FIRE SAFETY OF

BUILDINGS
 INTRODUCTION
• No building material is perfectly fire proof.
• Every building contains some materials which easily catch or are vulnerable
to fire
• It’s the duty of building designers to plan, design and construct the building
in such a way that safety of occupants may be ensured to the maximum
possible extent in the event of outbreak of fire in the building
• The technical interpretation of fire safety of building is to convey the fire
resistance of buildings in terms of hours when subjected to fire of known
intensity
• It should have structural time interval so that adequate protection to the
occupants is afforded
Fire safety should cover the following aspects
a. Fire prevention and reduction of number of outbreaks of fire
b. Spread of fire, both internally and externally
c. Safe exit of any and all occupants in the event of an out-break of fire
d. Fire extinguishing apparatus
 FIRE PROTECTION OF BUILDINGS
• Active
• Passive
 FIRE HAZARDS

• Fire safety of building should be considered from 3 aspects and thus protection is
to be provided for the following 3 hazards
1. Personal- possibility of loss or damage of life. Most important to be considered
and requires the provision of safe and fire proof exits and escapes in buildings
2. Internal-possibility of fire occurring and spreading inside the building itself.
Concerns damage or destruction of the building and directly influences personal
hazard. It is directly related to fire load, which grades the building along with
the duration of fire
3. Exposure- possibility of fire spreading from an adjoining building or buildings
or from across a street or road.
 FIRE LOAD

• Amount of heat in kilocalories which is liberated per square metre of floor area of
any compartment by the combustion of contents of the building and any
combustible part of the building itself.
• This amount heat is used as the basis of grading the occupancies
• It is determined by multiplying the weight of all combustible materials by their
calorific value and dividing the floor area under consideration
 FIRE LOAD - OCCUPANCY GRADING
Class of fire load Fire load value (kcal/m2) Recommended for

Low ≤ 275,000 Domestic buildings, hotels,

offices etc.

Moderate 275,000< x ≤ 550,000 Factories, trading

establishments

High 550,000< x ≤ 1100,000 Warehouses

 FIRE LOAD - OCCUPANCY GRADING

FIRE LOAD GRADING OF OCCUPANCIES

Class of fire load Fire load value (kcal/m2)

Low Avg ≤ 275,000, ≤ 550,000 on limited isolated areas

Moderate Avg > 275,000, ≤ 550,000 ; ≤ 1100,000 on limited

isolated areas

High Avg > 550,000, ≤ 1100,000 ; ≤ 2200,000 on limited

isolated areas
• Materials are classified for assessing fire grading under
• Non hazardous
• Hazardous
• Extra-hazardous
Based on following characteristics
i. Explosive tendencies
ii. High inflammability
iii. Liability to intensify a fire
iv. Generation of intense heat when burning
v. Liability to extend the fire zone
vi. Difficult to extinguish
vii. Spontaneous combustion tendencies
 GRADING OF STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS
• Structural elements of buildings are graded, for fire resistance, by the time for
which they resist a standard fire of given time temperature grading
• The time-temperature grading is based on, observations in actual fires
• The different grades of fire resisting structural elements will resist the
corresponding fire loads shown against them in table

• Table
FIRE RESISTANCE GRADING OF STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS

Grade Time in Hours- Minimum Fire load and (class of fire) which
resistance against standard fire the structural element can
withstand (kcal/m2)

1 6 1100,000 and more(very high)

2 4 550,000 to 1100,000(high)

3 2 275,000 to 550,000(medium)

4 1 < 275,000(low)

5 1/2 - (very low)

 GRADING OF BUILDING
ACCORDING TO FIRE RESISTANCE
i. Type 1 construction. All structural components have 4-hours fire resistance
ii. Type 2 construction. All structural components have 3-hours fire resistance
iii. Type 3 construction. All structural components have 2-hours fire resistance
iv. Type 4 construction. All structural components have 1-hour fire resistance
Type Minimum Fire Resistance of Structural Components in Buildings (in Hours)
Walls Columns and Beams, Supporting Stairca
Extern Separ Diversi Other Extern Diversi Other Floors ses,
al ating on fire al on fire Floors
resisti walls walls resisti and
ng or ng or Flat
load load roofs
bearin bearin
g g walls
1 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6
2 4 6 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
3 2 6 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
4 1 6 2 1 1 2 1 1 1
2 6 2
5 1/2 6 1 1 1/2 1 ½ ½ ½
 FIRE ZONING

• Concept applies to city or area planning A Residential

• Buildings classified on the basis of B Education
occupancies in A-J groups
• Fire zones demarcated on the basis of C Institutional
type/s of fire hazard the occupancies are
prone to D Assembly
• No. of fire zones depends on existing E Business
layouts, types of building occupancies,
expected future development of the city/ F Mercantile
area
G Industrial
H Storage
J Hazardous
 FIRE ZONING

Fire Zone 1 Fire Zone 2 Fire Zone 3

Groups A-D, E-1,F; or areas E-2, E-3, G-1,G-2; or areas G-3,H,J ; or areas under
under development for under development for development for these
these occupancies these occupancies occupancies

• Buildings situated in more than one zone to be identified with the zone
where most part of the bldg is situated
• Buildings extending equally to two or more zones identified with zone
having greater risk of hazards
• Temporary buildings permitted only in zones 1,2
 FIRE RESISTANCE
• It is a property of an element of building construction and is the measure
of its ability to satisfy for a stated period some or all of the following
criteria:
a. Resistance to collapse
b. Resistance to flame penetration
c. Resistance to excessive temperature rise on the exposed face up to a
maximum of 180˚C and average of 150˚C
 FIRE RATING

• A fire rating refers to the length of time that a material can withstand
complete combustion during a standard fire test.

• With the required tests, the results are measured in either units of time,
because the emphasis is on holding up under fire (literally) long enough
for the occupants of a home or building to escape, or by classification
designations.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF FIRE RESISTING
MATERIALS
An ideal fire resisting material should possess the following characteristics

1. The material should not disintegrate under the effect of great fire

2. The expansion of the material due to heat should not be such that it leads to
instability of the structure of which it forms a part

3. The contraction of the material due to sudden cooling with water (during fire
extinguition process) after it has been heated to a high temperature should not
be rapid
In relation to fire, building materials can be divided into two types:
i. Combustible materials- wood, wood products, fibre board, straw
board etc.
ii. Non-combustible materials- stone and bricks, concrete, clay products,
metal, glass, etc.
 FIRE RESISTANCE OF BUILDING
ELEMENTS
In a fire resistant construction, the design Should be such that the components can
withstand fire as an integral member of structure, for the desired period.
The construction of the following components should be considered:
1. walls and columns.
2. floors and roofs.
3. Wall openings.
4. Escape elements.
 WALLS AND COLUMNS
The following points should be observed for making walls and columns fire-
resistant:
i. Masonry walls and columns should be made of thicker section so that these
can resist fire for a longer time, and can also act as barrier against spread of
fire to the adjoining areas.
ii. In the case of solid load bearing walls, bricks should be preferred to stones
iii. If the walls are to be made of stones, granite and lime stone should be avoided
iv. In the case of building with framed structure, R.C.C should be preferred to
steel
v. If steel is used for framed structure, the steel structural components should be
properly enclosed or embedded into concrete, terracotta, brick, gypsum
plaster board, or any other suitable material
vi. If the frame work is of R.C.C, thicker cover should be used so that the
members can resist fire for a longer time. It is recommended to use 40 to 50
mm cover for columns, 35 to 40 mm cover for beams and long span slabs and
25 mm for short span slabs.
vii. Partition walls should be of fire-resistant materials such as R.C,C.,
reinforced brick work, hollow concrete blocks, burnt clay tiles, reinforced
glass, asbestos cement boards or metal laths covered with cement plaster.
viii.Cavity wall construction has better fire resistance.
ix. All walls, whether load bearing or non-load bearing, should be plastered
with fire-resistive mortar.
 FLOORS AND ROOFS
The following points are noteworthy tor fire-resistant floors and roofs :
i. For better fire resistance, slab roof is preferred to sloping or pitched roofs.
ii. If it is essential to provide sloping roof, trusses should either be of R.C.C, or of
protected rigid steel with fire proof covering.
iii. For better fire resistance, the floor should be either of R.C.C. or of hollow
tiled ribbed floor or of concrete jack arch floor with steel joists embedded in
concrete
iv. If floor is made of timber, thicker joists at a greater spacing should be used
and fire stops or barriers should be provided at suitable interval.
v. The flooring materials like concrete tiles, ceramic tiles, bricks etc. are more
suitable for fire resistance.

vi. If cast iron, wrought iron, cork carpet, rubber tiles etc. are to be used, these
should be protected by a covering of insulating materials like ceramic tiles,
plaster, terracotta, bricks etc.

vii. Ceiling, directly suspended from floor joists should be of fire resistant
materials like asbestos cement boards, fibre boards, metal lath with plaster
etc.
 WALL OPENINGS
i. From the point of view of fire spread, openings in the walls should be a bare
minimum
ii. Openings serve means of escape. Hence these should be properly protected
by suitable arrangements, in case of fire
iii. Doors and windows should be made of steel. Fire-resistant doors can be
obtained by fixing steel plates to both sides of the door
iv. Wire-glass panels are preferred for windows
v. Rolling shutter doors should be used for garages, godowns, shops, etc
vi. In case of timber doors, minimum thickness of door leaf should be 4cm. and
that of door frame as 8 to 10 cm
vii. All escape doors should be such as to provide free circulation to the persons
in passages, lobbies, corridors, stairs, etc., and should be made of fire
proofing material
 MEANS OF FIRE ESCAPE AND THEIR DESIGN
• In case of fire outbreak, the danger is from fire, smoke and panic
• The suitable means of escape should be in relation to these dangers and the
number of persons affected
• The chances of damage due to panic can be reduced ;the escapes should be
located in such a way that they remain unobstructed by smoke or fumes
• The means of escapes from fire should be easily accessible, unobstructed and
clearly defined
 ESCAPE ELEMENTS
i. All the escape elements, such as stair cases, corridors, lobbies, entrances etc.
should be constructed of fire resistant materials
ii. These escape elements should be well separated from the rest of the building
iii. Doors to these escapes should be fire proof
iv. Staircases should be located next to the outer wall and should be accessible
from any floor in the direction of flow towards the exits from the building
v. Fire proof doors to the emergency stair cases should be fixed in such a way as
to make them close from inside only
vi. The lift shafts connecting various floors should be surrounded with the
enclosure walls of fire-resisting materials
vii. Lift shafts should be vented from top to permit escape of smoke and
hot gases
viii.An emergency ladder should be provided in the fire-resisting
building. This ladder should be at least 90cm wide, constructed of
fire-resistant materials
ix. All escape routes over roofs should be protected with railings,
balustardes or parapets not less than one metre in height
FIRE RESISTANCE.
That property of materials or their assemblies that prevents or retards the passage of excessive
heat, hot gases or flames under conditions of use.
FIRE-RESISTANCE RATING.
The period of time a building element, component or assembly maintains the ability to
withstand fire exposure, continues to perform a given structural function, or both, as
determined by the tests, or the methods based on tests, prescribed in Section 703.
• "Fire-resistance rating" is defined in part as: "the time in minutes or hours that a material or
assembly of materials will withstand the passage of flame and the transmission of heat when
exposed to fire under specified conditions of test and performance criteria…(Canadian wood
council)
 FIRE FIGHTING 31

Fire fighting can be defined in three separate categories:

1. Fire protection, by design features and subsequent control of

human behaviour

2. Fire Detection, using artificial systems or human senses.

3. Fire suppression using a number of fixed or portable systems.

 FIRE PROTECTION
• Materials
• Fire resistant construction
• Escape elements etc.
 FIRE DETECTION 33

A fire detection system consists of the following elements:

• Human observation
• Manual fire alarms
• Automatic Fire detectors-smoke, flame, heat (gas, H2S)
• Combinations of the above
 Human observation

• Through human sensations

 FIRE ALARMS
• Installed to give an alarm and to call for assistance in event of fire
• The fire alarms give enough time to the occupants to reach to a safe
place
 FIRE ALARMS-MANUAL ALARMS
• Fire bell type or similar other sounding device, which can emit
distinctive sound when struck
• Done by watchmen and the occupants
• Provided near all main exits and in the natural path of escape from
fire, at readily accessible points which are not likely to be obstructed
 FIRE ALARMS-AUTOMATIC
• Sounds automatically in the event of fire
• This alarm sends alarm to the nearest control point
• Can also perform the function of sending message to the nearest fire
brigade station
• Detected through -smoke, flame, heat
 FIRE SUPPRESSION

• Fire extinguishing equipments

• Manual fire extinguishing equipments (Portable Extinguishers)
• Fire hydrants
• Dry riser system (Standpipe Systems)
• Wet riser system (Standpipe Systems)
• Automatic sprinkler system
 FIRE SUPPRESSION AGENTS
• Water- for extinguishing most common fires
• Carbon dioxide- extinguishes electrical fires
• Halogenated agents (halons)
• Foam- for oil fires
• Powders- fire of complex nature
• Sand-for electrical and petroleum fires
 MANUAL FIRE EXTINGUISHING EQUIPMENTS

• Useful for extinguishing fire as soon as it start it starts

• Under this category comes the portable extinguishers of carbon-dioxide
type or foam generation type
• Discharge lasts for short duration of 20 to 120 seconds
• In small buildings, buckets of water, sand and asbestos blanket may be
kept ready at all times to extinguish fire
 FIRE HYDRANTS

• Provided on a ring main of 150mm dia. in the ground along the building
periphery
• The ring gets water from underground tank
 DRY RISER SYSTEM
• DRY RISER - A vertical water ,main inside a building, not normally connected to a
water main or an automatic stationary pump, with an inlet or inlets at street level,
through which water can be pumped by fire service pumps to hydrant outlets or hose
reels at various floors.
1. Internal Hydrant for Firemen to use

2. Topmost floor is higher than 19.3m (63f) and less than 30.5m (100f)

3. Normally dry pipe and depend on the fire engine to pump water

4. Comprises a riser pipe with landing valves at each floor which canvas
hose with nozzle can be connected.

5. Breeching inlets into which firemen pumps water provided at ground level.
 WET RISER SYSTEM
• Wet Riser - A charged vertical water main inside a building, connected to a water main or an
automatic stationary pump and fitted with internal hydrants landing valves, hose reels for
tapping water at various floors.
1. Internal Hydrant for firemen to use.

2. Always charged with water.

3. Topmost floor is higher than 30.5m (100feet).

4. Comprises Duty, Standby and Jockey pumps.

5. Comprises 150 mm diameter riser pipe with Landing Valves at each floor.

6. For high rise buildings each stage of wet riser should not exceed 70.15m (230 feet).
 FIRE PROTECTION PIPED
SYSTEMS
• Water is commonly used to extinguish and curtail fires in buildings.
• Some of the water based systems used are;

• Fire Extinguishers
• Sprinklers
• Risers
• Hose reels
• Hydrants
• Foam systems
 FIRE HYDRANTS

• Outlets to provides access to a water supply for the purpose of fighting fires.
• The water supply may be pressurized, as in the case of hydrants connected to
water mains buried in the street
• unpressurized, as in the case of hydrants connected to nearby ponds or cisterns.
• If pressurized, the hydrant will also have one or more valves to regulate the water
flow
• Every hydrant has one or more outlets to which a fire hose may be connected
• sized to provide a minimum flow rate of about 945 liters per minute
• two types of pressurized fire hydrants:
• wet-barrel and dry-barrel.
• In a wet-barrel design, the hydrant is connected directly to the
pressurized water source. The upper section, or barrel, of the hydrant
is always filled with water, and each outlet has its own valve with a
stem that sticks out the side of the barrel.
• In a dry-barrel design, the hydrant is separated from the pressurized
water source by a main valve in the lower section of the hydrant
below ground.
• The upper section remains dry until the main valve is opened by
means of a long stem that extends up through the top.
• There are no valves on the outlets.
• usually used where winter temperatures fall below (0° C) to prevent
the hydrant from freezing.
• Unpressurized hydrants are always a dry barrel design. The upper
section does not fill with water until the fire pumper applies a
vacuum.
• Provided at every street crossings and turnings at a distance of 150-
300m
• 10cm pipe to connect to fire engine & 6.25cm connection for hose
outlet
• The hydrant barrel is usually molded in cast or ductile iron
• Flush & Post Hydrant
• Fire hose reels
• The length of a fully extended fire hose is 36 meters with a diameter of 19mm (outside
diameter).
• deliver, as a minimum, 0.33L of water per second.
• A control nozzle attached to the end of the hose enables the operator to control the direction
and flow of water to the fire.