To ensure the fire safety of building façades, designers should pay special attention to firestopping. CWCT’s David Metcalfe highlights the latest guidance on this key area and rounds up the most recent information on designing fire-safe façades
Tag: Fire
Step change: designing stairs for fire safety in high-rise buildings
A government consultation calling for two staircases in high-risk residential buildings of more than 30m has raised questions about how this and the amended BS 9991:2021 will impact fire safety design and developments.
Phil Lattimore reports
Evacuation lifts: an alternative escape route
Evacuation lifts have the potential to offer a safe route out of a building. Arup’s Eoin O’Loughlin and Harry Wiles, and Matthew Ryan of The Fire Surgery, look at the challenges and opportunities of incorporating them in fire strategies
A question of competence
The draft Building Safety Bill sets out new requirements for professional competence. Hywel Davies considers proposals in the draft framework
Tall order: fire safety guidance for façades
Following the ban on the use of combustible materials in some building façades, two industry bodies have come together to produce guidance on these legislative changes. Liza Young looks at the wider implications of the new regulations
What the Building Safety Bill means for construction
The Building Safety Bill sets the stage for the most fundamental reform of regulations relating to the construction and operation of buildings in two generations. Hywel Davies says it will lead to radical change for all
Technical note: The findings from Phase 1 of the public inquiry into the fire at Grenfell Tower
Sir Martin Moore Bick has published his report on Phase 1 of the public inquiry into the fire at Grenfell Tower. Hywel Davies looks at how it might affect CIBSE Members
Rewriting the rules for housing
Government is consulting on a number of building-related issues addressing safety and climate change, while the Queen’s Speech hints at future legislation supporting Dame Judith Hackitt’s recommendations, says Hywel Davies
Threads of responsibility: ensuring fire safety during a building’s whole life
Government proposals to improve building safety call for a golden thread of information to be passed between accountable people at every stage. Alex Smith looks at how industry is responding to the challenge of recording and retaining robust and reliable information
Life safety support: CIBSE Guide E: Fire Safety Engineering
Grenfell put fire safety in building design under greater scrutiny. Martin Kealy introduces the new CIBSE guide to fire safety engineering, which – in its fourth edition – has been updated to take account of the findings from Grenfell Tower and other fires