Sustainable Fire Engineering

NIST WTC Recommendations 21-24 > Improved Firefighting

Previous Posts in This Series …

2011-10-25: NIST’s Recommendations on the 9-11 WTC Building Collapses … GROUP 1. Increased Structural Integrity – Recommendations 1, 2 & 3 (out of 30)

2011-11-18: NIST WTC Recommendations 4-7 > Structural Fire Endurance … GROUP 2. Enhanced Fire Endurance of Structures – Recommendations 4, 5, 6 & 7

2011-11-24: NIST WTC Recommendations 8-11 > New Design of Structures … GROUP 3. New Methods for Fire Resisting Design of Structures – Recommendations 8, 9, 10 & 11

2011-11-25: NIST WTC Recommendations 12-15 > Improved Active Protection … GROUP 4. Improved Active Fire Protection – Recommendations 12, 13, 14 & 15

2011-11-30: NIST Recommendations 16-20 > Improved People Evacuation … GROUP 5. Improved Building Evacuation – Recommendations 16, 17, 18, 19 & 20

2011-12-04: SOME PRELIMINARY COMMENTS …

1. Such is the pervasively high level of both direct and indirect fire losses, not all of which have yet been identified … that a force of committed firefighters, having sufficient numbers and properly trained and equipped, is a valuable social asset in any community … and one not to be weakened or diluted easily.

2. Lack of discipline among firefighters was an issue during the day of 9-11 (11th September 2011) in New York …

In real life or death situations, however, discipline is essential … but competent and efficient command, control and co-ordination … facilitated by reliable systems of communication (human and electronic) … are critical.

And accurate, real time information about what is happening at a building fire incident of whatever scale … i.e. situation awareness … is a tool which propels forward and encourages the effective functioning of both the firefighter and the user/occupant evacuating the building.

3. A serious gap, internationally … a deep cavern … in the awareness, training and education of firefighters at all levels … is the issue of ‘disability’ and the varying range of abilities in a typical building user/occupant profile.

It is not fully appreciated by firefighters that certain people may die if placed in a standard fireman’s lift position … or, if shouted and screamed at, many people may have no understanding whatever of the firefighter’s intended meaning … or that, in order for everyone to reach a place of safety, it is necessary for firefighters to ensure that safe, accessible routes from the building (i.e. clear of all obstacles, e.g. fire hose lines) are prepared for, thoroughly, in advance of any fire incident … and actually provided should one occur.

Panic attacks during an emergency do exist ! Standard movement times for people evacuating do not exist !! And … firefighters may themselves become impaired during a building fire incident !!!

4. As for building designers … where do I even start ?? Much could, and should, be done in the design and initial construction of a building to assure firefighter safety. But … where does any requirement to consider this issue appear in national building codes/regulations ??

I have already discussed this matter in relation to European Union (EU) Regulation 305/2011 on Construction Products, where such a requirement is contained in Basic Requirement for Construction Works 2: ‘Safety in Case of Fire’ (Annex I).

2005 NIST WTC RECOMMENDATIONS

GROUP 6. Improved Emergency Response

Technologies and procedures for emergency response should be improved to enable better access to buildings, response operations, emergency communications, and command and control in large-scale emergencies.

NIST WTC Recommendation 21.

NIST recommends the installation of fire-protected and structurally hardened elevators to improve emergency response activities in tall buildings by providing timely emergency access to responders and allowing evacuation of mobility-impaired building occupants. Such elevators should be installed for exclusive use by emergency responders during emergencies.* In tall buildings, consideration also should be given to installing such elevators for use by all occupants. NIST has found that the physiological impacts on emergency responders of climbing numerous (e.g. 20 or more) storeys makes it difficult to conduct effective and timely firefighting and rescue operations in building emergencies without functioning elevators. The use of elevators for these purposes will require additional operating procedures and protocols, as well as a requirement for release of elevator door restrictors by emergency response personnel.

[ * F-44 The access time for emergency responders, in tall building emergencies where elevators are not functioning and only stairways can be used, averages between 1 minute and 2 minutes per floor, which, for example, corresponds to between 1½ and 2 hours (depending on the amount of gear and equipment carried) to reach the 60th floor of a tall building. Further, the physiological impact on the emergency responders of climbing more than 10 to 12 floors in a tall building makes it difficult for them to immediately begin aggressive firefighting and rescue operations.]

Affected Standards: ASME A 17, ANSI 117.1, NFPA 70, NFPA 101, NFPA 1221, NFPA 1500, NFPA 1561, NFPA 1620, and NFPA 1710. Model Building and Fire Codes: The standards should be adopted in model building and fire codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

NIST WTC Recommendation 22.

NIST recommends the installation, inspection, and testing of emergency communications systems, radio communications, and associated operating protocols to ensure that the systems and protocols: (1) are effective for large-scale emergencies in buildings with challenging radio frequency propagation environments; and (2) can be used to identify, locate, and track emergency responders within indoor building environments and in the field. The federal government should co-ordinate its efforts that address this need within the framework provided by the SAFECOM programme of the Department of Homeland Security.

a. Rigorous procedures, including pre-emergency inspection and testing, should be developed and implemented for ensuring the operation of emergency communications systems and radio communications in tall buildings and other large structures (including tunnels and subways), or at locations where communications are difficult.

b. Performance requirements should be developed for emergency communications systems and radio communications that are used within buildings or in built-up urban environments, including standards for design, testing, certification, maintenance, and inspection of such systems.

c. An interoperable architecture for emergency communication networks – and associated operating protocols – should be developed for unit operations within and across agencies in large-scale emergencies. The overall network architecture should cover local networking at incident sites, dispatching, and area-wide networks, considering: (a) the scale of needed communications in terms of the number of emergency responders using the system in a large-scale emergency and the organizational hierarchy; and (b) challenges associated with radio frequency propagation, especially in buildings; (c) interoperability with existing legacy emergency communications systems (i.e. between conventional two-way systems and newer wireless network systems); and (d) the need to identify, locate, and track emergency responders at an incident site.

Affected Standards: FCC, SAFECOM, NFPA Standards on Electronic Safety Equipment, NFPA 70, NFPA 297, and NFPA 1221. Model Building Codes: The standards should be adopted in model building codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

NIST WTC Recommendation 23.

NIST recommends the establishment and implementation of detailed procedures and methods for gathering, processing, and delivering critical information through integration of relevant voice, video, graphical, and written data to enhance the situational awareness of all emergency responders. An information intelligence sector* should be established to co-ordinate the effort for each incident.

[ * F-45 A group of individuals that is knowledgeable, experienced, and specifically trained in gathering, processing, and delivering information critical for emergency response operations, and is ready for activation in large and/or dangerous events.]

Affected Standards: National Incident Management System (NIMS), NRP, SAFECOM, FCC, NFPA Standards on Electronic Safety Equipment, NFPA 1221, NFPA 1500, NFPA 1561, NFPA 1620, and NFPA 1710. Model Building Codes: The standards should be adopted in model building codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

NIST WTC Recommendation 24.

NIST recommends the establishment and implementation of codes and protocols for ensuring effective and uninterrupted operation of the command and control system for large-scale building emergencies.

a. State, local, and federal jurisdictions should implement the National Incident Management System (NIMS). The jurisdictions should work with the Department of Homeland Security to review, test, evaluate, and implement an effective unified command and control system. NIMS addresses interagency co-ordination and establishes a response matrix – assigning lead agency responsibilities for different types of emergencies, and functions. At a minimum, each supporting agency should assign an individual to provide co-ordination with the lead agency at each incident command post.

b. State, local, and federal emergency operations centres (EOC’s) should be located, designed, built, and operated with security and operational integrity as a key consideration.

c. Command posts should be established outside the potential collapse footprint of any building which shows evidence of large multi-floor fires or has serious structural damage. A continuous assessment of building stability and safety should be made in such emergencies to guide ongoing operations and enhance emergency responder safety. The information necessary to make these assessments should be made available to those assigned responsibility (see related Recommendations 15 and 23).

d. An effective command system should be established and operating before a large number of emergency responders and apparatus are dispatched and deployed. Through training and drills, emergency responders and ambulances should be required to await dispatch requests from the incident command system and not to self-dispatch in large-scale emergencies.

e. Actions should be taken via training and drills to ensure a co-ordinated and effective emergency response at all levels of the incident command chain by requiring all emergency responders that are given an assignment to immediately adopt and execute the assignment objectives.

f. Command post information and incident operations data should be managed and broadcast to command and control centres at remote locations so that information is secure and accessible by all personnel needing the information. Methods should be developed and implemented so that any information that is available at an interior information centre is transmitted to an emergency responder vehicle or command post outside the building.

END

Sunday, December 4th, 2011 architecture, built environment, design, eu law, fire, human health & safety, national law, regulations & standards, social environment, virtual environment No Comments

NIST WTC Recommendations 12-15 > Improved Active Protection

Previous Posts in This Series …

2011-10-25: NIST’s Recommendations on the 9-11 WTC Building Collapses … GROUP 1. Increased Structural Integrity – Recommendations 1, 2 & 3 (out of 30)

2011-11-18: NIST WTC Recommendations 4-7 > Structural Fire Endurance … GROUP 2. Enhanced Fire Endurance of Structures – Recommendations 4, 5, 6 & 7

2011-11-24: NIST WTC Recommendations 8-11 > New Design of Structures … GROUP 3. New Methods for Fire Resisting Design of Structures – Recommendations 8, 9, 10 & 11

2011-11-25: SOME PRELIMINARY COMMENTS …

1. Reliability has always been an issue with Active Fire Protection Systems … but, it is neither acknowledged, nor fully understood, that … Reliability Is Equally An Issue With Passive Fire Protection Measures !

Furthermore, the following should always be taken into account when considering the Safety Factors to be applied in calculating the level of satisfactory fire safety and protection which is provided in a specific project … one of the design objectives in Ethical Fire Engineering.

For example, if Category C below is indicative of the design and construction quality on a particular building site … just think of the Priory Hall Apartment Development in Dublin (!) … the Safety Factors to be applied in the design should be high … and with regard to actual construction, it should be expected that the Reliability of both Active Fire Protection Systems and Passive Fire Protection Measures will be initially low … with Life Cycle Reliability being entirely non-existent.

Quality of Fire Engineering Design & Related Construction

Category A

(a) Design of the works is exercised by an independent, appropriately qualified and experienced architect/engineer/fire engineer, with design competence relating to fire safety and protection in buildings … and, most importantly, that he/she interacts directly with the Project Design Professional in Responsible Charge ;

(b) Installation/fitting of related construction products/systems is exercised by appropriately qualified and experienced personnel, with construction competence relating to fire safety and protection in buildings ;

(c) Supervision of the works is exercised by appropriately qualified and experienced personnel from the principal construction organization ;

(d) Regular inspections, by appropriately qualified and experienced personnel familiar with the design, and independent of the construction organization(s), are carried out to verify that the works are being executed in accordance with the fire engineering design.

Category B

(a) Design of the works is exercised by an independent, appropriately qualified and experienced architect/engineer/fire engineer ;

(b) Installation/fitting of fire-related construction products/systems is exercised by appropriately qualified and experienced personnel ;

(c) Supervision of the works is exercised by appropriately qualified and experienced personnel from the principal construction organization.

Category C

This level of design and construction execution is assumed when the requirements for Category A or Category B are not met.

2. With regard to Recommendations 12 & 13 below … in an earlier post in this series, and elsewhere, I have defined Disproportionate Damage … and differentiated that structural concept from the related concept of Fire-Induced Progressive Collapse.

A significant number of countries include a requirement on Resistance to Disproportionate Damage in their national building codes. Often, it is only necessary to consider this requirement in the case of buildings having 5 Storeys, or more … a completely arbitrary height threshold. I would consider that adequately tying together the horizontal and vertical structural elements of a building … any building … is a fundamental principle of good structural engineering !!

Putting it simply … for the purpose of showing compliance with this structural requirement … it is necessary to demonstrate that a building will remain structurally stable if a portion of the building’s structure is removed … always remembering that every building comprises both structure and fabric, i.e. non-structure.

In reality this may happen, and quite often does happen, when, for example, a large truck runs into the side of a building, which can happen anywhere … or there is a gas explosion in some part of the building, which happened in Dublin’s Raglan House back in 1987, and many times in other countries … or a plane hits a high-rise building, which happened to Milan’s iconic Pirelli Tower in 2002, and to New York’s Empire State Building way back in 1945 … etc., etc. Raglan House collapsed … the Pirelli Tower and the Empire State Building did not.

[ The World Trade Center Towers were originally designed to absorb the impact of a large plane and to remain structurally stable afterwards ... in ambient conditions. However, what was not considered in the ambient structural design was 'fire', i.e. the fuel tanks were empty and no fire in the building would be initiated as a result of the mechanical damage caused by the plane impact ... which, on 11 September 2001, proved to be a ridiculous basis for any structural design ! This is why 9-11 should be regarded, at its core, as being a very serious 'real' fire incident.]

What I am leading up to is this … the concept of removing a portion of a building, and it remaining structurally stable afterwards … should now – logically and rationally – also be incorporated into the fire engineering design of Active Fire Protection Systems. In other words, if a portion of a building is removed, will any particular Active Fire Protection System continue to operate effectively in the rest of the building ? This has implications for the location and adequate protection of critical system components in a building … and for the necessary redundancy, zoning and back-up alternative routeing which must be designed into the system from the beginning !

2005 NIST WTC RECOMMENDATIONS

GROUP 4. Improved Active Fire Protection

Active fire protection systems (i.e. sprinklers, standpipes/hoses, fire alarms, and smoke management systems) should be enhanced through improvements to the design, performance, reliability, and redundancy of such systems.

NIST WTC Recommendation 12.

NIST recommends that the performance and possibly the redundancy of active fire protection systems (sprinklers, standpipes/hoses, fire alarms, and smoke management systems) in buildings be enhanced to accommodate the greater risks associated with increasing building height and population, increased use of open spaces, high-risk building activities, fire department response limits, transient fuel loads, and higher threat profile. The performance attributes should deal realistically with the system design basis, reliability of automatic/manual operations, redundancy, and reduction of vulnerabilities due to single point failures. Affected Standards: NFPA 13, NFPA 14, NFPA 20, NFPA 72, NFPA 90A, NFPA 92A, NFPA 92B, and NFPA 101. Model Building Codes: The performance standards should be adopted in model building codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

NIST WTC Recommendation 13.

NIST recommends that fire alarm and communications systems in buildings be developed to provide continuous, reliable, and accurate information on the status of life safety conditions at a level of detail sufficient to manage the evacuation process in building fire emergencies; all communication and control paths in buildings need to be designed and installed to have the same resistance to failure and increased survivability above that specified in present standards. This should include means to maintain communications with evacuating occupants that can both reassure them and redirect them if conditions change. Pre-installed fire warden telephone systems can serve a useful purpose and may be installed in buildings and, if so, they should be made available for use by emergency responders. All communication and control paths in buildings need to be designed and installed to have the same resistance to failure and increased survivability above that specified in present standards. Affected Standards: NFPA 1, NFPA 72, and NFPA 101. Model Building and Fire Codes: The performance standards should be adopted in model building and fire codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

NIST WTC Recommendation 14.

NIST recommends that control panels at fire/emergency command stations in buildings be adapted to accept and interpret a larger quantity of more reliable information from the active fire protection systems that provide tactical decision aids to fire ground commanders, including water flow rates from pressure and flow measurement devices, and that standards for their performance be developed. Affected Standards: NFPA 1, NFPA 72, and NFPA 101. Model Building and Fire Codes: The performance standards should be adopted in model building and fire codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

NIST WTC Recommendation 15.

NIST recommends that systems be developed and implemented for: (1) real time off-site secure transmission of valuable information from fire alarm and other monitored building systems for use by emergency responders, at any location, to enhance situational awareness and response decisions, and maintain safe and efficient operation;* and (2) preservation of that information either off-site, or in a black box that will survive a fire or other building failure, for purposes of subsequent investigations and analysis. Standards for the performance of such systems should be developed, and their use should be required. Affected Standards: NFPA 1, NFPA 72, and NFPA 101. Model Building and Fire Codes: The performance standards should be adopted in model building and fire codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

[ * F-35 The alarm systems in the WTC towers were only capable of determining and displaying: (a) areas that had at some time reached alarm point conditions; and (b) areas that had not. The quality and reliability of information available to emergency responders at the Fire Command Station was not sufficient to understand the fire conditions. The only information transmitted outside the buildings was the fact that the buildings had gone into alarm. Further, the fire alarm system in WTC Building 7, which was transmitted to a monitoring service, was on 'test mode' during the morning of 11 September 2001, because routine maintenance was being performed. Under test mode conditions: (1) the system is typically disabled for the entire building, not just for the area where work is being performed; and (2) alarm signals typically do not show up on an operator console.]

END

Tags: (1) the system is typically disabled for the entire building not just for the area where work is being performed, (2) alarm signals typically do not show up on an operator console, (a) areas that had at some time reached alarm point conditions and (b) areas that had not, 2005 NIST WTC RECOMMENDATIONS, a completely arbitrary height threshold, a large truck runs into the side of a building, a requirement on Resistance to Disproportionate Damage in their national building codes, Accessibility-for-All, Accessible Fire Engineering, Active fire protection systems should be enhanced through improvements to the design performance reliability and redundancy of such systems, all communication and control paths in buildings need to be designed and installed to have the same resistance to failure, always remembering that every building comprises structure and fabric i.e. non-structure, and maintain safe and efficient operation, at a level of detail sufficient to manage the evacuation process in building fire emergencies, Built Environment, Client Organizations, Design of the works is exercised by an independent appropriately qualified and experienced architect/engineer/fire engineer, Disproportionate Damage, Dublin's Raglan House back in 1987, enhanced to accommodate the greater risks associated with increasing building height and population, fire alarms, fire department response limits, Fire Engineering Design, Fire Safety, fire-induced progressive collapse, for purposes of subsequent investigations and analysis, from the active fire protection systems that provide tactical decision aids to fire ground commanders, GROUP 1. Increased Structural Integrity - Recommendations 1 2 & 3 (out of 30), GROUP 2. Enhanced Fire Endurance of Structures - Recommendations 4 5 6 & 7, GROUP 3. New Methods for Fire Resisting Design of Structures - Recommendations 8 9 10 & 11, GROUP 4. Improved Active Fire Protection, he/she interacts directly with the Project Design Professional in Responsible Charge, high-risk building activities, higher threat profile, I have defined Disproportionate Damage ... and differentiated that structural concept from the related concept of Fire-Induced Progressive Collapse, I would consider that adequately tying together the horizontal and vertical structural elements of a building, if Category C below is indicative of the design and construction quality on a particular building site, in a black box that will survive a fire or other building failure, including water flow rates from pressure and flow measurement devices, increased survivability above that specified in present standards, increased use of open spaces, independent of the construction organization(s), Installation/fitting of related construction products/systems is exercised by appropriately qualified and experienced personnel, Ireland, is a fundamental principle of good structural engineering, it is necessary to demonstrate that a building will remain structurally stable if a portion of the building's structure is removed, it should be expected that the Reliability of both Active Fire Protection Systems and Passive Fire Protection Measures will be initially low, Italy, just think of the Priory Hall Apartment Development in Dublin (!), means to maintain communications with evacuating occupants that can both reassure them and redirect them if conditions change, Milan's iconic Pirelli Tower in 2002, necessary to consider this requirement in the case of buildings having 5 Storeys, New York's Empire State Building way back in 1945, NFPA 1, NFPA 101, NFPA 13, NFPA 14, NFPA 20, NFPA 72, NFPA 90A, NFPA 92A, NFPA 92B, NIST recommends that control panels at fire/emergency command stations in buildings be adapted to accept and interpret a larger quantity of more reliable information, NIST recommends that fire alarm and communications systems in buildings be developed to provide continuous reliable and accurate information on the status of life safety conditions, NIST recommends that systems be developed and implemented for, NIST recommends that the performance and possibly the redundancy of active fire protection systems in buildings, NIST WTC Recommendation 12, NIST WTC Recommendation 13, NIST WTC Recommendation 14, NIST WTC Recommendation 15, NIST WTC Recommendations 12-15 > Improved Active Protection, NIST WTC Recommendations 4-7 - Structural Fire Endurance, NIST WTC Recommendations 8-11 > New Design of Structures, NIST's Recommendations on the 9-11 WTC Building Collapses, one of the design objectives in Ethical Fire Engineering, Pre-installed fire warden telephone systems can serve a useful purpose, preservation of that information either off-site, Quality of Fire Engineering Design & Related Construction, Raglan House collapsed ... the Pirelli Tower and the Empire State Building did not, real time off-site secure transmission of valuable information from fire alarm and other monitored building systems for use by emergency responders, reduction of vulnerabilities due to single point failures, redundancy, Regular inspections by appropriately qualified and experienced personnel familiar with the design, Reliability has always been an issue with Active Fire Protection Systems, Reliability Is Equally An Issue With Passive Fire Protection Measures, reliability of automatic/manual operations, should now - logically and rationally - also be incorporated into the fire engineering design of Active Fire Protection Systems, smoke management systems, sprinklers, standpipes/hoses, Supervision of the works is exercised by appropriately qualified and experienced personnel, Sustainable Fire Engineering, Technical Control of Design and Construction, The alarm systems in the WTC towers were only capable of determining and displaying, the concept of removing a portion of a building and it remaining structurally stable afterwards, the fire alarm system in WTC Building 7 which was transmiitted to a monitoring service was on 'test mode' during the morning of 11 September 2001, the necessary redundancy zoning and back-up alternative routing which must be designed into the system from the beginning, The performance attributes should deal realistically with the system design basis, the principal construction organization, the Safety Factors to be applied in calculating the level of satisfactory fire safety and protection which is provided in a specific project, the Safety Factors to be applied in the design should be high, The World Trade Center Towers were originally designed to absorb the impact of a large plane and to remain structurally stable afterwards, there is a gas explosion in some part of the building, This has implications for the location and adequate protection of critical system components in a building, This is why 9-11 should be regarded at its core as being a very serious 'real' fire incident, to enhance situational awareness and response decisions, to verify that the works are being executed in accordance with the fire engineering design, transient fuel loads, United States of America, what was not considered in the ambient structural design was 'fire', with construction competence relating to fire safety and protection in buildings, with design competence relating to fire safety and protection in buildings, with Life Cycle Reliability being entirely non-existent, with regard to actual construction

Friday, November 25th, 2011 architecture, built environment, design, economic environment, fire, human health & safety, institutional environment, national law, regulations & standards, sustainability, technical control No Comments

NIST WTC Recommendations 4-7 > Structural Fire Endurance

First Post in This Series …

2011-10-25: NIST’s Recommendations on the 9-11 WTC Building Collapses … GROUP 1. Increased Structural Integrity – Recommendations 1, 2 & 3 (out of 30)

2011-11-18: SOME PRELIMINARY COMMENTS …

1. Before launching into the next Group of NIST WTC Recommendations, it would be useful to distinguish between the following technical terms … which have been adapted from ISO/TR 10158: ‘Principles and Rationale Underlying Calculation Methods in Relation to Fire Resistance of Structural Elements’ …

Real Fire: A fire which develops in a building and which is influenced by such factors as the type of building and its occupancy; the combustible content (fire load); the ventilation, geometry and thermal properties of the fire compartment, or building space (should no fire compartmentation exist); the fire suppression systems in the building and the actions of the fire services.

Real Fires are complex phenomena. Consequently, in structural fire engineering, idealized versions of ‘real fires’ are employed.

Experimental Fire: A full or reduced scale fire with specified and controlled characteristics.

Design Fire: A fire with specified exposure data intended for use in connection with structural fire engineering calculations.

A Design Fire may either be representative of the thermal exposure described by the standard time-temperature-pressure relationship in an International/European/National Standard, or some non-standard exposure intended to simulate particular fire exposure conditions.

However, in SDI Technical Guidance Note 95/102: ‘Proper Evidence of a Fire Test Result within the European Economic Area (EEA)’, issued on 22 May 1995, I included the following caution …

#1.7 A Fire Test in a Fire Test Laboratory, involving exposure of a test specimen or prototype to ‘test fire’ conditions, gives only a limited indication of: (a) the likely performance of a particular product, material or component when exposed to ‘real fire’ conditions; and (b) the suitability of a product, material or component for a particular end use.

2. In conventional fire engineering, much confusion arises because of a failure to properly distinguish between these two concepts …

Fire Resistance

The inherent capability of a building assembly, or an ‘element of construction’, to resist the passage of heat, smoke and flame for a specified time during a fire.

Structural Reliability

The ability of a structural system to fulfil its design purpose, for a specified time, under the actual environmental conditions encountered in a building.

[ In structural fire engineering, the concern must be that the structure will fulfil its purpose, both during the fire - and for a minimum period afterwards, during the 'cooling phase'.]

3. Therefore, with regard to Recommendation 6 … it is more correct and precise to refer to ‘Steel Fire Protection Systems’, rather than to ‘steel fire resisting materials’ ! AND … the same questions must be asked about All Lightweight Steel Fire Protection Systems … not just the sprayed systems.

Lightweight Fire Protection Systems are also used to protect concrete in buildings and tunnels.

4. These 2005 NIST Recommendations will later be confirmed, and further reinforced, by the 2008 NIST Recommendations. Bringing Recommendation 7, below, closer to home … it is interesting to note that a very necessary discussion on the technical adequacy of the approach taken to structural performance in fire … in both Technical Guidance Document B (Ireland) and Approved Document B (England & Wales) … has yet not even commenced !

2005 NIST WTC RECOMMENDATIONS

GROUP 2. Enhanced Fire Endurance of Structures

The procedures and practices used to ensure the fire endurance of structures should be enhanced by improving the technical basis for construction classifications and fire resistance ratings, improving the technical basis for standard fire resistance testing methods, use of the ‘structural frame’ approach to fire resistance ratings, and developing in-service performance requirements and conformance criteria for sprayed fire resisting materials.

NIST WTC Recommendation 4.

NIST recommends evaluating, and where needed improving, the technical basis for determining appropriate construction classifications and fire rating requirements (especially for tall buildings) – and making related code changes now, as much as possible – by explicitly considering factors including: *

[ * F-23 The construction classification and fire rating requirements should be risk-consistent with respect to the design-basis hazards and the consequences of those hazards. The fire rating requirements, which were originally developed based on experience with buildings less than 20 storeys in height, have generally decreased over the past 80 years since historical fire data for buildings suggest considerable conservatism in those requirements. For tall buildings, the likely consequences of a given threat to an occupant on the upper floors are more severe than the consequences to an occupant on the first floor or the lower floors. For example, with non-functioning elevators, both of the time requirements are much greater for full building evacuation from upper floors and emergency responder access to those floors. It is not clear how the current height and areas tables in building codes consider the technical basis for the progressively increasing risk to an occupant on the upper floors of tall buildings that are much greater than 20 storeys in height.]

timely access by emergency responders and full evacuation of occupants, or the time required for burnout without partial collapse ;
the extent to which redundancy in active fire protection systems (sprinklers and standpipe, fire alarm, and smoke management) should be credited for occupant life safety ; *

[ * F-24 Occupant life safety, prevention of fire spread, and structural integrity are considered separate safety objectives.]

the need for redundancy in fire protection systems that are critical to structural integrity ; *

[ * F-25 The passive fire protection system (including fire protection insulation, compartmentation, and fire stopping) and the active sprinkler system each provide redundancy for maintaining structural integrity in a building fire, should one of the systems fail to perform its intended function.]

the ability of the structure and local floor systems to withstand a maximum credible fire scenario* without collapse, recognizing that sprinklers could be compromised, not operational, or non-existent ;

[ * F-26 A maximum credible fire scenario includes conditions that are severe, but reasonable to anticipate, conditions related to building construction, occupancy, fire loads, ignition sources, compartment geometry, fire control methods, etc., as well as adverse, but reasonable to anticipate operating conditions.]

compartmentation requirements (e.g. 1,200 sq.m *) to protect the structure, including fire rated doorsets and automatic enclosures, and limiting air supply (e.g. thermally resisting window assemblies) to retard fire spread in buildings with large, open floor plans ;

[ * F-27 Or a more appropriate limit, which represents a reasonable area for active fire fighting operations.]

the effect of spaces containing unusually large fuel concentrations for the expected occupancy of the building ; and
the extent to which fire control systems, including suppression by automatic or manual means, should be credited as part of the prevention of fire spread.

Adoption of this Recommendation will allow building codes to distinguish the risks associated with different building heights, fuel concentrations, and fire protection systems. Research is needed to develop the data and evaluate alternative proposals for construction classifications and fire ratings. Model Building Codes: A comprehensive review of current construction classifications and fire rating requirements and the establishment of a uniform set of revised thresholds with a firm technical basis that considers the factors identified above should be undertaken.*

[ * F-28 The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 5000 model code and the International Building Code (IBC) both recognize the risks associated with different building heights and accepted changes in 2001 and 2004, respectively. Both model codes now require that buildings 126 metres and higher have a minimum 4 hour structural fire resistance rating. The previous requirement was 2 hours. The change provides increased fire resistance for the structural system leading to enhanced tenability of the structure and gives firefighters additional protection while fighting a fire. While NIST supports these changes as an interim step, NIST believes that it is essential to complete a comprehensive review that will establish a firm technical basis for construction classifications and fire rating requirements.]

NIST WTC Recommendation 5.

NIST recommends that the technical basis for the century-old standard for fire resistance testing of components, assemblies and systems be improved through a national effort. Necessary guidance also should be developed for extrapolating the results of tested assemblies to prototypical building systems. A key step in fulfilling this Recommendation is to establish a capability for studying and testing components, assemblies, and systems under realistic fire and load conditions.

This effort should address the technical issues listed below: *

[ * F-29 The technical issues were identified from the series of four fire resistance tests of the WTC Floor system, and the review and analysis of relevant documents that were conducted as part of this Investigation.]

a. Criteria and test methods for determining:

structural limit states, including failure, and means for measurement ;
effect of scale of test assembly versus prototype application, especially for long-span structures that significantly exceed the size of test furnaces ;
effect of restraining thermal expansion (end-restraint conditions) on test results, especially for long-span structures that have greater flexibility ;
fire resistance of structural connections, especially the fire protection required for a loaded connection to achieve a specified rating ; *

[ * F-30 There is a lack of test data on the fire resistance ratings of loaded connections. The fire resistance of structural connections is not rated in current practice. Also, standards and codes do not provide guidance on fire protection requirements for structural connections when the connected members have different fire resistance ratings.]

effect of the combination of loading and exposure (time-temperature profile) required to adequately represent expected conditions ;
the repeatability and reproducibility of test results (typically, results from a single test are used to determine the rating for a component or assembly) ; and
realistic ratings for structural assemblies made with materials that have improved elevated temperature properties (strength, modulus, creep behaviour).

b. Improved procedures and guidance to analyze and evaluate existing data from fire resistance tests of building components and assemblies for use in qualifying an untested building element.

c. Relationships between prescriptive ratings and performance of the assembly in real fires.

Affected National and International Standards: * ASTM E 119, NFPA 251, UL 263, and ISO 834. Model Building Codes: The standards should be adopted in model building codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

[ * F-31 While the NIST Recommendations are focused mainly on U.S. national standards, each U.S. standard has counterpart international standards. In a recent report (ISO/TMB AGS N 46), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), through its Advisory Group for Security (AGS), has recommended that since many of the ISO standards for the design of buildings date back to the 1980's, they should be reviewed and updated to make use of the studies done by NIST on the World Trade Center disaster, the applicability of new technology for rescue from high buildings, natural disasters, etc. ISO's Technical Advisory Group 8 co-ordinates standards work for buildings.]

NIST WTC Recommendation 6.

NIST recommends the development of criteria, test methods, and standards: (1) for the in-service performance of Sprayed Fire Resisting Materials (SFRM, also commonly referred to as fire protection insulation) used to protect structural components; and (2) to ensure that these materials, as installed, conform to conditions in tests used to establish the fire resistance rating of components, assemblies, and systems.

This should include:

Improved criteria and testing methodologies for the performance and durability of SFRM (e.g. adhesion, cohesion, abrasion, and impact resistance) under in-service exposure conditions (e.g. temperature, humidity, vibration, impact, with/without primer paint on steel*) for use in acceptance and quality control. The current test method to measure the bond strength, for example, does not distinguish the cohesive strength from the tensile and shear adhesive strengths. Nor does it consider the effect of primer paint on the steel surface. Test requirements that explicitly consider the effects of abrasion, vibration, shock, and impact under normal service conditions are limited or do not exist. Also, the effects of elevated temperatures on thermal properties and bond strength are not considered in evaluating the performance and durability of SFRM.

[ * F-32 NIST tests show that the adhesive strength of SFRM on steel coated with primer paint was a third to half of the adhesive strength on steel that had not been coated with primer paint. The SFRM products used in the WTC towers were applied to steel components coated with primer paint.]

Inspection procedures, including measurement techniques and practical conformance criteria, for SFRM in both the building codes and fire codes for use after installation, renovation, or modification of all mechanical and electrical systems and by fire inspectors over the life of the building. Existing standards of practice (AIA MasterSpec and AWCI Standard 12), often required by codes for some buildings need to be broadly applied to both new and existing buildings. These standards may require improvements to address the issues identified in this Recommendation.
Criteria for determining the effective uniform SFRM thickness – thermally equivalent to the variable thickness of the product as it is actually applied – that can be used to ensure that the product in the field conforms to the near uniform thickness conditions in the tests used to establish the fire resistance rating of the component, assembly, or system. Such criteria are needed to ensure that the SFRM, as installed, will provide the intended performance.
Methods for predicting the effectiveness of SFRM insulation as a function of its properties, the application characteristics, and the duration and intensity of the fire.
Methods for predicting service life performance of SFRM under in-service conditions.

Affected Standards: AIA MasterSpec and AWCI Standard 12 for field inspection and conformance criteria; ASTM standards for SFRM performance criteria and test methods. Model Building Codes: The standards should be adopted in model building codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard. (See Recommendation 10 for more on this issue.)

NIST WTC Recommendation 7.

NIST recommends the adoption and use of the ‘structural frame’ approach to fire resistance ratings. This approach requires that structural members – such as girders, beams, trusses, and spandrels having direct connection to the columns, and bracing members designed to carry gravity loads – be fire protected to the same fire resistance rating as columns. This approach is currently required by the International Building Code (IBC), one of the model codes, and is in the process of adoption by NFPA 5000, the other model code. This requirement ensures consistency in the fire protection provided to all of the structural elements that contribute to overall structural stability.* State and local jurisdictions should adopt and enforce this requirement.

[ * F-33 Had this requirement been adopted by the 1968 New York City building code, the WTC floor system, including its connections, would have had the 3 hour rating required for the columns since the floors braced the columns.]

END

Tags: (1) for the in-service performance of sprayed fire resisting materials, (2) to ensure that these materials as installed conform to conditions in tests used to establish the fire resistance rating of components assemblies and systems, 1968 New York City building code, 2005 NIST WTC RECOMMENDATIONS, a capability for studying and testing components assemblies and systems under realistic fire and load conditions, A Design Fire may either be representative of the thermal exposure described by the standard time-temperature-pressure relationship, A Fire Test in a Fire Test Laboratory, A fire which develops in a building, a very necessary discussion on the technical adequacy of the approach taken to structural performance in fire, AIA MasterSpec, Approved Document B (England & Wales), as a function of its properties the application characteristics and the duration and intensity of the fire, AWCI Standard 12, Before launching into the next Group of NIST WTC Recommendations, both during the fire and for a minimum period afterwards during the 'cooling phase', Built Environment, Client Organizations, compartmentation requirements (e.g. 1200 sq.m) to protect the structure, Consequently in structural fire engineering idealized versions of 'real fires' are employed, Criteria for determining the effective uniform SFRM thickness, Design Fire, developing in-service performance requirements and conformance criteria for sprayed fire resisting materials, effect of restraining thermal expansion (end-restraint conditions) on test results, effect of scale of test assembly versus prototype application, effect of the combination of loading and exposure (time-temperature profile) required to adequately represent expected conditions, emergency responder access to those floors, England and Wales, especially for long-span structures that have greater flexibility, especially for long-span structures that significantly exceed the size of test furnaces, especially the fire protection required for a loaded connection to achieve a specified rating, Experimental Fire, Fire Engineering Design, fire rating requirements which were originally developed based on experience with buildings less than 20 storeys in height, Fire Resistance, fire resistance of structural connections, Fire Safety, fire service support infrastructure, For tall buildings the likely consequences of a given threat to an occupant on the upper floors are more severe, full building evacuation from upper floors, GROUP 2. Enhanced Fire Endurance of Structures, improving the technical basis for construction classifications and fire resistance ratings, improving the technical basis for standard fire resistance testing methods, In conventional fire engineering much confusion arises because of a failure to properly distinguish between these two concepts, Institutional Environment, International Building Code (IBC), International Organization for Standardization (ISO) through its Advisory Group for Security (AGS), International/European/National Standard, Ireland, ISO's Technical Advisory Group 8 co-ordinates standards work for buildings, ISO/TMB AGS N 46, ISO/TR 10158: 'Principles and Rationale Underlying Calculation Methods in Relation to Fire Resistance of Structural Elements', it is more correct and precise to refer to 'Steel Fire Protection Systems', It is not clear how the current height and areas tables in building codes consider the technical basis, Lightweight Fire Protection Systems are also used to protect concrete in buildings and tunnels, Methods for predicting service life performance of SFRM under in-service conditions, Methods for predicting the effectiveness of SFRM insulation, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 5000 model code, Necessary guidance also should be developed for extrapolating the results of tested assemblies, NIST recommends that the technical basis for the century-old standard for fire resistance testing of components assemblies and systems be improved, NIST recommends the adoption and use of the 'structural frame' approach to fire resistance ratings, NIST recommends the development of criteria test methods and standards, NIST tests show that the adhesive strength of SFRM on steel coated with primer paint was a third to half of the adhesive strength on steel that had not been coated with primer paint, NIST WTC Recommendation 4, NIST WTC Recommendation 5, NIST WTC Recommendation 6, NIST WTC Recommendation 7, NIST WTC Recommendations 4-7 - Structural Fire Endurance, or the time required for burnout without partial collapse, progressively increasing risk to an occupant on the upper floors of tall buildings that are much greater than 20 storeys in height, prototypical building systems, Real Fire, Real Fires are complex phenomena, realistic ratings for structural assemblies made with materials that have improved elevated temperature properties, recognizing that sprinklers could be compromised not operational or non-existent, Relationships between prescriptive ratings and performance of the assembly in real fires, SDI Technical Guidance Note 95/102: 'Proper Evidence of a Fire Test Result within the European Economic Area (EEA)', some non-standard exposure intended to simulate particular fire exposure conditions, Sprayed Fire Resisting Materials (SFRM), Structural Fire Engineering, structural limit states including failure and means for measurement, Structural Reliability, Such criteria are needed to ensure that the SFRM as installed will provide the intended performance, Sustainable Design International, Sustainable Fire Engineering, Technical Guidance Document B (Ireland), the ability of the structure and local floor systems to withstand a maximum credible fire scenario without collapse, the combustible content (fire load), the concern must be that the structure will fulfil its purpose, The construction classification and fire rating requirements should be risk-consistent, the effect of spaces containing unusually large fuel concentrations for the expected occupancy of the building, the extent to which fire control systems including suppression by automatic or manual means should be credited as part of the prevention of fire spread, the extent to which redundancy in active fire protection systems should be credited for occupant life safety, the fire suppression systems in the building and the actions of the fire services, The inherent capability of a building assembly or an 'element of construction', the need for redundancy in fire protection systems that are critical to structural integrity, The procedures and practices used to ensure the fire endurance of structures should be enhanced, the repeatability and reproducibility of test results, the same questions must be asked about All Lightweight Steel Fire Protection Systems ... not just the sprayed systems, the type of building and its occupancy, the ventilation geometry and thermal properties of the fire compartment or building space (should no fire compartmentation exist), the WTC floor system including its connections, There is a lack of test data on the fire resistance ratings of loaded connections, These 2005 NIST Recommendations will later be confirmed and further reinforced by the 2008 NIST Recommendations, This requirement ensures consistency in the fire protection provided to all of the structural elements that contribute to overall structural stability, timely access by emergency responders and full evacuation of occupants, to analyze and evaluate existing data from fire resistance tests of building components and assemblies for use in qualifying an untested building element, to resist the passage of heat smoke and flame for a specified time during a fire, to retard fire spread in buildings with large open floor plans, typically results from a single test are used to determine the rating for a component or assembly, United States of America, use of the 'structural frame' approach to fire resistance ratings, with non-functioning elevators both of the time requirements are much greater, with respect to the design-basis hazards and the consequences of those hazards

Friday, November 18th, 2011 architecture, built environment, design, economic environment, fire, human health & safety, institutional environment, regulations & standards, sustainability No Comments

NIST’s Recommendations on the 9-11 WTC Building Collapses

2011-10-25: Since shortly after my visit to Lower Manhattan in mid-October 2001 … we have maintained an Archive Page on ‘Structural Fire Engineering, World Trade Center Incident (9-11) & Fire Serviceability Limit States‘ … at SDI’s Corporate WebSite. And I have referenced here … many, many times … the Recommendations contained in the 2005 & 2008 Final Reports of the U.S. National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) on the 9-11 World Trade Center Building 1, 2 & 7 Collapses.

In this post (and a series of future posts) … I find it most necessary that the 2005 & 2008 NIST Recommendations now be presented for everyone to read. Yes, some of Recommendations apply specifically to Tall and Very Tall Buildings … and Building Designers in India, China, Brazil, Russia & South Africa (BRICS), the Arab Gulf Region, Europe and North America, etc., should be fully aware of their contents.

BUT … I am also strongly convinced … precisely because I am an Architect, a Fire Engineer and a Technical Controller … that most of the NIST Recommendations apply to ALL Buildings … so catastrophic was the failure exposed on that fateful day (11 September 2001) … in all of our common design and construction practices … and our operation, maintenance and emergency response procedures !

PRELIMINARY COMMENTS

1. Extract from Paragraph #9.2, Chapter 9, NIST Final Report on the Collapse of the World Trade Center Towers – Report Reference NIST NCSTAR 1 (2005) …

NIST believes that these Recommendations are both realistic and achievable within a reasonable period of time, and that their implementation would make buildings safer for occupants and emergency responders in future emergencies.
NIST strongly urges that immediate and serious consideration be given to these Recommendations by the building and fire safety communities – especially designers, owners, developers, codes and standards development organizations, regulators, fire safety professionals, and emergency responders.
NIST also strongly urges building owners and public officials to: (i) evaluate the safety implications of these Recommendations for their existing inventory of buildings; and (ii) take the steps necessary to mitigate any unwarranted risks without waiting for changes to occur in codes, standards, and practices.

2. At the time of writing … it is important to point out that although they are related Structural Concepts … and there is still, to this day, a lot of confusion about these concepts in the USA … it is important to clearly distinguish between …

Disproportionate Damage

The failure of a building’s structural system (i) remote from the scene of an isolated overloading action; and (ii) to an extent which is not in reasonable proportion to that action.

Fire-Induced Progressive Collapse

The sequential growth and intensification of distortion, displacement and failure of elements of construction in a building – during a fire and the ‘cooling phase’ afterwards – which, if unchecked, will result in disproportionate damage, and may lead to total building collapse.

3. Recommendation 2, below, would certainly need to be understood and implemented within today’s additional design constraints of Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience to Severe Weather Events. Therefore … Design Wind Speeds must be increased, accordingly, for ALL Buildings.

4. As such a high level of performance is expected … indeed demanded … of a Sustainable Building … Sustainable Fire Engineering must be ‘reliability-based’. In other words, it must have a rational, empirical and scientifically robust basis … unlike conventional fire engineering, which is yet aimlessly wandering around in pre-historic caves !

5. Finally … there is no use trying to hide the fact that progress on implementing the NIST Recommendations, within the USA, has been lamentably slow. Outside that jurisdiction, the response has ranged from mild interest, to complete apathy, and even to vehement antipathy. The implications arising from implementation are much too hard to digest … for long established fire safety professionals and researchers who are unswervingly committed to the flawed and out-of-date practices and procedures of conventional fire engineering and, especially, for vested interests !

However … is it either in society’s interest, or in the interests of our clients/client organizations … that, to give you a simple example which is relevant close to home, British Standard 9999 (published on 31 October 2008): ‘Code of Practice for Fire Safety in the Design, Management and Use of Buildings’ takes absolutely no account of any of the NIST Recommendations ? As far as the British Standards Institution is concerned … 9-11 never happened … which I think is an inexcusable and unforgivable technical oversight !

For this reason, the General Public in ALL of our societies and Clients/Client Organizations in ALL countries should also be fully aware of the contents of these Recommendations …

Colour photograph showing the two World Trade Center Towers immediately after the impact of the second plane. At a fundamental level, this was a very serious 'real' fire incident ... which was extensively, and very thoroughly, investigated by the U.S. National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) ... and resulted in the important 2005 & 2008 NIST Recommendations. Click to enlarge.

2005 NIST WTC RECOMMENDATIONS

GROUP 1. Increased Structural Integrity

The standards for estimating the load effects of potential hazards (e.g. progressive collapse, wind) and the design of structural systems to mitigate the effects of those hazards should be improved to enhance structural integrity.

NIST WTC Recommendation 1.

NIST recommends that: (1) progressive collapse be prevented in buildings through the development and nationwide adoption of consensus standards and code provisions, along with the tools and guidelines needed for their use in practice; and (2) a standard methodology be developed – supported by analytical design tools and practical design guidance – to reliably predict the potential for complex failures in structural systems subjected to multiple hazards.

a. Progressive collapse* should be prevented in buildings.

[ * F-19 Progressive collapse (or disproportionate damage) occurs when an initial local failure spreads from structural element to structural element resulting in the collapse of an entire structure or a disproportionately large part of it.]

The primary structural systems should provide alternate paths for carrying loads in case certain components fail (e.g. transfer girders or columns). This is especially important in buildings where structural components (e.g. columns, girders) support unusually large floor areas.*

[ * F-20 While the WTC towers eventually collapsed, they had the capacity to redistribute loads from impact and fire damaged structural components and sub-systems to undamaged components and sub-systems. However, the core columns in the WTC towers lacked sufficient redundant (alternative) paths for carrying gravity loads.]

Progressive collapse is addressed only in a very limited way in practice and by codes and standards. For example, the initiating event in design to prevent progressive collapse may be removal of one or two columns at the bottom of the structure. Initiating events at multiple locations within the structure, or involving other key components and sub-systems, should be analyzed commensurate with the risks considered in the design. The effectiveness of mitigation approaches involving new system and sub-system design concepts should be evaluated with conventional approaches based on indirect design (continuity, strength and ductility of connections), direct design (local hardening), and redundant (alternate) load paths. The capability to prevent progressive collapse due to abnormal loads should include: (i) comprehensive design rules and practice guides; (ii) evaluation criteria, methodology, and tools for assessing the vulnerability of structures to progressive collapse; (iii) performance-based criteria for abnormal loads and load combinations; (iv) analytical tools to predict potential collapse mechanisms; and (v) computer models and analysis procedures for use in routine design practice. The federal government should co-ordinate the existing programmes that address this need: those in the Department of Defence; the General Services Administration; the Defence Threat Reduction Agency; and NIST. Affected Standards: ASCE-7, AISC Specifications, and ACI 318. These standards and other relevant committees should draw on expertise from ASCE/SFPE 29 for issues concerning progressive collapse under fire conditions. Model Building Codes: The consensus standards should be adopted in model building codes (i.e. the International Building Code and NFPA 5000) by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard. State and local jurisdictions should adopt and enforce the improved model building codes and national standards based on all 30 WTC Recommendations (2005). The codes and standards may vary from the WTC Recommendations, but satisfy their intent.

b. A robust, integrated predictive capability should be developed, validated, and maintained to routinely assess the vulnerability of whole structures to the effects of credible hazards. This capability to evaluate the performance and reserve capacity of structures does not exist and is a significant cause for concern. This capability would also assist in investigations of building failure – as demonstrated by the analyses of the WTC building collapses carried out in this Investigation. The failure analysis capability should include all possible complex failure phenomena that may occur under multiple hazards (e.g. bomb blasts, fires, impacts, gas explosions, earthquakes, and hurricane winds), experimentally validated models, and robust tools for routine analysis to predict such failures and their consequences. This capability should be developed via a co-ordinated effort involving federal, private sector, and academic research organizations in close partnership with practicing engineers.

NIST WTC Recommendation 2.

NIST recommends that nationally accepted performance standards be developed for: (1) conducting wind tunnel testing of prototype structures based on sound technical methods that result in repeatable and reproducible results among testing laboratories; and (2) estimating wind loads and their effects on tall buildings for use in design, based on wind tunnel testing data and directional wind speed data. Wind loads specified in current prescriptive codes may not be appropriate for the design of very tall buildings since they do not account for building-specific aerodynamic effects. Further, a review of wind load estimates for the WTC towers indicated differences by as much as 40 % from wind tunnel studies conducted in 2002 by two independent commercial laboratories. Major sources of differences in estimation methods currently used in practice occur in the selection of design wind speeds and directionality, the nature of hurricane wind profiles, the estimation of ‘component’ wind effects by integrating wind tunnel data with wind speed and direction information, and the estimation of ‘resultant’ wind effects using load combination methods. Wind loads were a major factor in the design of the WTC tower structures and were relevant to evaluating the baseline capacity of the structures to withstand abnormal events such as major fires or impact damage. Yet, there is lack of consensus on how to evaluate and estimate winds and their load effects on buildings.

a. Nationally accepted standards should be developed and implemented for conducting wind tunnel tests, estimating site-specific wind speed and directionality based on available data, and estimating wind loads associated with specific design probabilities from wind tunnel test results and directional wind speed data.

b. Nationally accepted standards should be developed for estimating wind loads in the design of tall buildings. The development of performance standards for estimating wind loads should consider: (1) appropriate load combinations and load factors, including performance criteria for static and dynamic behaviour, based on both ultimate and serviceability limit states; and (2) validation of wind load provisions in prescriptive design standards for tall buildings, given the universally acknowledged use of wind tunnel testing and associated performance criteria. Limitations to the use of prescriptive wind load provisions should be clearly identified in codes and standards.

The standards development work can begin immediately to address many of the above needs. The results of those efforts should be adopted in practice as soon as they become available. The research that will be required to address the remaining needs also should begin immediately and results should be made available for standards development and use in practice. Affected National Standard: ASCE-7. Model Building Codes: The standard should be adopted in model building codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

NIST WTC Recommendation 3.

NIST recommends that an appropriate criterion be developed and implemented to enhance the performance of tall buildings by limiting how much they sway under lateral load design conditions (e.g. winds and earthquakes). The stability and safety of tall buildings depend upon, among other factors, the magnitude of building sway or deflection, which tends to increase with building height. Conventional strength-based methods, such as those used in the design of the WTC towers, do not limit deflections. The deflection limit state criterion, which is proposed here is in addition to the stress limit state and serviceability requirement; it should be adopted either to complement the safety provided by conventional strength-based design or independently as an alternate deflection-based approach to the design of tall buildings for life safety. The recommended deflection limit state criterion is independent of the criterion used to ensure occupant comfort, which is met in current practice by limiting accelerations (e.g. in the 15 to 20 milli-g range). Lateral deflections, which already are limited in the design of tall buildings to control damage in earthquake-prone regions, should also be limited in non-seismic areas.*

[ * F-22 Analysis of baseline performance under the original design wind loads indicated that the WTC towers would need to have been between 50 % and 90 % stiffer to achieve a typical drift ratio used in current practice for non-seismic regions, though not required by building codes. Limiting drift would have required increasing exterior column areas in lower stories and/or significant additional damping.]

Affected National standards: ASCE-7, AISC Specifications, and ACI 318. Model Building Codes: The standard should be adopted in model building codes by mandatory reference to, or incorporation of, the latest edition of the standard.

END

Tags: 2005 & 2008 Final Reports of the U.S. National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) on the 9-11 World Trade Center Building 1 2 & 7 Collapses, 2005 NIST WTC RECOMMENDATIONS, A robust integrated predictive capability should be developed validated and maintained to routinely assess the vulnerability of whole structures, ACI 318, Affected Standards, AISC Specifications, analytical tools to predict potential collapse mechanisms, and our operation maintenance and emergency response procedures, Arab Gulf Region, As far as the British Standards Institution is concerned ... 9-11 never happened, As such a high level of performance is expected ... indeed demanded ... of a Sustainable Building, ASCE-7, bomb blasts, Brazil Russia India China and South Africa (BRICS), British Standard BS 9999 - Code of Practice for Fire Safety in the Design Management and Use of Buildings, Built Environment, capacity to redistribute loads from impact and fire damaged structural components and sub-systems to undamaged components and sub-systems, China, CJ Walsh, Client Organizations, Clients/Client Organizations in ALL countries, comprehensive design rules and practice guides, computer models and analysis procedures for use in routine design practice, Design Wind Speeds must be increased accordingly for ALL Buildings, Disproportionate Damage, earthquakes, Europe, evaluate the safety implications of these Recommendations for their existing inventory of buildings, evaluation criteria methodology and tools for assessing the vulnerability of structures to progressive collapse, Fire Engineering Design, Fire Safety, Fire Serviceability Limit States, fire-induced progressive collapse, FireOx International, fires, gas explosions, GROUP 1. 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supported by analytical design tools and practical design guidance - to reliably predict the potential for complex failures in structura, NIST strongly urges that immediate and serious consideration be given to these Recommendations by the building and fire safety communities, NIST WTC Recommendation 1, NIST WTC Recommendation 2, NIST WTC Recommendation 3, NIST's Recommendations on the 9-11 WTC Building Collapses, North America, performance-based criteria for abnormal loads and load combinations, precisely because I am an Architect a Fire Engineer and a Technical Controller, primary structural systems should provide alternate paths for carrying loads in case certain components fail, Progressive collapse is addressed only in a very limited way in practice and by codes and standards, Recommendation 2 would certainly need to be understood and implemented within today's additional design constraints, relevant to evaluating the baseline capacity of the structures to withstand abnormal events such as major fires or impact damage, Resilience to Severe Weather Events, Russia, Since shortly after my visit to Lower Manhattan in mid-October 2001, so catastrophic was the failure exposed on that fateful day (11 September 2001), some of Recommendations apply specifically to Tall and Very Tall Buildings, South Africa, Structural Fire Engineering, Sustainable Building, Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation, Sustainable Fire Engineering, Sustainable Fire Engineering must be 'reliability-based', take the steps necessary to mitigate any unwarranted risks without waiting for changes to occur in codes standards and practices, The capability to prevent progressive collapse due to abnormal loads should include, The codes and standards may vary from the WTC Recommendations but satisfy their intent, the core columns in the WTC towers lacked sufficient redundant paths for carrying gravity loads, The deflection limit state criterion which is proposed here is in addition to the stress limit state and serviceability requirement, the design of structural systems to mitigate the effects of those hazards should be improved to enhance structural integrity, the effects of credible hazards, the estimation of 'component' wind effects by integrating wind tunnel data with wind speed and direction information, the estimation of 'resultant' wind effects using load combination methods, The failure analysis capability should include all possible complex failure phenomena that may occur under multiple hazards, the flawed and out-of-date practices and procedures of conventional fire engineering, the General Public in ALL of our societies, The implications arising from implementation are much too hard to digest, the magnitude of building sway or deflection which tends to increase with building height, the nature of hurricane wind profiles, the response has ranged from mild interest to complete apathy and even to vehement antipathy, the selection of design wind speeds and directionality, The stability and safety of tall buildings, The standards for estimating the load effects of potential hazards, their implementation would make buildings safer for occupants and emergency responders in future emergencies, there is no use trying to hide the fact that progress on implementing the NIST Recommendations has been lamentably slow, they do not account for building-specific aerodynamic effects, This capability would also assist in investigations of building failure, This is especially important in buildings where structural components support unusually large floor areas, United States of America, unlike conventional fire engineering which is yet aimlessly wandering around in pre-historic caves, Vested Interests, which I think is an inexcusable and unforgivable technical oversight !, While the WTC towers eventually collapsed, Wind loads specified in current prescriptive codes may not be appropriate for the design of very tall buildings, Wind loads were a major factor in the design of the WTC tower structures, World Trade Center Incident (9-11)

Tuesday, October 25th, 2011 architecture, built environment, climate change, design, economic environment, fire, human health & safety, institutional environment, regulations & standards, social environment, sustainability No Comments

‘Priory Hall’, Fire Engineering & Protecting Society’s Interests ??

2011-10-23: Further to my post, dated 18 October 2011 …

Has anybody’s interests been protected by what has happened at the ‘Priory Hall’ Apartment Development, in Donaghmede, Dublin 13 ? NO.

Now that the buildings there have been completed … will it be possible to effectively repair the most serious fire protection, sound transmission and energy conservation problems with the buildings ?? NO.

At the heart of these problems lie Fundamental Design and Construction Flaws … because, back in the 1990′s and early 2000′s, indigenous builders of simple two storey semi-detached houses suddenly became ‘developers’ of apartment complexes … and these were very different building animals altogether, requiring a degree of technical competence well beyond their reach. And, of course, during the actual construction process everything had to be finished ‘yesterday’, and as cheaply as possible (a policy of cheap product substitution was the un-stated national norm !). In fact, so many corners were cut on Irish Building Sites, at the time, that we should refer to almost the entire construction output from this era as: The Celtic Tiger Round Towers !

And guess who is going to carry out the Corrective/Repair/Refurbishment Works at ‘Priory Hall’ ? The very same Construction Organization which created the mess in the first place !! Can you believe it ??

Furthermore … once these Corrective/Repair/Refurbishment Works are eventually finished … the performance of the Fire Protection Measures in ‘Priory Hall’ will still be compromised, because you can only do so much, physically, when a building is completed. BUT … it would be possible to achieve a Proper Level of Fire Safety in ‘Priory Hall’ … by installing a Fire Suppression System (sprinklers or mist) throughout the development. That’s what it will take !!

Tremendous fire damage was caused to the local environment in Buncefield ... but SOCIETY can no longer suffer this scale of damage ... and these Criminal Human Acts! Click to enlarge.

WHO IS PROTECTING SOCIETY ?

So extensive is the damage caused by fire … throughout Europe … that not all of the Direct and Indirect Fire Losses have yet been identified.

Pause, to consider this definition …

Environmental Impact: Any effect caused by a given activity on the environment, including human health, safety and welfare, flora, fauna, soil, air, water, and especially representative samples of natural ecosystems, climate, landscape and historical monuments or other physical structures, or the interactions among these factors; it also includes effects on accessibility, cultural heritage or socio-economic conditions resulting from alterations to those factors.

And this means, of course, that our current Fire Loss Data and Statistics are unreliable.

It is not well known, or widely publicised, that the Fire Safety Objectives of Building Regulations are limited to protecting building occupants. The Objectives are only concerned with protecting property, insofar as it is relevant to the protection of those building occupants.

Can you image the look of astonishment on the face of a Managing Director, after his/her factory has been entirely destroyed by a fire, when told by a fire consultant …

” We complied with Part B of the Building Regulations, and here is your Fire Safety Certificate to prove it” ??

What should be happening instead ?

1. Fire Engineering Design & Practice cannot … and must not … be concerned merely with the ‘cost-effective’ compliance with minimal (which they most certainly are !) Fire Safety Objectives mandated by Building Legislation.

2. To properly protect the interests of Society and Clients/Client Organizations … Fire Engineering Design & Practice must also take into account: Safety at Work Legislation; Rights, Equality & Anti-Discrimination Legislation; Environmental Impact Legislation; Public Procurement Legislation; Product Liability Legislation; etc., etc.

3. There is an evolving realization in Ethical Fire Engineering Design & Practice, however, that there is still a significant gap to be bridged. There is no legislation (effective, or otherwise) yet in place, anywhere, which deals with such issues as …

Resistance to Fire-Induced Progressive Collapse – as very strongly recommended in the 2005 & 2008 U.S. NIST Final Reports on the 9-11 World Trade Center Building 1, 2 & 7 Collapses ;
Protection of Vulnerable Building Users in ‘Situations of Risk’ – as required, for example, by Article 11 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) ;
Safety of Firefighters/Rescue Teams – as specified in Basic Requirement for Construction Works No.2, in Annex I of European Union Construction Product Regulation 305/2011 ;
Adaptation to Climate Change and Severe Weather Events – the Developed World Economies appear to have no interest, whatsoever, in these issues ;
Sustainable Human & Social Development !

4. We must clearly distinguish, therefore, between the Fire Safety Objectives of Building Regulations/Codes … and Project-Specific Fire Engineering Design Objectives. This difference must be fully understood by the Fire Engineer himself/herself … and then, in all circumstances, properly explained to the Client/Client Organization.

In designing a Building for conditions of fire, and its aftermath … which may take place at any time during the Life Cycle of that Building … Project-Specific Fire Engineering Design Objectives should cover the following spectrum of concerns … in order to properly protect the interests of Society and our Clients/Client Organizations …

- Protection of the Health & Safety of All Building Users … including People with Activity Limitations (2001 WHO ICF), visitors to the building who may be unfamiliar with its layout, and contractors or product/service suppliers temporarily engaged in work or business transactions on the premises ;

- Protection of Property … including the building, its contents, and adjoining or adjacent properties … from loss or damage ;

- Protection of the Health & Safety of Firefighters, Rescue Teams & Other Emergency First Response Personnel ;

- Facility, Ease & Efficient Cost of Carrying Out Effective Reconstruction, Refurbishment or Repair Works after a Fire ;

- Sustainability of the Human Environment (social, built, virtual, economic, …) – including Fitness for Intended Use and Life Cycle Costing of fire engineering related products, components, systems, etc., fixed, installed or incorporated in the building ;

- Protection of the Natural Environment from Harm, i.e. Adverse Impacts.

CRIMINAL RESPONSE TO 1981 DUBLIN STARDUST TRAGEDY !

As I write … a stampede has just commenced by the various Construction-Related Professional Institutes and Organizations … to demand closer independent monitoring of what is happening on Irish Building Sites. Far too little … and definitely, far too late ! Back in the early 1990′s, everybody stood by … and co-operated with the installation of an entirely ineffective and dysfunctional system of National Building Control in Ireland … which, let us not forget, survives intact to this day … while, at the same time, the strong long-established and well-resourced Building Control Sections in Dublin and Cork were being quietly dismantled.

The Minister for the Environment, Community & Local Government, Mr. Phil Hogan T.D. … is also chirping in from his ivory tower !

Crocodile Tears !!

Take a Fire Safety Certificate for a Building, for example …

With or Without Conditions … this document confirms that the Local Building Control/Fire Authority is satisfied that the Design Documentation for that building shows proper compliance with the Legal Requirements of Part B of the Irish Building Regulations.

Focus in on the relevant wording of a Fire Safety Certificate, which is as follows …

‘ … hereby certify that the works or building to which the application relates, will, if constructed in accordance with the plans, calculations, specifications and particulars submitted, comply with the requirements of Part B of the Second Schedule to the Building Regulations 1997 to 2008.’

Fire Safety Related Inspections of Construction Projects are not carried out by Competent Local Authority Personnel, or by Competent Independent Technical Controllers. Therefore … a Fire Safety Certificate cannot give, and is not intended to give, any indication with regard to Fire Safety in the Completed Building. The ‘Fire’ Establishment in Ireland knows full well that this is the situation !

Is this any sort of a reasonable, caring or competent response to the 1981 Stardust Discotheque Fire Tragedy in Dublin ??

END

Tags: 'Priory Hall' Apartment Development in Donaghmede Dublin 13, 'Priory Hall' Fire Engineering & Protecting Society's Interests ??, ... and Project-Specific Fire Engineering Design Objectives, a Fire Safety Certificate cannot give and is not intended to give any indication with regard to Fire Safety in the Completed Building, a policy of cheap product substitution was the un-stated national norm !, a stampede has just commenced by the various Construction-Related Professional Institutes and Organizations, Adaptation to Climate Change and Severe Weather Events, after his/her factory has been entirely destroyed by a fire, also chirping in from his ivory tower, and co-operated with the installation of an entirely ineffective and dysfunctional system of National Building Control in Ireland, and must not ... be concerned merely with the 'cost-effective' compliance with minimal Fire Safety Objectives mandated by Building Legislation, Article 11 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), as cheaply as possible, as very strongly Recommended in the 2005 & 2008 U.S. NIST Final Reports on the 9-11 World Trade Center Building 1 2 & 7 Collapses, At the heart of these problems lie Fundamental Design and Construction Flaws, at the same time the strong long-established and well-resourced Building Control Sections in Dublin and Cork were being quietly dismantled, back in the 1990's and early 2000's indigenous builders of simple two storey semi-detached houses suddenly became 'developers' of apartment complexes, Back in the early 1990's everybody stood by ..., Basic Requirement for Construction Works No.2 in Annex I of European Union Construction Product Regulation 305/2011, because you can only do so much physically when a building is completed, Built Environment, Can you image the look of astonishment on the face of a Managing Director, Client Organizations, Climate Change Adaptation, Competent Independent Technical Controllers, components systems etc. fixed installed or incorporated in the building, contractors or product/service suppliers temporarily engaged in work or business transactions on the premises, CRIMINAL RESPONSE TO 1981 DUBLIN STARDUST TRAGEDY !, Crocodile Tears !!, Developed World Economies appear to have no interest whatsoever in these issues, during the actual construction process everything had to be finished 'yesterday', Environmental Impact Legislation, EU, european union, Facility Ease & Efficient Cost of Carrying Out Effective Reconstruction Refurbishment or Repair Works after a Fire, Fire Engineering Design, Fire Engineering Design & Practice cannot ... and must not, Fire Engineering Design & Practice must also take account of Safety at Work Legislation, Fire Safety, Fire Safety Certificate for a Building, Fire Safety Related Inspections of Construction Projects are not carried out by Competent Local Authority Personnel, FireOx International, Fitness for Intended Use and Life Cycle Costing of fire engineering related products, Focus in on the relevant wording of a Fire Safety Certificate, guess who is going to carry out the Corrective/Repair/Refurbishment Works at 'Priory Hall' ?, human environment, if constructed in accordance with the plans calculations specifications and particulars submitted, In designing a building for conditions of fire and its aftermath, In order to properly protect the interests of Society and our Clients/Client Organizations, insofar as it is relevant to the protection of building occupants, International Legal Instrument, Ireland, Is this any sort of a reasonable caring or competent response to the 1981 Stardust Discotheque Fire Tragedy in Dublin ??, it would be possible to achieve a Proper Level of Fire Safety in 'Priory Hall' ... by installing a Fire Suppression System, not all of the Direct and Indirect Fire Losses have yet been identified, our Clients, our current Fire Loss Data and Statistics are unreliable, People with Activity Limitations (2001 WHO ICF), Personnes à Performances Réduites (2001 WHO ICF), Product Liability Legislation, Protection of Property, Protection of the Health & Safety of All Building Users, Protection of the Health & Safety of Firefighters Rescue Teams & Other Emergency First Response Personnel, Protection of the Natural Environment from Harm i.e. Adverse Impacts, Protection of Vulnerable Building Users in 'Situations of Risk', Public Procurement Legislation, requiring a degree of technical competence well beyond their reach, Resistance to Fire-Induced Progressive Collapse, Rights Equality & Anti-Discrimination Legislation, Safety of Firefighters/Rescue Teams, So extensive is the damage caused by fire ... throughout Europe, so many corners were cut on Irish Building Sites at the time, Sustainability Implementation, Sustainability of the Human Environment (social - built - virtual - economic ...), Sustainable Fire Engineering, Sustainable Human & Social Development, Technical Control of Construction, The 'Fire' Establishment in Ireland knows full well that this is the situation !, the Design Documentation for that building shows proper compliance with the Legal Requirements of Part B of the Irish Building Regulations, the Fire Safety Objectives of Building Regulations are limited to protecting building occupants, The Minister for the Environment Community & Local Government Mr. Phil Hogan T.D., The Objectives are only concerned with protecting property, the performance of the Fire Protection Measures in 'Priory Hall' will still be compromised, The very same Construction Organization which created the mess in the first place !!, then in all circumstances properly explained to the client/client organization, There is an evolving realization in Ethical Fire Engineering Design & Practice, There is no legislation (effective or otherwise) yet in place anywhere which deals with such issues as ..., there is still a significant gap to be bridged, these were very different building animals altogether, This difference must be clearly understood by the Fire Engineer himself/herself, this document confirms that the Local Building Control/Fire Authority is satisfied, to demand closer independent monitoring of what is happening on Irish Building Sites, To properly protect the interests of Society and Clients/Client Organizations, United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, visitors to the building who may be unfamiliar with its layout, We must distinguish between the Fire Safety Objectives of Building Regulations/Codes, we should refer to almost the entire construction output from this era as: The Celtic Tiger Round Towers, What should be happening instead ?, which may take place at any time during the Life Cycle of that Building, WHO IS PROTECTING SOCIETY ?, will it be possible to effectively repair the most serious fire protection sound transmission and energy conservation problems

Sunday, October 23rd, 2011 architecture, built environment, climate change, design, eu law, european union, fire, human environment, human health & safety, institutional environment, international law, national law, natural environment, regulations & standards, social environment, sustainability, technical control No Comments

Buildings & Firefighters Not Yet Safer ! – 10 Years After 9-11 (II)

2011-09-20: Continuing on from where I left off on 11 September 2011 …

Applying the Recommendations contained in the 2005 & 2008 National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST – USA) Reports on the 9-11 WTC Buildings 1, 2 & 7 Collapses to the everyday practice of Architecture and Fire Engineering has been a central part of our work for many years. Long discussions on this subject have taken place within CIB (International Council for Building Research) Working Commission 14: ‘Fire Safety’ … and I also chair Commission 14′s Research Working Group IV on ‘Fire-Induced Progressive Collapse’.

My particular interest in Disproportionate Damage and Progressive Collapse reaches back as far as the late 1980′s !

So I was intrigued, amused … and at the same time, highly concerned … to read the following Letter to the Editor of the Irish Times Newspaper, on Saturday 10 September 2011 …

Recalling 9/11

Sir, – One of the most important factors in the tragedy of 9/11, and one that has received scant attention, was the mode of failure of the towers.

They were struck high up on their structures and failed via progressive collapse. Had they been designed this side of the Atlantic, they would not have collapsed. These were flimsy structures. -

Yours, etc,

Jim Ryan, Chartered Structural Engineer,

Waterfall, Cork.

JIM … If the WTC Towers (which were not flimsy structures !) had been designed on this side of the Atlantic … they would have collapsed.

Furthermore … If the Towers had only been completed last week in the USA, Ireland, England & Wales, India or China … they would still collapse, if a similar event were to occur next year.

To be crystal clear … What we witnessed, on Tuesday 11 September 2001, was a Collapse Level Event (CLE) which exposed, very harshly and cruelly, a catastrophic failure in all of our common Design and Construction Practices and Procedures used in/by/as …

Architectural Design | (Ambient) Structural Engineering | Fire Engineering ;
Building Management Systems ;
Emergency Responders | Firefighters | Rescue Teams ;
Technical Control Organizations Having Authority (AHJ’s) or Jurisdiction ;
Fire Safety Objectives in Building Legislation, Codes and Standards.

To the average ‘person in the street’ … Whether he/she lives in Manhattan or Chicago in the USA, Dublin or Cork in Ireland, Cardiff or London in Britain, Dilli or Mumbai in India, Beijing or Shanghai or Hong Kong in China … it is unacceptable that buildings collapse … entirely unacceptable !!

COLLAPSE OF WTC BUILDINGS 1, 2 & 7

JIM … Unless you believe in conspiracy theories, please study the 2005 & 2008 NIST(USA) Reports on the 9-11 WTC Buildings 1, 2 & 7 Collapses. The 2 Final Reports can be downloaded from this Page on Sustainable Design International’s Corporate WebSite … http://www.sustainable-design.ie/fire/structdesfire.htm … along with other key documents and links.

Some indication of the enormous quantity of 9-11 WTC Incident Documentation issued by NIST(USA) can be seen below …

Colour photograph showing the enormous quantity of 9-11 WTC Incident Documentation, issued by the U.S. National Institute of Standards & Technology, which is still readily available for the public to access and download.

PUBLIC SAFETY 10 YEARS AFTER 9-11 ?

If it is entirely unacceptable to the Public that buildings collapse … in how many National Building Codes does the following Critical Public Safety Equation appear today ? The answer is NONE !

Colour image showing Page 21 from my Overhead Presentation on 'Sustainable Fire Engineering' ... scheduled for this Thursday, 22 September 2011, at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar & Workshop ... to be held at the RDS, in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Click to enlarge.

Is there some fundamental reason why Levels of Safety for the Public should vary so much from one country to another ? NO, there is not !

Within Europe, and in relation to the New EU Construction Product Regulation 305/2011, which I discussed here a few days ago … the European Commission, in a discussion document dating back to the mid-1980′s, suggested that the only way to effectively realize a Single Market for Construction Products would be to introduce Harmonized EU Building Regulations in all of the EU Member States. Of course the Member States, at the time, went ballistic at the very mention of this idea … and it was quickly withdrawn. I take great pleasure in repeating that important idea today.

Jim … The Critical Public Safety Statement above is fully consistent with … and meets … the ‘Basic Requirements for Construction Works’ in Annex I of EU Regulation 305/2011.

However, in relation to any one EU Member State … let’s take Ireland as an example … compare a situation where, in a remote rural location, it might take almost an hour for a sufficient fire service presence to arrive at the scene of a building fire emergency … with a similar situation in the middle of a city, or large town, where the time required will not be greater than 15 minutes … then, although the Level of Safety for the Public can be / should be / must be the same in both situations … I would expect, in the remote rural location having a poor fire service support infrastructure, that the range of Fire Protection Measures to be employed in a typical building would be more extensive, and the performance expected of those Measures would be higher … in order to achieve an Equivalent Level of Safety in both rural and urban locations. Is that not a rational idea ??

Unfortunately, that’s not how the present systems work … National or European ! Levels of Public Safety differ from one country to the next … and from one region, within any one country, to the next … without any good reason … and without meaningful consultation and the full understanding of the Public.

BUILDINGS & FIREFIGHTERS ARE NOT YET SAFER

JIM … In spite of all of the spin coming from the other side of the Atlantic … and discounting criminality and fraud in construction practices … Buildings and Firefighters are not yet safer … because the large, difficult, complex flaws and failures in Conventional Fire Engineering have not yet been aggressively confronted … and properly solved.

In a post last year, on 18 October 2010 … I referred to the Cul-de-Sac of Current Fire Engineering … and illustrated a typical architectural detail in a Dublin Building – a common detail also to be found in India, China, USA, England & Wales, etc., etc – which demonstrates a Fundamental Flaw at the very core of conventional thinking and practice.

On Thursday next … 22 September 2011 … at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar and Workshop in the RDS, Dublin … I will present this flawed detail … and a solution which is fully compatible with … and answers … the NIST Recommendations !

BUT … would anybody like to show me where any National Building Codes have been revised and updated to solve this Fundamental Flaw ?

Colour image showing Page 33 from my Overhead Presentation on 'Sustainable Fire Engineering' ... scheduled for this Thursday, 22 September 2011, at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar & Workshop ... to be held at the RDS, in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Click to enlarge.

Colour image showing Page 35 from my Overhead Presentation on 'Sustainable Fire Engineering' ... scheduled for this Thursday, 22 September 2011, at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar & Workshop ... to be held at the RDS, in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Click to enlarge.

Colour image showing Page 36 from my Overhead Presentation on 'Sustainable Fire Engineering' ... scheduled for this Thursday, 22 September 2011, at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar & Workshop ... to be held at the RDS, in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Click to enlarge.

Colour image showing Page 37 from my Overhead Presentation on 'Sustainable Fire Engineering' ... scheduled for this Thursday, 22 September 2011, at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar & Workshop ... to be held at the RDS, in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Click to enlarge.

Colour image showing Page 38 from my Overhead Presentation on 'Sustainable Fire Engineering' ... scheduled for this Thursday, 22 September 2011, at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar & Workshop ... to be held at the RDS, in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Click to enlarge.

A CASE STUDY OF ENGLAND & WALES

10 years after 9-11 … there are two reasons for taking a closer look at England & Wales (Britain) …

The Building Regulations for England & Wales were used as the model for the Irish Building Regulations, which were first introduced here in the early 1990′s. And, in the absence of Harmonized European Standards … British National Standards tend, with only a few exceptions, to become the default Irish National Standard ;
British National Standards are being applied in many different parts of the world outside England & Wales … in most cases, without any proper consideration of content … or adaptation to local conditions.

Colour image showing the Cover Page of Approved Document B: 'Fire Safety' ... Volume 2 - Buildings Other Than Dwellinghouses ... from the Building Regulations for England & Wales. Click to enlarge.

The Institution of Fire Engineers (Ireland) Annual Fire Conference, which was held last year, on Wednesday 20th October 2010 … in the Dublin Fire Brigade Training Centre, Marino, Dublin … threw up some interesting ‘notions’ for consideration by a diverse range of participants.

One curious proposition … repeated quite often during the day … was that Approved Document B, in the British System of Building Regulations, was basically still a sound document … and that it should pass an upcoming major review with little difficulty.

I don’t agree … Approved Document B is inadequate and dysfunctional !

With regard to Structural Performance in Fire … instead of referring to Approved Document A – Structure … the reader is referred to Appendices at the back of Approved Document B, which only reinforce the erroneous concept of Single Structural Element Fire Protection …

And along with its many other major problems … see my post, dated 2009-06-14 … British Standard BS 9999 takes no account of any of the 2005 & 2008 NIST Recommendations, Fire-Induced Progressive Collapse or Disproportionate Damage … and, in fact, directly conflicts with aspects of the Building Regulations for England & Wales …

Colour image showing Page 51 in the Appendix of my Overhead Presentation on 'Sustainable Fire Engineering' ... scheduled for this Thursday, 22 September 2011, at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar & Workshop ... to be held at the RDS, in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Click to enlarge.

In order to take a close look at Approved Document B … I used the vehicle of a Notional Hotel Project in Cardiff, Wales … similar to the Early 1990′s Dublin Hotel Project shown above …

Colour image showing Page 52 in the Appendix of my Overhead Presentation on 'Sustainable Fire Engineering' ... scheduled for this Thursday, 22 September 2011, at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar & Workshop ... to be held at the RDS, in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Click to enlarge.

With regard to properly showing Fitness for Intended Use of Fire Protection related Products and Building Systems … instead of referring to Regulation 7 … the reader is again referred to Appendices at the back of Approved Document B … which explains why we have such serious problems, i.e. lack of Durability and very low Resistance to Mechanical Damage, with the Thermal Insulation Products used for the Fire Protection of Structural Steelwork …

I also had to quote from Part D of the Irish Building Regulations to fill a gap in the British Regulation 7 …

Colour image showing Page 53 in the Appendix of my Overhead Presentation on 'Sustainable Fire Engineering' ... scheduled for this Thursday, 22 September 2011, at the ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar & Workshop ... to be held at the RDS, in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Click to enlarge.

END

Tags: (Ambient) Structural Engineering, 10 Years After 9-11 (II) - Buildings & Firefighters Not Yet Safer !, 2005 and 2008 National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST - USA) Reports on the 9-11 WTC Buildings 1 - 2 - 7 Collapses, a Fundamental Flaw at the very core of conventional thinking and practice, a similar situation in the middle of a city or large town where the time required will not be greater than 15 minutes, Accessibility-for-All, Accessible Fire Engineering, Architectural Design, Area of Rescue Assistance in a Building, ASFP Ireland Fire Seminar and Workshop in the RDS Dublin, because the large difficult complex flaws and failures in Current Fire Engineering have not yet been aggressively confronted ... and properly solved, Beijing or Shanghai or Hong Kong in China, British National Standards are being applied in many different parts of the world outside England & Wales, British National Standards tend - with only a few exceptions - to become the default Irish National Standard, British Standard BS 9999 - Code of Practice for Fire Safety in the Design Management and Use of Buildings, British Standard BS 9999 takes no account of any of the 2005 and 2008 NIST Recommendations, Building Management Systems, Buildings & Firefighters Not Yet Safer ! - 10 Years After 9-11 (II), Built Environment, Cardiff or London in Britain, CIB (International Council for Building Research) Working Commission 14: 'Fire Safety', CJ Walsh, Client Organizations, Commission 14's Research Working Group IV on 'Fire-Induced Progressive Collapse', Conventional Fire Engineering, Cul-de-Sac of Current Fire Engineering ... and illustrated a typical architectural detail in a Dublin Building, Dilli or Mumbai in India, directly conflicts with aspects of the Building Regulations for England and Wales, discounting criminality and fraud in construction practices, Disproportionate Damage, Dublin Fire Brigade Training Centre Marino Dublin, Dublin or Cork in Ireland, Early 1990's Dublin Hotel Project, Emergency Responders, EU, European Commission, european union, everyday practice of Architecture and Fire Engineering, Fire Engineering Design, Fire Safety, Fire Safety Objectives in Building Legislation Codes and Standards, fire service support infrastructure, FireOx International, Fitness for Intended Use of Fire Protection related Products and Building Systems, Had they been designed this side of the Atlantic, Harmonized EU Building Regulations, I also had to quote from Part D of the Irish Building Regulations to fill a gap in the British Regulation 7, I don't agree ... Approved Document B is inadequate and dysfunctional !, I take great pleasure in repeating that important idea today, I used the vehicle of a Notional Hotel Project in Cardiff Wales, I will present this flawed detail ... and a solution which is fully compatible with ... and answers ... the NIST Recommendations !, If the Towers had only been completed last week in the USA - Ireland - England & Wales - India - China, in a remote rural location it might take almost an hour for a sufficient fire service presence to arrive at the scene of a building fire emergency, in how many National Building Codes does the following Critical Public Safety Equation appear today ?, in most cases without any proper consideration of content ... or adaptation to local conditions, in order to achieve an Equivalent Level of Safety in both rural and urban locations, in relation to any one EU Member State, In spite of all of the spin coming from the other side of the Atlantic, in the absence of Harmonized European Standards, instead of referring to Approved Document A - Structure, Institution of Fire Engineers (Ireland) Annual Fire Conference, Is there some fundamental reason why Levels of Safety for the Public should vary so much from one country to another ?, it is unacceptable that buildings collapse ... entirely unacceptable !!, Jim Ryan - Chartered Structural Engineer - Waterfall - Cork, lack of Durability and very low Resistance to Mechanical Damage, Letter to the Editor of the Irish Times Newspaper on Saturday 10 September 2011, New EU Construction Product Regulation 305/2011, New Recommendation B (2008 NIST Report), Of course the Member States at the time went ballistic at the very mention of this idea, One curious proposition ... repeated quite often during the day, One of the most important factors in the tragedy of 9/11, People with Activity Limitations (2001 WHO ICF), performance expected of those Measures would be higher, Personnes à Performances Réduites (2001 WHO ICF), PUBLIC SAFETY 10 YEARS AFTER 9-11 ?, range of Fire Protection Measures to be employed in a typical building would be more extensive, Recalling 9/11, Rescue Teams, Single Market for Construction Products, Specify Fire Serviceability Limit States, Specify Steel Protection System, Structural Performance in Fire, Sustainable Fire Engineering, Sustainable Human & Social Development, Technical Control Organizations Having Authority (AHJ's) or Jurisdiction, that Approved Document B in the British System of Building Regulations was basically still a sound document, that it should pass an upcoming major review with little difficulty, that's not how the present systems work ... National or European !, The 2 Final Reports can be downloaded from this Page on Sustainable Design International's Corporate WebSite, The Building Regulations for England & Wales were used as the model for the Irish Building Regulations, The Critical Public Safety Statement above is fully consistent with ... and meets ... the 'Basic Requirements for Construction Works' in Annex I of EU Regulation 305/2011, the enormous quantity of 9-11 WTC Incident Documentation issued by NIST(USA), The Irish Times, the mode of failure of the towers, the reader is referred to Appendices at the back of Approved Document B, there are two reasons for taking a closer look at England & Wales (Britain), Thermal Insulation Products used for the Fire Protection of Structural Steelwork, These were flimsy structures, They were struck high up on their structures and failed via progressive collapse, they would not have collapsed, they would still collapse if a similar event were to occur next year, threw up some interesting 'notions' for consideration by a diverse range of participants, United States of America, What we witnessed on Tuesday 11 September 2001 was a Collapse Level Event (CLE), where any National Building Codes have been revised and updated to solve this Fundamental Flaw, Whether he/she lives in Manhattan or Chicago in the USA, which exposed very harshly and cruelly a catastrophic failure in all of our common Design and Construction Practices and Procedures, which only reinforce the erroneous concept of Single Structural Element Fire Protection, without meaningful consultation and the full understanding of the Public

Tuesday, September 20th, 2011 architecture, built environment, design, economic environment, eu law, european union, fire, human health & safety, institutional environment, national law, regulations & standards, sustainability No Comments

U.S. National Mesothelioma Awareness Day – 26 September !

2011-09-14: Again … closely related to our current discussions about the Environmental Impacts of the 9-11 WTC Incident in New York …

You will find the following useful information about Mesothelioma on the Irish Lung Foundation’s WebSite … http://www.irishlungfoundation.ie/ …

THE PLEURA: THE LINING OF THE LUNG - Both of your lungs are surrounded by two very thin layers, like ‘cling film’. These layers are called the pleura. The inner layer of film is attached to the lung. It is known as the visceral pleura. The outer layer is called the parietal pleura. The two layers are separated by a very small amount of fluid. This fluid keeps the pleura moistened. The pleura are very thin. This allows the lungs to expand and contract without difficulty. However, the pleura can become thickened or hard. This will prevent the lungs from expanding properly, making it difficult to breathe. This happens with Mesothelioma.

WHAT IS MEANT BY MESOTHELIOMA ? - Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that grows on the pleura around the lung. It can rarely grow in other places. These include the lining of the abdomen, the lining of the testicle and the lining of the heart. However, in 8 out of 10 cases of Mesothelioma, it is the pleura that is affected.

WHAT CAUSES MESOTHELIOMA ? - In the vast majority of cases, inhaling certain types of asbestos dust is the cause of Mesothelioma. About 7 out of every 10 cases of Pleural Mesothelioma are due to exposure to asbestos. A virus called SV40 has also been linked to the development of Mesothelioma. However, this link has not yet been proven. Exposure to a variety of other dusts may also cause this cancer. Asbestos exposure does remain the most important factor.

Colour photograph showing a Firefighter on the day after 9-11 (2001). Photograph by Matthew McDermott / Corbis Sygma.

A few days ago … on Wednesday, 7 September 2011 … we received the following e-mail from the other side of the pond (USA) …

Good Morning, Friends at Sustainable Design International !

After visiting the Sustainable Design International WebSite, I was extremely impressed by the level of environmental responsibility exhibited. My name is Jenna Cole and I represent MesotheliomaSymptoms.com. I am contacting you to offer our resource to further illustrate your dedication, and to inform you about an upcoming event with hopes that you would mention our WebSite.

On September 26th, we are proud to celebrate U.S. National Mesothelioma Awareness Day. To honour this day, we are trying to spread awareness by educating as many on-line communities about the dangers of asbestos exposure and how it can lead to this terminal disease. Asbestos was used as insulation in buildings for centuries and can be a threat to workers and homeowners making these ‘green’ improvements.

By mentioning our Mesothelioma Survival Rate Page … http://www.mesotheliomasymptoms.com/mesothelioma-survival-rate … on the Sustainable Design International WebSite, you have the opportunity to dispel some of the myths surrounding this environmental hazard, while promoting National Mesothelioma Awareness Day. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions you may have. I look forward to hearing back from you soon !

Many thanks,

Jenna Cole – MesotheliomaSymptoms.com

A Must-View, Must-Study Resource WebSite for Practicing Fire Engineers Worldwide … ‘Human Health’ following a Serious Real Fire Incident …

Human Health (WHO): A state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

9/11 Health

A Public Information WebSite developed by the New York City Health Department … providing the latest information about scientific research and services for people who may have health problems related to the 9-11 World Trade Center Incident.

END

Tags: 'Human Health' following a Serious Real Fire Incident, 9/11 Health, A Must-View Must-Study Resource WebSite for Practicing Fire Engineers Worldwide, A Public Information WebSite developed by the New York City Health Department, About 7 out of every 10 cases of Pleural Mesothelioma are due to exposure to asbestos, Asbestos was used as insulation in buildings for centuries and can be a threat to workers and homeowners making these 'green' improvements, Built Environment, Environmental Impacts of the 9-11 WTC Incident in New York, Exposure to a variety of other dusts may also cause this cancer, Human Health (WHO): A state of complete physical mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity, In the vast majority of cases inhaling certain types of asbestos dust is the cause of Mesothelioma, Ireland, Irish Lung Foundation's WebSite, Jenna Cole - MesotheliomaSymptoms.com, Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that grows on the pleura around the lung, Mesothelioma Survival Rate, People with Activity Limitations (2001 WHO ICF), Personnes à Performances Réduites (2001 WHO ICF), providing the latest information about scientific research and services for people who may have health problems related to the 9-11 World Trade Center Incident, Sustainable Fire Engineering, the opportunity to dispel some of the myths surrounding this environmental hazard, THE PLEURA: THE LINING OF THE LUNG, U.S. National Mesothelioma Awareness Day - 26 September !, United States of America, we are trying to spread awareness by educating as many on-line communities about the dangers of asbestos exposure and how it can lead to this terminal disease, WHAT CAUSES MESOTHELIOMA ?, WHAT IS MEANT BY MESOTHELIOMA ?

Wednesday, September 14th, 2011 architecture, built environment, fire, human health & safety No Comments

10 Years After 9-11 … Are Our Buildings & Firefighters Safer ??

2011-09-11: From the beginning of the past week, news media (printed and on-line), and the television and radio schedules have all been full of articles, stories, opinions, and interpretative and speculative pieces about the 9-11 World Trade Center (WTC) Incident in New York, and its tragic aftermath. Today is the 10th Anniversary … a long ten years since that sunny Tuesday morning in Manhattan !

BUT … is anybody out there asking the questions: “Are Our Buildings Safer ?” … and … “Are Our Firefighters Safer ?” AND … if you do ask those questions … are you able to distinguish between solid, reliable information and ‘spin’ ?

So many Irish people, and people of Irish descent, were directly involved in this traumatic event … working inside the WTC offices, as stockbrokers … or outside, as maintenance personnel, or firefighters, policemen and women, or as members of the emergency medical services …

Colour photograph showing the thick cloud of toxic dust and debris spreading rapidly throughout lower Manhattan, and beyond, after the Second Tower Collapse (WTC 1/North Tower) just before 10.30 hrs (local time) on the morning of 11 September 2001. Earlier, seismic sensors located 160 Km away had recorded the time and intensity of the First Tower Collapse (WTC 2/South Tower) at 09.59 hrs (local time). Click to enlarge.

REALPOLITIK

The previous post about the United Nations Gaza Flotilla Report, I hope, created an uncertainty in your mind … a worrying thought regarding political interference and the negative, and very often, destructive influence of vested interests … which is a necessary frame of mind to have, also, for an essential discussion – on the 10th Anniversary of the 9-11 WTC Incident – about the Safety of Our Buildings, particularly High-Rise Buildings, Iconic Buildings, and those Buildings having a Critical Function and/or an Innovative Design … and the Safety of Our Firefighters.

By ‘Our Buildings’ … I don’t just mean buildings in Ireland, or Europe … I mean buildings on every continent of our small planet. And … such a discussion must be trans-disciplinary, involving the use of simple language only … because it is necessary for each discipline to clearly understand what the others are saying (this rarely happens !) … and the discussion must also be transparent to, and be easily assimilated by, the general population in all of our societies. And by ‘Our Firefighters’ … I mean firefighters worldwide.

Concerning the Gaza Flotilla Report … we could ask …

Would the Findings and Recommendations have been different … if there had been 4 independent and obviously impartial people on the Panel of Inquiry instead ? The answer is … yes, of course ! And …
Why did UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon nominate President Álvaro Uribe (Vice-Chair), an ‘ultra’ rightwing politician from Columbia … and Mr. Joseph Ciechanover Itzhar, an Israeli, to serve on the Panel ? I will leave you to answer that for yourself …

The important point I wish to make is that the community of International Fire Science and Engineering – just like every other ‘human’ community – is not immune from these sorts of malevolent influences !

Colour photograph showing advanced clean up operations at the World Trade Center Complex after 11 September 2001. Fires continued to smoulder for weeks after the Incident. Click to enlarge.

LONG-TERM ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF 9-11

Just five weeks after the 9-11 World Trade Center (WTC) Incident in New York … I found myself in Manhattan for the purpose of making an important presentation to a conference which was taking place not far from Madison Square Garden … while staying Down-Town in Battery Park City, at an apartment within the Security Zone. Yes, I was worried and fearful before going … but …

On first arriving in the city, by taxi from Kennedy Airport … I witnessed, at first hand, the racist hostility of a policeman towards our coloured Asian driver, who had simply asked about the procedure to pass through the Security Zone Boundary. Later, walking near the WTC Site, I would encounter the ‘macho’ behaviour of many National Guardsmen on security duty.

At the conference, I met a person who was literally unable to speak – could not even bear to talk about – the 9-11 Incident.

Everywhere south of Canal Street was in a terrible, horrific condition.

The weather, fortunately, had remained generally very good … sunny, with a light breeze coming in from the sea. Then, unexpectedly, one day towards the end of my stay … the sky was overcast and the air stood still … in lower Manhattan, it assaulted my eyes, nose and the back of my throat. Many times, during that particular day, I retched … but could not vomit ! Yet, a representative of the U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) announced that there was no problem with air quality ! Meanwhile, in Mid-Town, everything ‘appeared’ normal.

10 Years Afterwards … people, communities and the country (USA) are all still suffering … physically, mentally and psychologically … from the 9-11 WTC Incident … unable to ask for help, or perhaps, too proud or ashamed to speak up.

September 2001 – World Health Organization

WHO: How to Address Psychosocial Reactions to Catastrophe

Click the Link Above to read and/or download PDF File (12.5 kb)

10 YEARS AFTER 9-11 – ARE OUR BUILDINGS & FIREFIGHTERS SAFER ?

Or to put it in a more technical way … how are the Critical Recommendations contained in the 2005 & 2008 NIST(USA) Reports on the 9-11 WTC Buildings 1, 2 & 7 Collapses being implemented ? And, what is the quality of that implementation ?

At this time, two years ago … I asked …

Why are so many Key Institutions and Organizations in the International Building Sector still desperately trying to ignore and/or deny the Recommendations in those 2 NIST Reports ?
Why have National Building and Fire Codes/Regulations and Standards not yet been revised to respond, properly and satisfactorily, to the NIST Recommendations ?
Why can we not yet use All Lifts (Elevators) in a Building during a fire incident ? Why are Lift (Elevator) Manufacturers still actively resisting this necessary change ?

Colour image showing an Ostrich with its Head in the Sand ... an accurate description of the International 'Technical' Reaction to the 9-11 WTC Incident ... "it never happened" ... or "it was a unique event, and it will never happen again" ... or "this unusual event only has implications for very, very, very tall buildings" ... blah, blah, blah !!

The answers to the questions are NO … and NO … minor revisions (tinkering at the edges) have been made to Codes/Regulations & Standards in some countries … and, generally, progress on implementing the NIST Recommendations is proving to be very slow … too slow ! Most surprisingly, no revisions have been made to Codes/Regulations & Standards in many countries.

To illustrate tinkering at the edges … refer to the USA’s International Building Code (2012 Edition) … which, despite its grandiose title, is really just another of the USA’s National Model Building Codes … and check out this very disappointing Article: ‘Evolution of Building Code Requirements in a Post 9/11 World’, by David Drengenberg and Gene Corley, in the recently published Special Issue III (2011) of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) Journal … which is available at http://www.ctbuh.org/

Progress at the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), in the USA, is a little more apparent … but still, far too little and far too slow. Check out this recent Special 9-11 Report: ‘A Decade of Difference’, by Fred Durso Jr … on the NFPA WebSite … http://www.nfpa.org/publicJournalDetail.asp?categoryID=2248&itemID=53000&src=NFPAJournal …

And … released earlier this year, NFPA’s Third Needs Assessment of the U.S. Fire Service has identified ‘areas of ongoing concern’ !!

To Be Continued …

END

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Sunday, September 11th, 2011 architecture, built environment, design, fire, human environment, human health & safety, institutional environment, media, political environment, regulations & standards No Comments

2011 IFE International Fire Conference & AGM in Cardiff, Wales

2011-07-17: On 6th & 7th July last … in Cardiff, the Capital City of Wales … the Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) held its Annual General Meeting (AGM), followed by a very well attended 1½ Day International Fire Conference. Participants came from as far away as Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong (in China), Canada, U.S.A., Nigeria and Switzerland. A large, vocal group of delegates from The Netherlands also attended … and of course, there were many people from these islands … Ireland and Great Britain … the Irish Isles !

For me, it was an enjoyable few days in Cardiff.

The Immediate Past President of the IFE, Mr John Woodcock, had initiated an important programme of activities during his 2010/2011 Term of Office on the theme of ‘Fire Engineering & Sustainability’. The New IFE President for 2011/2012, Mr. H.G. (Hao-Giang) Tay, has stated that he will continue this work with enthusiasm.

This brings me very neatly to the reason for my attendance at the Cardiff ‘Gig’. I had been invited by HG Tay to make a presentation on ‘Sustainable Fire Engineering’. This, I was very pleased and honoured to do.

” The audience found the conference extremely valuable and I had many delegates who spoke to me specifically about how good the conference was and the high standard of the presentations. The number of questions on each presentation was a testament to the interest of the audience.

The subject is of such importance that we really need to make sure the voice of the profession is firmly planted in all decision-making on design, protection and management of buildings.”

[Short Extract, Letter from HG Tay, International IFE President, dated 27 July 2011]

Tremendous Injury was caused to the Local Environment in Buncefield ... but Our Planet can no longer suffer these Criminal Human Acts !

2011 IFE Cardiff Overhead Presentation

CJ Walsh: “Sustainable Fire Engineering IS THE FUTURE !”

Click the Link Above to read and/or download PDF File (3.98 Mb)

In order to properly protect the interests of Society and our Clients/Client Organizations … and to effectively realize a Safe and Sustainable Built Environment in the 21st Century … it is necessary, in designing a building for fire and its immediate aftermath, for the Fire Engineer to develop Project-Specific Fire Engineering Design Objectives … which must never be confused with the minimal Fire Safety Objectives mandated in Building and Fire Regulations and Codes.

Sustainable Fire Engineering is concerned with far more than compliance with Legislation ! For this reason, a Fire Engineering Code of Ethics is essential.

Ethically Based Sustainable Fire Engineering must also consider the following issues, which are relevant to Today’s Human Environment :

Sustainable Human & Social Development.
Adaptation to Climate Change and Severe Weather Events … not less than a recurrence interval of 100 years should be used in design, always bearing in mind that the minimum Building Life Cycle for a Sustainable Building is 100 years.
Resistance to Fire-Induced Progressive Building Collapse and Disproportionate Damage.
Sufficient attention and care for Vulnerable Building Users in ‘situations of risk’ – refer to Article 11 of the 2006 United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Safety of Firefighters & Rescue Teams – refer to Essential Requirement 2 of the European Union’s Construction Products Directive 89/106/EEC.

In this Overhead Presentation …

Clearly outlined is a Holistic Perspective of the much wider scope for Sustainable Fire Engineering in the Future … Fire Engineering which has an empirical and scientifically robust foundation … Fire Engineering which is not afraid to confront and absorb the lessons of the 9-11 WTC Incident (2001) in New York, or the 2008 Mumbai ‘Hive Attacks’ … Fire Engineering which discards its outrageously shameful disregard for People with Activity Limitations … Fire Engineering which understands Fire-Induced Progressive Collapse and Disproportionate Damage in Buildings and, most importantly, understands the difference between these two related structural concepts … Fire Engineering which is capable of full integration with the Mainstream Construction Sector ;
Sustainable Human & Social Development is clearly defined, and the current widespread confusion about the far more limited concept of ‘Green’ is removed ;
The UNESCO WFEO/FMOI Model Code of Ethics, updated by CJ Walsh in 2011, is proposed as a suitable and very necessary template for the Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) ;
As Sustainable Design Solutions are appropriate to Local Geography, Culture, Climate (and Climate Change), Economy, Social Need, Language/Dialect, etc … it is strongly recommended that the IFE should develop Global Regional Guidance Documents on Sustainable Fire Engineering, i.e. separate documents for Africa, Asia, Europe, South America, etc ;
Finally … this Presentation initiates a fresh and entirely new dialogue within the International Fire Science and Engineering Community.

What are your views and comments ?

END

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Sunday, July 17th, 2011 architecture, built environment, climate change, design, economic environment, eu law, fire, human & social rights, human environment, human health & safety, institutional environment, international law, national law, natural environment, regulations & standards, social environment, sustainability, technical control No Comments

Building Design Must Improve Firefighter Safety in Fire Incidents !

2011-07-05 …

It has been a harsh experience to leave the last post undisturbed for a few weeks ! It was necessary … and I feel better as a result.

Back to the present … and in any jurisdiction, news of Firefighter Fatalities and/or Injuries is very distressing. It has been remarkable to note, however, how some countries, e.g. Japan, are expending significant time and resources on developing innovative ways to improve firefighter safety in buildings … while most countries are not. Over many years, I have formed the clear impression that, generally, firefighters are regarded in much the same way as soldiers, i.e. they are a disposable asset … ‘Theirs not to reason why / Theirs but to do and die’ … etc., etc. This situation is entirely unacceptable, and in need of urgent resolution !

On 6th & 7th July … in Cardiff, Wales … I have been invited by the International President of the Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE), Mr. HG Tay, to make a presentation on ‘Sustainable Fire Engineering’ at the 2011 IFE International Fire Conference and Annual General Meeting. I am greatly honoured by this invitation.

During the course of that presentation, I will be referring to Firefighter Safety … but much more needs to be said, beforehand, in relation to the untapped contribution of building design to greater levels of firefighter safety …

INTRODUCTION

It may be obvious for some (but, believe me, not for all !) that with regard to fighting fires in buildings … Firefighters have 2 Basic Functions :

to rescue people who are trapped in a Fire Building (i.e. a building which is on fire) … or people who, for some reason, cannot independently evacuate the building (e.g. people with activity limitations) ; and
to fight those fires, and ensure that they are properly extinguished.

Note: Extinction of a fire is confirmed only after a thorough visual inspection by a competent person.

DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION

In a previous post, dated 13 December 2010 … I said that it was no longer ethically acceptable to ignore the issue of Firefighter Safety in the design and construction of buildings … because design can make a major contribution to their safety.

Unfortunately, Firefighter Safety must continue to remain an ethical issue because Building Regulations in most countries rarely, if ever, refer to this important aspect of design and construction. Safety at Work Legislation has a related, but different, intent.

Regrettably, most of the building design professions either have no Code of Ethics … or there is a Code which is ‘lite-lite-lite’, i.e. very weak on ethics … or, worse still, they have a Code … but it is called a Code of Professional Conduct, the principal intent of which is to preserve and protect the profession and its vested interests.

At European Level …

Essential Requirements 1 & 2 (of 6 … for the time being) … in Annex I of European Union (EU) Council Directive 89/106/EEC, of 21 December 1988, on the approximation of laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States relating to Construction Products … state the following …

1. Mechanical Resistance & Stability

The construction works must be designed and built in such a way that the loadings that are liable to act on it during its construction and use will not lead to any of the following:

(a) collapse of the whole or part of the works ;

(b) major deformations to an inadmissible degree ;

(c) damage to other parts of the works or to fittings or installed equipment as a result of major deformation of the load-bearing construction ;

(d) damage by an event to an extent disproportionate to the original cause.

2. Safety in Case of Fire

The construction works must be designed and built in such a way that in the event of an outbreak of fire:

- the load-bearing capacity of the construction can be assumed for a specific period of time ;

- the generation and spread of fire and smoke within the works are limited ;

- the spread of the fire to neighbouring construction works is limited ;

- occupants can leave the works or be rescued by other means ;

- the safety of rescue teams is taken into consideration.

Sweden … has incorporated all 6 Essential Requirements of EU Construction Products Directive 89/106/EEC into its National Building Regulations … but has omitted the reference to the ‘safety of rescue teams’, i.e. Firefighter Safety. Why is that ?

Ireland, along with England & Wales, has not incorporated the EU CPD Essential Requirements into its National Building Regulations. There is no requirement, in Part B of the Building Regulations of either of these two separate jurisdictions, to consider Firefighter Safety in the design and construction of buildings.

In these three specific cases, taken as a simple example, this is a serious legal flaw … especially since the European Template, above, has existed since the late 1980′s !

Let me illustrate how Building Design & Construction can make a major contribution to improved levels of Firefighter Safety …

A. Accessible Internal Staircases Having Sufficient Unobstructed Width

From a building user’s point of view … the success of a building depends, to a large extent, on the ‘quality’ of its circulation spaces. During the design process, however, an architect is typically concerned with the relationship between different functions and spaces … while, at the same time, he/she is shaping and moulding the internal and external forms of the building.

The full range of tasks and activities in these circulation spaces is rarely, if ever, considered by the building designer. The subject is not covered in Architectural Schools … and in later professional life, a reluctance to carry out Building Post-Occupation Evaluations (POE’s) reinforces this low level of awareness.

Some Tasks & Activities in Building Circulation Spaces …

Access to the building’s spaces and use of its services and facilities ;
Egress from the building during normal, everyday circumstances ;
Independent Evacuation, in the event of an emergency ;
Assisted Evacuation by others, or Rescue by Firefighters, for those building users who cannot independently evacuate the building, e.g. people with activity limitations ;
Firefighter Access & Reconnaissance, in the event of an emergency ;
Firefighter Attack, as they approach the proximity of the fire scene ;
Firefighter Removal from the building, by colleagues, in the event of injury, impairment, or a fire event induced health condition ;
Firefighter Withdrawal at the successful conclusion of firefighting operations.

Colour photograph showing an injured, or impaired, firefighter being assisted by two colleagues in an upward staircase removal exercise. For reasons outlined in a previous post (2010-12-13) ... all three firefighters must continue to wear full Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) ... and use Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA). Click to enlarge.

The photograph above was extracted from this 2010 Poster Presentation …

Daniel DiRenzo, Cherry Hill Fire Department, New Jersey, USA

Building Fires – Personal Harness Use – Firefighter Removals

Click the Link Above to read and/or download PDF File (1.73 Mb)

No matter what the jurisdiction … no matter what Building Regulations do or do not require … it is clear that, during a ‘real’ fire emergency, patterns of circulation are not simple … and they cannot easily be segregated into categories with simple titles. They are complex … and, quite often, they overlap.

In the case of the firefighter removal on a staircase (shown above) … there is a necessity to consider another type of ‘Contraflow’ … where the injured, or impaired, firefighter with two of his/her colleagues rendering assistance are together moving away from the scene of the fire … while other firefighters are moving in the opposite direction, towards the fire.

In all but the most simple and smallest building types, this is what a Fire Evacuation Staircase should look like below … having a clear unobstructed staircase width, between handrails, of 1500 mm … with a stair going/tread of 300 mm, and a stair riser of 150 mm. Proper attention by the designer to Accessibility Design Criteria will also make the staircase far, far easier … and safer … for Firefighter Movement …

Colour drawing taken from International Standard ISO FDIS 21542, and associated inset photographs ... showing a Fire Evacuation Staircase suitable for All Building Types, which is designed for Firefighter Safety. The staircase is also designed to accommodate Building User Evacuation/Firefighter Contraflow, illustrated with an inset colour photograph ... the Rescue/Assisted Evacuation of People with Activity Limitations, also illustrated with an inset colour photograph ... and the Use of a Stretcher. The staircase design is based on the work of CJ Walsh. Click to enlarge.

B. Accessible Façade Walkways in High-Rise Buildings

With today’s powerful drivers of greater energy conservation and efficiency in buildings, adaptation to climate change, and a paradigm shift in thinking on the reduction of adverse environmental impact by buildings … External Façade Design is rapidly evolving … becoming far more complex and, in many cases, comprising multiple ‘skins’.

Just check out this architectural feature, below, in an Osaka (Japan) High-Rise Hotel … which not only serves as an accessible route for evacuation and/or rescue in the event of a fire incident … but also permits much easier access for maintenance and window cleaning.

This architectural feature should be mandatory in the case of high-rise buildings with a single, central core …

Colour photograph showing the High-Rise Swissôtel Nankai in Osaka, Japan. Photograph by CJ Walsh. 2010-04-20. Click to enlarge.

Colour photograph showing the External Walkway on the Building Façade of the High-Rise Swissôtel Nankai in Osaka, Japan. Photograph by CJ Walsh. 2010-04-19. Click to enlarge.

Colour photograph showing the Hotel Room Evacuation Panel to the External Façade Walkway, which can also facilitate rescue by firefighters during a fire incident. Photograph by CJ Walsh. 2010-04-19. Click to enlarge.

Building Design can make a substantial contribution to greater Firefighter Safety !!

BUT … who is raising the awareness of building designers about this issue ???

END

Tags: 2011 IFE International Fire Conference and Annual General Meeting, Access to the building's spaces and use of its services and facilities, Accessible Façade Walkways in High-Rise Buildings, Accessible Fire Engineering, Accessible Internal Staircases Having Sufficient Unobstructed Width, Annex I of European Union (EU) Council Directive 89/106/EEC, another type of 'Contraflow' ... where the injured or impaired firefighter with two of his/her colleagues rendering assistance are together moving away from the scene of the fire ... while other firef, Area of Rescue Assistance in a Building, Assisted Evacuation by others or Rescue by Firefighters for those building users who cannot independently evacuate the building, British Standard BS 9999 - Code of Practice for Fire Safety in the Design Management and Use of Buildings, Building Design Must Improve Firefighter Safety in Fire Incidents, Building Fires - Personal Harness Use - Firefighter Removals, Building Post-Occupation Evaluations (POE's), Built Environment, but has omitted the reference to the 'safety of rescue teams' ... Firefighter Safety, CJ Walsh, Client Organizations, Code of Professional Conduct the principal intent of which is to preserve and protect the profession and its vested interests, Colour drawing taken from International Standard ISO FDIS 21542, Daniel DiRenzo - Cherry Hill Fire Department New Jersey USA, Egress from the building during normal everyday circumstances, England and Wales, Essential Requirements 1 and 2 (of 6 ... for the time being), EU, european union, External Façade Design is rapidly evolving ... becoming far more complex and in many cases comprising multiple 'skins', Extinction of a fire is confirmed only after a thorough visual inspection by a competent person, Fire Engineering Design, Fire Safety, Firefighter Access and Reconnaissance in the event of an emergency, Firefighter Attack as they approach the proximity of the fire scene, Firefighter Removal from the building by colleagues in the event of injury impairment or a fire event induced health condition, Firefighter Safety must continue to remain an ethical issue because Building Regulations in most countries rarely refer to this important aspect of design and construction, Firefighter Withdrawal at the successful conclusion of firefighting operations, Firefighters have 2 Basic Functions, FireOx International, having a clear unobstructed staircase width between handrails of 1500 mm, In all but the most simple and smallest building types this is what a Fire Evacuation Staircase should look like below ..., in any jurisdiction news of Firefighter Fatalities and/or Injuries is very distressing, Independent Evacuation in the event of an emergency, International President of the Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) Mr. HG Tay, Ireland, Ireland - along with England and Wales - has not incorporated the EU CPD Essential Requirements into its National Building Regulations, Japan, Just check out this architectural feature in an Osaka (Japan) High-Rise Hotel, Let me illustrate how Building Design and Construction can make a major contribution to improved levels of Firefighter Safety, Mechanical Resistance and Stability, most of the building design professions either have no Code of Ethics, much more needs to be said in relation to the untapped contribution of building design to greater levels of firefighter safety, no longer ethically acceptable to ignore the issue of Firefighter Safety in the design and construction of buildings, or there is a Code which is 'lite-lite-lite' ... very weak on ethics, patterns of circulation are not simple ... and they cannot easily be segregated into categories with simple titles, People with Activity Limitations (2001 WHO ICF), Personnes à Performances Réduites (2001 WHO ICF), photograph, Proper attention by the designer to Accessibility Design Criteria will also make the staircase far far easier ... and safer ... for Firefighter Movement, Safety at Work Legislation has a related but different intent, Safety in Case of Fire, some countries are expending significant time and resources on developing innovative ways to improve firefighter safety in buildings ... while most countries are not, Some Tasks and Activities in Building Circulation Spaces, Sustainability Implementation, Sustainable Fire Engineering, Sweden, Sweden ... has incorporated all 6 Essential Requirements of EU Construction Products Directive 89/106/EEC into its National Building Regulations, Swissôtel Nankai in Osaka Japan - Building Façade External Walkway, Swissôtel Nankai in Osaka Japan - Room Evacuation Panel to External Façade Walkway, the approximation of laws regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States relating to Construction Products, the clear impression that firefighters are regarded in much the same way as soldiers ... they are a disposable asset, The construction works must be designed and built in such a way that in the event of an outbreak of fire, the safety of rescue teams is taken into consideration, There is no requirement in Part B of the Building Regulations of either of these two separate jurisdictions to consider Firefighter Safety, They are complex ... and quite often they overlap, This architectural feature should be mandatory in the case of high-rise buildings with a single central core, this is a serious legal flaw ... especially since the European Template has existed since the late 1980's, to fight those fires and ensure that they are properly extinguished, to rescue people who are trapped in a Fire Building ... or people who cannot independently evacuate the building, United States of America, with a stair going/tread of 300 mm and a stair riser of 150 mm

Tuesday, July 5th, 2011 architecture, built environment, design, eu law, european union, fire, human health & safety, institutional environment, national law, photography, regulations & standards, sustainability No Comments

‘A Gentle Whisper in Your Ear’

CJ Walsh – Consultant Architect, Fire Engineer & Technical Controller