The Association for Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP) has published three new Advisory Notes and updated another. The documents cover a range of topics related to firestopping, penetration seals and smoke seals. Advisory Note (AN) 13 covers the testing of partial penetrations, for example, socket boxes, which are installed into dry
Charles Arrand considers the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, with a focus on both the potential business and human costs of failing to discharge obligations under the Order. Fire safety is regulated by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (the Order), which applies to almost all buildings, places
The Association for Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP) has expanded its range of guidance with the release of three new and three updated documents. The new Advisory Notes 27, 28 and 29 offer advice on particular issues of concern to the industry. Advisory Note 27 provides advice on the structural fire
Famed for its luxury shopping and extraordinary architecture, the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates is home to over 3.3 million people, and the world’s longest driverless single metro line – the Dubai metro. Designed to take up to 13,380 passengers an hour on its green line, and
In 1959, eight dairies in the Parmigiano Reggiano area founded the CCS Consorzio Caseifici Sociali. Over the years, the has business expanded to include the production and maturing of Parmigiano Reggiano. In 1995, the Granterre Consortium was established, bringing together the entire Parmigiano Reggiano dairy chain, and then almost ten
Owners of high-risk buildings are being warned of the dangers of not using approved cabling under a new British Standard Code of Practice by cabling leader AEI Cables. The systems powered by these cables – including smoke and heat extraction systems – assist fire services in firefighting and a safe
A major fire that destroyed an unsprinklered recycling plant in Nottingham led to disruption in the local area, asbestos warnings and unnecessary damage to the environment. The fire on January 31st at Nottingham Recycling on Abbeyfield Road in Lenton required 60 firefighters, 12 appliances and specialist equipment including aerial ladder
Warringtonfire, a world leader in fire testing, inspection and certification services, has made a significant investment in its High Wycombe testing facility to meet the growth in demand for acoustics, smoke leakage and fire resistance testing. The transformation of the facility includes refurbishment of its onsite fire resistance and smoke
In the construction sector, the leading cause of financial losses between 2016-2020 was fire – resulting in insurance claims reaching a staggering €11.3bn. With engineering and construction playing a vital role in Europe’s economic recovery amidst COVID-19, the industry can’t afford to not take the risk of fire seriously. What’s
FireAngel’s Co-founder and Chief Product Officer, Nick Rutter, shares his expert predictions for the year ahead Residents will need alternative strategies to the Waking Watch Relief Fund The Government has boosted the Waking Watch Relief Fund with an additional £27m to cover the cost of installing alarm systems in high-rise buildings with dangerous cladding, removing or reducing the need for waking watches. The
The Association for Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP) has published three new Advisory Notes and updated another. The documents cover a range of topics related to firestopping, penetration seals and smoke seals. Advisory Note (AN) 13 covers the testing of partial penetrations, for example, socket boxes, which are installed into dry wall systems. Firestopping products are made to help maintain the performance of a wall where such electrical boxes have been added. A CEN standard is currently being drafted to cover the testing of these products. However, in the interim period AN 13 suggests that the firestopping of these products is undertaken using an ad-hoc approach, based on testing to BS EN1364-1: Fire resistance tests for non-loadbearing elements. Walls Advisory Note 30 covers the transition from CE marking to the UKCA mark. It explains how all of the different passive fire protection product families are affected, describing the likely next steps in the process. It aims to help manufacturers and specifiers alike to understand what will be required during the transition period. Advisory Note 31 covers smoke seals used in conjunction with active fire curtains. AN 31 was produced in response to false claims that manufacturers used draught excluders to prevent the passage of cold smoke and that these would be of limited use in a fire resistance test scenario. The document explains that the performance smoke seals used are the same technology as might be used in smoke leakage-rated fire-resisting doors. Where smoke seals are added for a leakage test, they also have to be present for the corresponding fire test. Advisory Note 15 has been updated. This explains the interchange of flexible wall systems for service penetration seal systems. When first published, this note provided pictorial clarification of a long-winded statement in BS EN1366-3: 2009: Fire resistance tests for service installations. Penetration seals. This standard has been amended, and some of the scenarios permitted in the 2009 version are not now reproduced in the 2021 version. The drawings in AN15 have been amended to bring them in line with BS EN 1366-3: 2021. ASFP Advisory Notes are available to download for free from the ASFP Publications library, visit: https://asfp.org.uk/page/Publicationslist Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Charles Arrand considers the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, with a focus on both the potential business and human costs of failing to discharge obligations under the Order. Fire safety is regulated by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (the Order), which applies to almost all buildings, places and structures other than individual private homes. Fire safety cases carry a significantly elevated level of risk due to the number of people potentially affected by an adverse event, particularly in establishments containing vulnerable people. General obligationsFire safety is regulated by the Order, which requires any person who has some level of control in a premises to take reasonable steps to reduce the risk from fire and make sure people can safely escape if there is a fire. Under the Order, anyone who has control of a premises or anyone who has a degree of control over certain areas or systems may be a ‘responsible person’ and must complete the following: carry out a fire-risk assessment identifying any possible dangers and risks; consider who may be especially at risk; eliminate or reduce the risk from fire as far as is reasonably possible and provide general fire precautions to deal with any possible residual risk; take other measures to make sure there is protection if flammable or explosive materials are used or stored; create a plan to deal with any emergency and, in most cases, keep a record of findings; and review findings when necessary. Local Fire Services enforce the Order, carrying out inspections after a fire or as part of routine checks. Liability The consequences of getting fire safety wrong are potentially catastrophic; both in terms of the human cost to individuals, and impact on businesses. The financial costs associated with a breach of regulations can also have a major impact on an organisation. Though fire safety cases were specifically excluded from the Health and Safety Offences, Corporate Manslaughter and Food Safety and Hygiene Regulations Definitive Guideline (“the Guideline”) when it was introduced in 2016, the Court of Appeal has determined that the Guideline provides a useful analogy, and reference is often made to it in fire safety cases.[1] Of particular note is the requirement within the Guideline for the court to consider “whether the offence exposed a number…members of the public to the risk of harm. The greater the number of people, the greater the risk of harm,” and to consider adjusting the fine significantly upwards if so. A relevant consideration is that the potential impact of risk on vulnerable groupings is viewed as a serious aggravating feature of any offending. Fires in settings where accommodation is provided for significant numbers of people always create the risk of multiple injuries and fatalities. In certain such settings, such as care homes, the population at large may fall into the vulnerable classification. In March 2021, following the Fire Safety Consultation, the government announced proposed amendments to the Order that would see the introduction of unlimited fines for breaches of it. The impact of this in the context of fire safety enforcement could be as significant as the introduction of the Guideline, which has seen an unequivocal increase in fines for Health and Safety cases. Bupa case Private healthcare provider Bupa has recently been ordered to pay a purported record £1.04m penalty (fine and costs combined) after admitting fire safety failings. London Fire Brigade, prosecuting, said it was the “highest ever fine for fire safety breaches in the UK, highlighting the seriousness of Bupa’s failure to protect a vulnerable resident in its care”. In March 2016, 69-year-old wheelchair-bound Cedric Skyers sadly died when his cigarette set his clothes on fire in a garden shelter at Bupa Manley Court, Brockley. Mr Skyers was unsupervised when a care assistant saw the fire from a first-floor window and called 999. Staff attempted to put the fire out, but sadly Mr Skyers died from his injuries. It was subsequently discovered that Mr Skyers’ clothes had become flammable as a result of the emollient creams used to treat him. In this case, investigators found that, while a smoking risk assessment had been carried out for Mr Skyers, Bupa had not assessed his use of emollient creams in that context. Apparent burn marks indicative of previous incidents were found on Mr Skyers’ clothing after his death. Care home staff stated they had been unaware of this and, had they been so aware, would have completed more regular checks. Bupa pleaded guilty and is reported to have accepted that it had failed to: ensure staff understood the risks from the use of emollient creams; warn residents using paraffin-based products not to smoke, or, require precautions to be taken; instruct staff not to leave a resident using paraffin-based products smoking unsupervised; and carry out a suitable and sufficient individual smoking risk assessment. Care providers should ensure that they assess the ability of residents to smoke safely, checking clothes for burn marks if necessary. Consideration should also be given to fire retardant clothing, smoking aprons and personal alarms. Bupa said it had introduced Comprehensive Risk Assessments for residents that smoke, as well as staff training on paraffin based emollient creams and smoking aprons and supervision as a result. At first glance, and without background understanding, this tragic accident may look like an unlikely ‘freak’ incident; but that is far from the case. While residents wishing to smoke present a number of challenges for care providers generally, Fire Services, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and others have issued guidance addressing the use of paraffin-based emollients for smoking residents. Under the microscopeThe tragic fire at Grenfell Tower in 2017, and the Public Inquiry into it, has put fire safety at the forefront of discussion, including for those responsible for implementing and enforcing legislation. The size of the fine in the Bupa case sets no legal precedent, but is an important reminder of the consequences of failing to discharge duties, as the prosecuting fire service was keen to emphasise; ‘If there can be
The Association for Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP) has expanded its range of guidance with the release of three new and three updated documents. The new Advisory Notes 27, 28 and 29 offer advice on particular issues of concern to the industry. Advisory Note 27 provides advice on the structural fire protection of steel beams with corrugated webs. These fabricated sections, which were recently introduced to the market, offer a thinner steel plate than can be used in traditional webs. While this saves weight and cost, the fire-resisting performance of these sections is not fully understood. The advisory note warns against the use of plain section data in support of a corrugated web section without extra testing. Advisory Note 28 covers the firestopping of metal pipes where flanges are located close to service penetration seals. It encourages earlier involvement of passive fire specialists to prevent the construction of untested service penetration arrangements, particularly in the presence of flanges within the secondary insulation zone (typically within 500mm of the wall). Arrangements of flanges can be covered within the scope of BS EN 1366-3: Fire resistance tests for service installations. Penetration seals, although this is not commonplace. For the avoidance of issues with certification and installation, it is simplest to keep the flanges more than 500mm away from the wall. However, this detail is not always considered during the spatial coordination of services. The final new publication, Advisory Note 29 covers planned maintenance. This draws upon advice from within the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order; BS 9999: Code of practice for fire safety in the design, management and use of buildings; and BS 8524: Active fire curtain barrier assemblies to ensure that a competent person conducts that maintenance.Meanwhile, Advisory Note 21 has been updated. This covers coatback to secondary structural steel. It highlights that this can prevent conduction of heat into a primary structural member and its consequent early failure. As new evidence becomes available, it is likely that this document will be updated again. Technical Guidance Documents (TGDs) 15 and 20 have also been revised. TGD 15 provides advice on the installation and inspection of spray-applied passive fire protection. The document has been updated to align the film thickness measurement criteria for these materials to ASTM E805. The document has also been updated to take the implications of Brexit into account and the consequent changes to UK Construction Product regulations.The changes to UK Construction Product regulations and the introduction of the UKCA mark also prompted the revision of TGD 20, which covers the CE marking of fire-resisting and smoke control duct sections. All the documents are available for download from the Publications area of the ASFP website, www.asfp.org.uk Building Design and Construction Magazine | The Home of Construction & Property News
Famed for its luxury shopping and extraordinary architecture, the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates is home to over 3.3 million people, and the world’s longest driverless single metro line – the Dubai metro. Designed to take up to 13,380 passengers an hour on its green line, and 11,675 passengers an hour on its red line at peak time, the Dubai Metro is almost 75 km long and operated by RTA and Serco. Under contract to the Dubai Roads & Transport Authority, the network is run by a team of 2000 staff with 57 trains running at peak times. Dafoos Fire and Security were commissioned to run the fire detection installation project on the entirety of the Dubai Metro. Trusted as a market leader in the Fire Protection Industry in the United Arab Emirates, Dafoos specialises in providing end-to-end design, erection and commissioning and maintenance of both active and passive Fire Protection Systems, and partners with some of the best OEMs in the world, including Hochiki. With tens of thousands of passengers using the network daily and the system itself operating in a hot and sandy environment, any false alarm could potentially cause mass disruption and cost the operator financially, especially during peak service times. The company’s Marketing Director, Vijay Chandran said about the project: “it was especially important as part of the life safety system design process to negate false alarms. Hochiki fire detection devices were chosen as they have a reputation for being the best in the market for their quality and their reliability when it comes to false alarm reduction. Our selection of Hochiki was confidently backed by the operators RTA and Serco” The Hochiki sensors were to be installed inside the metro and tram coaches. This is considered an extremely sensitive area with thousands of people transiting at a time, thus posing a higher chance of triggering false alarms. Any fire alarm trigger was programmed to send a command to the central station, and this would halt the operations within the entire network until the problem is rectified. The Hochiki technical team also worked closely with the Dafoos team to negate the challenge of frequent dust build up in the chambers. It was advised that periodic maintenance of the sensors was moved from every 6 months to every two instead, which is customary practice for commercial buildings in the region. “Hochiki Smoke Sensors have been installed across the entire Dubai Metro and tram coaches; they have been functioning with minimal issues for the last three years. Periodic maintenance has been conducted in conjunction with Hochiki’s technical team recommendation. Our team would not hesitate to recommend Hochikilife safety systems and products to be used in other projects within the transport industry”.
In 1959, eight dairies in the Parmigiano Reggiano area founded the CCS Consorzio Caseifici Sociali. Over the years, the has business expanded to include the production and maturing of Parmigiano Reggiano. In 1995, the Granterre Consortium was established, bringing together the entire Parmigiano Reggiano dairy chain, and then almost ten years later, in 2004, control of Parmareggio Spa was acquired. In 2019 Bonterre Spa, the holding company under which the control of Parmareggio Spa and Grandi Salumifici Italiani Spa (controlled by UNIBON) was established. Then in 2021, Agriform Sca (leader in the production of Grana Padano PDO and the main Veneto PDOs such as Asiago, Piave, Montasio and Monte Veronese) merged with Parmareggio Spa to create the first Italian company in the world of PDO cheeses and cemented this new company as the leader in the Italian food industry. New company requires fire safety upgrade In 2021, the site at Sommacampagna required an upgrade of the fire detection system. Hochiki were the appointed manufacturers to supply the life safety system and devices due to their experience and expertise in the Italian fire safety market. Within food production sites, the temperature and humidity inside the environment must be carefully controlled to comply with food hygiene laws, and because of this, these sites can be notoriously complex buildings to design and install fire safety systems for. The customer was looking for a high-performance fire detection system that would not be affected by these environmental factors, and most importantly avoid false alarms which can halt production and cost the company thousands of Euros for every minute the site is not fully operational. The installation team also needed to pay particular attention to the installation of cables and piping. As a specialist in aged cheese production, it was imperative that the delicate work of the cheese wheels and the hot marking of the upper layer of the Parmesan rind was not affected during the installation project. One of the benefits to Hochiki products to this project was the ease of install and ease of use of the devices which had minimal impact on the business. To meet the requirements of the project, the installer NET Technologies Srl chose Hochiki’s market leading system L@titude to be the brain of the life safety system. This innovative fire detection technology combines the very latest hardware and software to produce a control and indication system which is powerful and sophisticated, yet simple to use and understand via a graphical interface. Mirko Corsini, project manager at Hochiki Italia, said: “The installer chose Hochiki’s L@titude panel together with our SPC-ET beam smoke detectors, which are characterised by low power consumption at rest and incorporate a sophisticated algorithm of automatic compensation to environmental changes. The technical features of these products make them perfect for meeting the needs of this type of food processing environment. The flexibility of the Hochiki ESP protocol made it possible, through the CHQ-SZM2/SCI Zone Modules, to integrate conventional detectors (SPC-ET) as if they were addressable devices, without having to use auxiliary power supplies that would have required additional cables and batteries.” Detectors with short circuit isolators were installed to ensure the system complied with the requirements of UNI EN 9795, which states that a short-circuit isolator must be installed for each room/compartment. Intelligent Photoelectric Smoke detector with SCI incorporates Hochiki’s newest High Performance Chamber Technology. This detector removes the need to use Ionisation Smoke Sensors in many applications. This also allows the sensor threshold level to be increased, thereby improving the signal to noise ratio, and reducing the likelihood of false alarms. Throughout the site Intelligent Loop-Powered Wall Sounder Beacons and Visual Alarm Devices were installed to ensure a fully compliant and state of the art fire safety system. Commenting on the project, Fabrizio Bergamin, Technical Coordinator at the installer company NET Technologies srl, said: “We chose Hochiki devices and system because of the technical characteristics and reliability that this brand offers, as well as a wide range of products that fully meet market demands. Post commissioning of the project, the operating conditions envisaged in the design phase have been amply met. Over the course of the next year, there will be further implementations of the fire detection system at the Parmareggio production site, with distributed intelligence solutions or with several autonomous and networked L@titude control panels. During the project we have had to deal with several technical design studios to solve various kinds of system problems; a fundamental role, together with the products they offer, is played by the Hochiki Italia technical support. They have responded competently to regulatory and design aspects, as well as proposed solutions for particular applications“.
Owners of high-risk buildings are being warned of the dangers of not using approved cabling under a new British Standard Code of Practice by cabling leader AEI Cables. The systems powered by these cables – including smoke and heat extraction systems – assist fire services in firefighting and a safe evacuation in the case of life safety. Installations and types of buildings which come under the new Code of Practice include evacuation alarms for the disabled in care homes and emergency voice communications systems and voice alarm systems in tall buildings, office spaces, hospitals, shopping malls and stadia. Stuart Dover, General Manager of AEI Cables, said: “There isn’t a lot of widely available information on this issue. Building owners need to be aware of the dangers of not using approved cabling in these applications and ask their contractor what type of cable they are installing. “If these systems fail because the cable is not able to function properly the consequences could be critical. Lives and property are at stake here. Category 3 Control fire performance cables reduce harmful smoke, toxic gases and flame spread in the event of a real fire. “Our customers are seeing the peace of mind of installing approved cables which provide continuity of power for these systems, and we think building owners should be aware of the same information.” The wider fire safety industry and professionals have also welcomed the message including the professional fire safety membership body the Institution of Fire Prevention Officers (IFPO). AEI Cables is the only supplier in the UK with independent approval from LPCB for BS8519 Category 3 Control fire performance cables with a fire survival time of up to 120 minutes. AEI Cables’ Firetec Enhanced cabling has been approved and certified by LPCB to BS8519 (Annex B), Category 3 Control in addition to Category 2 Control. The BS Code of Practice under BS8519 contains six categories of cables, three for power cables and three for control cables each covering survival times of 30, 60 or 120 minutes. All AEI Cables’ products are supplied with approvals from independent bodies including BASEC and LPCB. It also holds approvals from organisations including Lloyds, the MoD, Network Rail and LUL and works to international
A major fire that destroyed an unsprinklered recycling plant in Nottingham led to disruption in the local area, asbestos warnings and unnecessary damage to the environment. The fire on January 31st at Nottingham Recycling on Abbeyfield Road in Lenton required 60 firefighters, 12 appliances and specialist equipment including aerial ladder platforms, high volume pumps from Nottingham Fire and Rescue to tackle the blaze. While there were no reported injuries in the blaze and the surrounding businesses were not in use at the time, the impact on the local community and environment was significant with the closure of a major ‘A’ road, residents forced to close windows and doors due to harmful smoke and a number of measures employed to minimise the impact of pollution to the local environment. What remains of the circa 1700m2 building used to recycle waste cardboard will be demolished and disposed of. The fire at Nottingham Recycling centre was one of many recycling fires in the UK in the past 12 months. All were typified by large numbers of firefighters being required to contain a blaze where there was a presence of a high fire load due to highly combustible materials. Each event developed high volumes of smoke and contained harmful contaminants. Furthermore, fire water run-off needed to be monitored by the relevant agency and there is the environmental impact of disposing of the damaged properties and the costs, resources and materials required to repair and rebuild them. These fires not only pose an obvious danger to the health of those nearby, but they also have major environmental implications and significant costs to businesses due to property loss. Preventing large costly fires is possible through a combination of strategies. One of the most effective strategies is the use of sprinkler systems which contain and control fires before the Fire and Rescue Service arrives. They therefore minimise the wider impact of unmanageable fires, reducing costs to business and the economy as a whole. Importantly, by limiting any fire damage, they allow businesses to resume operations quickly, often within hours of the incident. This was adequately demonstrated by a fire at a Biffa waste site in Irlam in January 2021. Fire sprinklers fitted at the site activated, quickly putting the fire out and minimising the damage caused as a result of the incident. For more information about the BSA visit the www.business-sprinkler-alliance.org
Warringtonfire, a world leader in fire testing, inspection and certification services, has made a significant investment in its High Wycombe testing facility to meet the growth in demand for acoustics, smoke leakage and fire resistance testing. The transformation of the facility includes refurbishment of its onsite fire resistance and smoke laboratories. This comprises new smoke leakage testing equipment, a complete re-lining of two test furnaces as well as installation of a new cold abatement system to extract test fumes from the fire laboratory environment. Alongside the additional fire resistance testing equipment, Warringtonfire’s acoustics laboratory has also been revamped, with new acoustic measuring equipment to enhance and improve testing capabilities. Lee Wade, General Manager at Warringtonfire High Wycombe, said: “We have seen a surge in demand for the smoke testing of products. This is being driven by both regulatory changes, as well as an increasing appreciation from our customers of the value that testing and certification adds to their products. “That’s why, despite the uncertainty COVID has generated within the industry throughout the past two years, we have committed to significant capital investment to ensure our laboratory is the benchmark for acoustic, smoke and fire testing, here in the UK”. Further investment has also been made to improve the facility’s sustainability credentials, with the installation of a new cold abatement system to extract fumes and odours from the test area, as well as fitting energy efficient LED lighting throughout the laboratory. Alongside this, the company has added more floor space through a new purpose-built building to ease congestion and improve working conditions, allowing staff to build test specimens away from the furnace. New digital viewing technology has also been introduced at Warringtonfire High Wycombe. The package enables customers to watch live product testing remotely at higher quality and has the capability to share live test data from Warringtonfire’s control system “Given the changing ways we and our clients have had to adapt, we’ve increased our focus on digital technology. This includes new video packages, better viewing angles of tests in ultra-high definition, and the ability to zoom in on specific areas of the test and our furnaces,” said Wade. “In order to maximise the potential of the investments made throughout the site, we’ve also embarked on an internal programme to train and upskill our colleagues in testing capabilities, technical qualifications, and project management. This will help our clients stay ahead of any regulatory changes and help them continually improve their products.” For more about Warringtonfire, please visit: www.warringtonfire.com.
In the construction sector, the leading cause of financial losses between 2016-2020 was fire – resulting in insurance claims reaching a staggering €11.3bn. With engineering and construction playing a vital role in Europe’s economic recovery amidst COVID-19, the industry can’t afford to not take the risk of fire seriously. What’s more, any fire protection measures must be robust if they are to meet the requirements of insurance providers. Nicolas Lochet, Regional Technical Manager for Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty explains the relationship between fire and insurance for the construction industry. This includes how wireless fire protection solutions can mitigate risk and support insurance cover or claims for construction sites. How has evaluating risks in construction changed over the last five years? The switch to sustainable energy and the adoption of modern building methods is already transforming the risk landscape, with radical changes in design, materials, and construction processes. These changes mean that risk engineers need to be integrated far more cohesively into each project, enabling a deeper understanding to be acquired, along with a tailored made assessment. In terms of the new kinds of risks being evaluated, there are three main areas. Firstly, modular construction is growing rapidly in pace, which brings with it enhanced exposures, particularly in the use of timber, which can breed multiple fire risks should an incident occur. Secondly, extreme weather events have caused large losses for the property insurance market in recent years, driven by climate change. Then there’s the risks associated with the digitalisation of construction. Cyber exposures, particularly from a data point of view, are of huge concern for site bosses, particularly when you take into account large-scale projects, which can have millions of data points that each have to be individually protected and managed safely. What has been the biggest headache for insurers and primary risk in construction? In our latest research document, ‘Examining the new age of construction risk’, we undertook a huge analysis over a five-year period examining the top named causes in EU engineering and construction claims between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2020. Our analysis, of 29,640 claims, uncovered that fire was responsible for more than a quarter of the value of all construction insurance losses, toppling more than £11bn in total. Alongside this, natural hazards accounted for almost one in five claims, so the need to manage site safety from a fire accident or emergency point of view is a critical element site managers need to account for. During redevelopment/renovations, many sites are forced to disable a permanent fire alarm whilst works are ongoing. Are sites insured if they don’t use a temporary fire alarm system or waking watch during this period? Some insurers on the market may insure in this respect, but not many. Our own policy makes a temporary alarm system a mandatory or highly recommended requirement above a certain threshold of values, or total sum insured. It is also important that this is checked on a country-by-country basis, but if going through a global provider, the risks will more than likely be assessed the same regardless of region or market. Our own policy is that projects of a similar nature will require the same level of protection for all hazards. If a fire takes place on a construction site that hasn’t got a temporary fire alarm system installed, will this affect the insurance pay out? If a claim occurs and the cause and consequences are covered by the insurance contract, the insurer will pay. However, when the project is submitted, the presence or lack of a temporary fire alarm system is assessed. It is then the choice of the insurer whether or not to cover the risk. What is the average pay-out time frame once a major incident has taken place (for example, a fire, collapse, flood etc.)? Depending on the complexity of the claim, around two years is usual. Determining loss is a long and complex process, and project managers should take into account the fact that most insurers will require some pre-payment to start the work. This is why having a robust fire safety system to prevent the risk to a construction site is imperative, even whilst construction is taking place. How can construction bosses mitigate the risk of fire and how is technology changing the game? Communications technologies play an ever-increasing role in emergency response and rescue efforts, as well as overall personal safety. Apps can provide operators, staff and safety employees with one-click access to site-specific emergency protocols, resources as well as emergency notifications and access to critical information. What’s important is to train staff to use the apps, to make it intuitive in the intent to save time and lives in responding to emergency situations. This is where advanced wireless fire emergency response systems are so useful to construction sites. Using smart equipment, integrated with an IoT software platform, creates a community where workers are connected with their environment, safety managers and their wider team – helping to bring 24/7 safety to sites. Solutions like the Ramtech WES3 fire evacuation detection system eliminates the need for a hardwired power source, which is important as not all construction sites will be connected to the grid. Each unit is placed at strategic points across the site and powered by a battery, with a three-year life under normal use, to secure the job site during all phases of construction, whether electricity is available or not. When this EN54-25 compliant connected device is seamlessly integrated into cloud-based platforms, such as REACT, this then allows for real-time fire monitoring for alerts even remotely. Furthermore, these alerts can be automatically redirected to emergency authorities should the worst happen. In summary, utilising wireless technology to help protect construction sites from the risk of fire is hugely beneficial. When considering the lengthy pay-out timeframes and uncertainties over risk definitions when it comes to insurance, it makes sense to ensure that everything that can be put in place to stop a fire from happening, or to
FireAngel’s Co-founder and Chief Product Officer, Nick Rutter, shares his expert predictions for the year ahead Residents will need alternative strategies to the Waking Watch Relief Fund The Government has boosted the Waking Watch Relief Fund with an additional £27m to cover the cost of installing alarm systems in high-rise buildings with dangerous cladding, removing or reducing the need for waking watches. The additional funding, taking the total budget to £57m, will bring some relief to leaseholders living with the financial burden of waking watches and the emotional toll of waiting months, or years, for their buildings to be made safe. Questions remain, however, on whether the extended fund will stretch far enough and provide help to all those who need it. Currently, £24.1m from the Waking Watch Relief Fund has been approved for applications, covering 281 buildings across England.1 However, nearly 800 blocks of flats in England and Wales have waking watches in place, an 85% increase in less than a year, meaning the number of buildings failing safety inspections is growing faster than owners can make them safe.2 With limited waking watch relief funding available, thousands may be left paying for fire marshals to patrol blocks 24 hours a day, costing over £11,000 on average per building every month.3 In addition, those who fall outside of the fund may continue to face excessive costs. A waking watch is required when buildings have dangerous cladding or fire safety issues change the evacuation policy from stay put to simultaneous evacuation. However, the Government fund generally only covers the upfront capital costs of installing a fire safety system in buildings with unsafe cladding. Therefore, leaseholders impacted by non-cladding issues which render their buildings unsafe may continue to face ongoing waking watch costs and remediation bills. As it becomes clear that a change in fire safety strategy is essential, industry experts will continue to look at alternative strategies that can maximise fire safety while minimising costs. At FireAngel, this means ongoing development of connected technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help cut fire risks within the parameters of an existing budget, offering residents, building safety managers and landlords more intelligent ways to manage their properties. Looking to the future, a combination of IoT, robust fire detection and alert systems and evacuation plans could replace the need for waking watches completely, helping tenants who fall outside of the relief fund feel safe in their own homes. There will be a greater understanding of how connected data can improve residents’ quality of life Industry experts such as the Fire Industry Association (FIA) have started a productive and necessary dialogue around IoT in the fire industry. This year, its IoT report highlighted how IoT can and will impact us all – with estimates that 87% of businesses might be working with IoT in the future.4 Cutting-edge technology that remotely monitors the home environment 24/7 has the potential to prevent life-threatening events. Using remote alarm monitoring, IoT and predictive data analysis, connected safety technology has the potential to identify a fire risk before it escalates to a 999 call. Not only can the data monitored in real-time alert social landlords to the status of alarms in the property when they are triggered but also when they are removed or when they need to be replaced. Connection to the IoT could enable landlords to monitor important features such as the building’s age and condition and the wear and tear of electrical appliances. Being able to combine this information with data on individuals’ physical or mental status is also important. If a person has dementia, is partially sighted or uses a wheelchair, their ability to respond to a fire event may be limited. Beyond fire safety, we now have the technology to look at temperature and humidity within a property. As we look to the year ahead, there is the potential for integration of other care and protection technologies to look after the more vulnerable people in society and, ultimately, keep more people safe. Fire safety guidance will continue to evolve at a rapid pace, making future-proofing properties more important than ever before Following the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities’ response to the Government consultation on smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, people living in the social rented sector will soon be safer in their homes. Housing providers will be required by law to install smoke alarms in all social housing, and carbon monoxide alarms will have to be fitted in social and private rented properties where there is a fixed combustion appliance, excluding gas cookers. The regulation changes will also require carbon monoxide alarms to be fitted when new appliances such as gas boilers or fires are installed in any home. Additionally, the response to the consultation indicates that landlords, and housing providers in social and private rented sectors, will need to repair or replace smoke and carbon monoxide alarms once they are told they are faulty. The guidance on the positioning of alarms and the type of carbon monoxide alarms installed will also be reviewed and may be brought in line with BS EN 50292 and BS EN 50291. These standards show that the alarms have been extensively tested to ensure their quality including sensor reaction times, minimum alarm sound levels and stability over their working life. However, as fire safety guidance continues to evolve at a rapid pace, housing providers should not wait for further guidance changes to reinforce their duty of care. They can demonstrate best practice through the installation of alarms that meet an LD1 category, the highest level of domestic protection available. LD1 alarms can future-proof properties from regulatory changes and avoid an average £100 fee per callout to update devices to meet any further new standards. Housing providers should also ensure that any carbon monoxide alarms they purchase are fully certified to the European standard EN 50291-1 and carry a third-party approval mark, such as the BSI Kitemark, to ensure compliance with the latest safety standard. England may look to adopt similar legalisation to Scotland The February 2022 deadline for the new Scottish Tolerable Standard is upon us. The updated standard requires all properties to have an interlinked fire and smoke alarm system. By deploying interlinking alarms with wireless technology, if one alarm is triggered, the remaining alarms and ancillary devices are immediately activated, alerting a person in the property to the unfolding fire as quickly as possible. Under
