Compartmentation
FOCUS
they separate’, and in B3-8.35 states: ‘Any stairway or other shaft passing directly from one compartment to another should be enclosed in a protected shaft so as to delay or prevent the spread of fire between compartments.’ However, despite the regulations’ best
efforts to promote the implementation of compartmentation and room integrity, the last review of ADB was made some 12 years ago in 2006, and its next review was not due to be completed until 2022, which would then be a gap of 17 years. This means that the attention that is required is often disregarded. • ADB B3-4: ‘the building shall be designed […] so that the unseen spread of fire and smoke […] is inhibited’
• Appendix B Breaching fire separation: ‘to ensure effective protection again[st] fire, walls and floors providing fire separation must form a complete barrier, with an equivalent level of fire resistance provided to any openings such as doors, ventilation ducts, pipe passages or refuge chutes.’
ISO 14520-1: 2015(E) Here are some extracts from the regulations, which are not widely known or understood, and thus can lead to areas of minimal compliance or even non compliance, due to a lack of education about fire systems and their connection to compartmentation.
This article argues for a more holistic approach to fire safety, and also suggests the need for a resident mathematician to assist the industry: • 9.2.1.3 – ‘The storage container contents shall be checked at least every six months: a) Liquefied gases: for halocarbon agents, if a container shows a loss of agent in quantity of more than 5 % or a loss of pressure (adjusted for temperature) of more than 10 %, it shall be refilled or replaced’
• 9.2.4.1 – ‘At least every 12 months it shall be determined whether boundary penetration or other changes to the protected enclosure have occurred that could affect leakage and extinguishant performance. If this cannot be visually determined, it shall be positively established by repeating the test for enclosure integrity in accordance with Annex E’
• 9.2.4.2 – ‘Where the integrity test reveals increased leakage that would result in an inability to retain the extinguishant for the required period, remedial action shall be carried out’
• A.3.2 – ‘Engineered systems: need information and calculations on the amount of extinguishant’
• Annex F – ‘b) Every 6 months: Perform the following checks and inspections: 5) for liquefied gases, check weigh
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