evacuate automatic
6、ally in the following sequence until the fire brigade intervenes. Occupants immediately above the fire floor evacuate after those on the fire floor, followed by the floors above. Occupants on levels below the fire floor are evacuated last. Fire brigade intervention can alter the sequence of evacuati
7、on, or halt the evacuation in response to current conditions or any changes. 13.2 Occupants at risk For the three fire scenarios and the three emergency strategies, the following matrix outlines the occupants that are most at risk. 13.3 Matrix variables The fire safety design of apartment buildings
8、consists of numerous variables and interdependencies. These variables have to be considered concurrently to provide the most effective design. The selection of fire safety measures in many cases results in a trade-off between various alternatives. For example, sprinkler protection can permit a reduc
9、tion in fire resistance rating required for buildings and may allow extended travel distances. These trade-offs and interrelationships between fire safety measures need to be considered to obtain the most efficient and effective fire safety design. Table 14 lists some of the fire safety measures tha
10、t should be considered for apartment buildings. The variables presented are not a comprehensive list, and other fire safety measures may be more appropriate for more complex designs. Table 14 Matrix variables 13.4 Buildings greater than 25m The fire safety matrix for buildings greater than 25m high
11、is presented in Table 15. The matrix provides the recommended fire safety measures for apartment buildings with respect to sprinkler protection and the emergency strategy. The matrix provides a simple method of determining some of the minimum fire safety requirements of an apartment building. It can
12、 also be used to evaluate which type of emergency strategy would be most effective, or when sprinklers would be beneficial given certain building conditions. The justification of the recommended fire safety measures is pvided in Section 14.1. Table 15 Fire safety matrix: buildings greater than 25m t
13、he above matrix are designed to provide at least two levels of protection for the occupants. As the building height increases, the number of fire protection measures also increases to provide additional levels of protection and maintain the level of safety for the occupants. Table 16 summarises the
14、occupants who are most at risk and the levels of fire safety provided by the above fire safety matrix. Table 17 provides the cell key for identifying the designated cells in Table 16. This key remains the same for all cases presented. Table 16 Levels of fire safety (buildings greater than 25m) Table 17 Cell key 13.5 Buildings greater than three storeys and less than 25m The fire safety matrix for buildings greater than three stories and less than 25m high is
