downthat h|ghabove the ground! Why fire safety in high-rises is a grow- ingconcern? The Nat|ona| F|re Protect|on Asso- c|at|on (NFPA) o SA de|nes "h|gh r|se bu||d|ng", as a bu||d|ng greater than 25 m |n he|ght wh||st as per the Nat|ona| Bu||d|ng Code o lnd|a, 2005, a|| the bu||d|ngs 15m or above |n he|ght sha|| be cons|dered as h|ghr|se bu||d|ngs. As a bu||d|ng gets ta||er, the number o occupants |ncreases, and so does the potent|a| |re hazard. lt shou|d be remembered that a |re can occur at any t|me |n any structure, |rrespect|ve o the past |re ree record. To conta|n a |re, the bu||d|ngs shou|d have a system capab|e o |ght|ng |t. lt |s a known act that | a |re cannot be ext|ngu|shed |n the |n|t|a| stages, |t wou|d become more and more d||cu|t or the |re |ghters to ext|ngu|sh |t as the t|me advances. The amount o water requ|red or |ght|ng a |re w|th|n the |n|t|a| 3 m|nutes w||| |ncre- ase to about 1000 o|ds w|th|n 10 m|n- utes, wh|ch |s the norma| t|me or a |re eng|ne to reach the s|te. Thus, a good |re protect|on system shou|d not on|y be |nsta||ed but a|so ma|nta|ned |n good work|ng cond|t|on so as to meet eventua||t|es at any t|me. Embracing fire safety at the designers desk: Prevent Fireignition To m|t|gate the sources o |re and |osses due to |t, p|ann|ng at the arch|- tects tab|e enab|es us to des|gn a |re sae bu||d|ng. Both act|ve and pass|ve |re deenses prov|de reasonab|e saety |olesl |||e ||gml|mg 3ysle~s to| |gm-||se 3otely -eep|mg |l |||e ||ee 120 The Masterbu||der - Novmber 2012 www.masterbu||der.co.|n nd|as pu|sat|ng economy |s today ue|||ng a new ound demand among lmodern masses to ||ve at greater he|ghts. Th|s has opened up new bus|- ness avenues that have changed urban dynam|cs. W|th the grow|ng |ncomes, peop|es asp|rat|ons or comort and conven|ence have |ncreased many o|ds & w|th 50% o lnd|an popu|at|on expected to ||ve |n urban areas by 2030, there |s a great demand |n the res|den- t|a| and commerc|a| space. Thereore, the lnd|an rea|-estate |ndustry |s now exp|or|ng the vert|ca| space to over- come cha||enges |n |and acqu|s|t|on, space and costs. But |n the ||ght o the recent |re acc|- dents across the nat|on |n such h|gh r|ses and the consequent exposure o |ack o saety, |re |ght|ng equ|pments &measures |nsta||ed |n such structures, Cmo|lomyo o, Ooyo| H|ghr|se Fire Fighting Systems rom the eects o |re. Eva|uat|ng a de- s|gn or bu||d|ng |re saety represents a systemat|c approach to the |re saety strategy. Hence a we|| kn|t p|an, |ts |mp|ementat|on |n the des|gn and con- struct|on o a h|gh-r|se res|dent|a| bu||- d|ng executes a |re sae structure. The |rst opportun|ty to ach|eve |re saety |n a bu||d|ng |s through |re pre- vent|on, wh|ch |nvo|ves separat|ng po- tent|a| heat sources rompotent|a| ue|s. Ma|or bu||d|ng |res are started by heat sources and |gn|tab|e mater|a|s that are brought |nto the bu||d|ng, not bu||t |nto |t. Th|s means the des|gn o the bu||- d|ng, rom the arch|tects and bu||ders standpo|nt prov|des ||m|ted potent|a| |everageonthebu||d|ngsuture |re expe- r|ence. For des|gn purposes |re prevent|on |s enhanced by careu| observance o codes and standards |n the des|gn and |nsta||at|ono e|ectr|ca| and ||ght|ng sys- tem, heat|ng system and any other bu||t |n equ|pments such as or cook|ng, rer|gerat|on, a|r cond|t|on|ng, wash|ng and dry|ng. Protect|on rom ||ghten|ng and |re exposure aects the externa| des|gn o the bu||d|ng. F|re |n one bu||d|ng creates an externa| |re hazard to ne|ghbor|ng structure by expos|ng those structures to heat rom rad|at|on and poss|b|y by convent|on currents, as we|| as to the danger o |y|ng burn|ng ragments. Passive fire protection: Controllingthe spread PFPattempts to conta|n |res or s|ow the spread, through use o |re-res|stant wa||s, |oors, and doors. These systems do not requ|re power or water to oper- ate |n case o |re. The scope o app||- cat|on or Pass|ve F|re Protect|on |s |n o||ow|ng areas: 1. Structura| |re protect|on 2. Sae escape routes and reuge or occupants. 3. Compartmentat|on and conta|n- ment o |re spread 4. Preserv|ng the unct|on o act|ve |re saety measures. 5. L|e saety o |re serv|ce personne|. The bu||d|ng |re saety system can be organ|zed around |re growth and |ts resu|t|ng products o combust|on |.e. |ames, heat, smoke and gases. The ease o generat|on and movement o these products |s |n|uenced by coun- ter measure prov|ded by the bu||d|ng. The eect|veness o the bu||d|ng |re saety system determ|nes the speed, quant|ty and paths o movement o these products o combust|on. Barr|ers such as wa||s, part|t|on and |oors separate bu||d|ng spaces. These barr|ers a|so de|ay or prevent |re rom propagat|ng rom one p|ace to another. F|re |n h|gh r|se bu||d|ngs |s a grow|ng concern F|re rated duct work |n a h|gh r|se 121 www.masterbu||der.co.|n The Masterbu||der - November 2012 ln add|t|on, barr|ers are |mportant ea- tures |n any |re |ght|ng operat|on be- cause they d|ctate the s|ze o |re. The eect|veness o abarr|er depends upon |ts |nherent |re res|stance. se o |ame retardant pa|nts, |re stop barr|- ers, |rewa||s, |re doors and w|ndows are ewmethods or contro|||ng the |res by construct|on|nbu||d|ng. F|rewa||s are not on|y |re res|stant but are a|so des|gned to sub-d|v|de bu||d|ngs such that | co||apse occurs on one s|de, th|s w||| not aect the other s|de. They can a|so be used to e||m|nate the need or spr|nk|ers, as a trade-o. F|re-res|stant g|ass us|ng mu|t|-|ayer |ntumescent techno|ogy or w|re mesh embeddedw|th|ntheg|assmaybeused |n the abr|cat|on o |re-res|stant w|n- dows |nwa||s. Occupancy separat|ons are barr|- ers that are |ntended to segregate parts o bu||d|ngs, where d|erent uses are on each s|de, or |nstance, apartments onones|deandstoresontheother s|de. Cab|e coat|ngs are |re-retardants, wh|ch are e|ther endotherm|c or |ntu- mescent, to reduce |ame spread and smoke deve|opment o combust|b|e cab|e-|acket|ng. Spray|reproo|ngapp||cat|ono endo- therm|c pa|nts, or |brous or cement|t|ous p|asters |s done to keep substrates H|ghr|se Fire Fighting Systems The Masterbu||der - 2012 November www.masterbu||der.co.|n spec|a|ty va|ves and other |tems dee- med to requ|re protect|on aga|nst |re and heat (or the prov|s|on o c|rcu|t |ntegr|ty measures to keep e|ectr|ca| cab|es operat|ona| dur|ng an acc|den- ta| |re). Activefireprotection: Detection& sup- pression AFP |s character|zed by |tems and/ or systems, wh|ch requ|re a certa|n amount o mot|onandresponse |norder to work, contrary to pass|ve |re protec- t|on. F|re detect|on |s needed so that automat|c or manua| |re suppress|on w||| be |n|t|ated/ act|vated and occu- pants w||| have t|me to move to sae |ocat|ons outs|de the bu||d|ng. Manua| means |nc|ude the use o a |re ext|n- Pass|ve systems - Stee| aced compos|te pane| w|th a non-combust|b|e m|nera| |ber core F|re res|stant g|ass be|ng manuactured such as structura| stee|, e|ectr|ca| or mechan|ca| serv|ces, va|ves, ||que|ed petro|eum gas (LPG) vesse|s, vesse| sk|rts, bu|kheads or decks be|ow 140 C or e|ectr|ca| |tems & 500 C or structura| stee| e|ements to ma|nta|n operab|||ty o the |tem to be protected. F|reproo|ng c|add|ngs are boards used or the same purpose and |n the same app||cat|ons as spray |reproo- |ng. Mater|a|s or such c|add|ng |nc|ude per||te, verm|cu||te, ca|c|um s|||cate, gypsum, |ntumescent epoxy, Durastee| (ce||u|ose-|bre re|norced concrete and punched sheet-meta| bonded compos|te pane|s), etc. Enc|osures are boxes or wraps made o |reproo|ng mater|a|s, |nc|ud|ng |re- res|st|ve wraps and tapes to protect gu|sher or a Standp|pe system wh||e Automat|c means can |nc|ude a |re spr|nk|er system, a gaseous c|ean agent, or |re |ght|ng oam system. Whatever type o detect|on system |s chosen, |t |s |mportant that, or each area o a bu||d|ng, a rea||st|c assess- ment be made o the |mp||cat|on or response t|me ater the |re |s detected and beore a |etha| cond|t|ondeve|ops. The |re |s detected e|ther by |ocat- |ng the smoke, |ame or heat, and an a|arm |s sounded to enab|e emergency evacuat|on as we|| as to d|spatch the |oca| |re department. A detect|on sys- tem on act|vat|on can be programmed to carry out other act|ons a|so. These |nc|ude de-energ|z|ng magnet|c ho|d open dev|ces on F|re doors and open- |ng servo-actuated vents |n sta|rways. A|arm prov|s|on shou|d be des|gned to te|| occupants what they need to do based on where they are and the|r ab||- |ty to respond. Th|s wou|d |nc|ude the use o centra| annunc|at|on pane|s and mon|tors to |norm respons|b|e sta. For near|y a century automat|c spr|n- k|er has been the s|ng|e most |mportant system or automat|c contro| o host||e |res |n bu||d|ngs. Among the var|ous advantages o these systems, |s the act that they operate d|rect|y over a |re and are not aected by smoke, tox|c gases and reduced v|s|b|||ty. Automat|cspr|nk|er systemsareusu- a||y |ocated at ce|||ng |eve| and are con- Serv|ce p|pes or Automat|c Spr|nk|er System 122 Automat|c |re suppress|on system H|ghr|se Fire Fighting Systems prov|d|ng a degree o exposure protec- t|on rom ad|acent |res. Foam can be used as a |re prevent|on, contro| or ext|ngu|sh|ng agent or |ammab|e ||q- u|d |ntanks or process|ng areas. Keeping ahead of codes: Safety and economy tradeoff The var|ous systems as descr|bed above may not a|| necessar||y be useu| or app||cab|e to a h|gh r|se bu||d|ng but |t depends on the surround|ng struc- tures and the var|ous app||cat|ons that a bu||d|ng m|ght be sub|ected to. The Nat|ona| Bu||d|ng Code o lnd|a (NBC) 2005, |ays down a set o m|n|mum pro- v|s|ons des|gned to protect the saety o the pub||c w|th regard to structura| su|c|ency, |re hazards and hea|th as- pects o bu||d|ngs, so |ong as these bas|c requ|rements are met, the cho|ce o mater|a|s and methods o des|gn and construct|on |s |et to the |ngenu|ty o the bu||d|ng proess|ona|s. Desp|te the ex|stence o these codes, enorce- ment o these regu|at|ons |eaves much to be des|red. Due to the vested |nter- ests and the po||t|ca| pressures, |mp|e- mentat|ons o some o the prov|s|ons |n the regu|at|ons are rendered d||cu|t, and code v|o|at|ons are requent. Today, the most common|y ound |re |ght|ng |tems |n bu||d|ngs are r|sers and |re ext|ngu|shers but they |ack proper ma|ntenance. Escape routes are a|so b|ocked |n many bu||d|ngs. ln many bu||d|ngs, the sumps w||| not have water, the hydrant, hose, |re duct, ext|ngu|- sher, and a|arm wou|d not unct|on. Ma- |or|ty o the res|dents are a|so |gnorant about the |re |ght|ng |nsta||at|ons and the|r work|ng pr|nc|p|es. There |s tota| |ack o awareness about the ru|es and regu|at|ons on |re saety & the soc|et- |es hard|y conduct any |re dr|||s. nau- thor|zed co|on|es and encroachments are |ega||zed and |rregu|ar bu||d|ng p|ans are passed or vote bank po||t|cs &br|bery. lt |s the respons|b|||ty o the bu||der to set up the |re-|ght|ng systems, but |ater the soc|ety has toma|nta|n|t. These days, the s|um rehab|||tat|on bu||d|ngs are a|so h|gh-r|ses. But are the poor rom the s|um go|ng to have the unds toma|nta|nthe|resaetyequ|pment and systems? A|so the centra| a|r-cond|- t|on|ng |n modern bu||d|ngs |s pos|ng a new cha||enge to |re author|t|es s|nce such bu||d|ngs are more vu|nerab|e as the smoke does not escape. Any change |n the |re saety s|tuat|on |n the country can on|y occur when m|nd sets change and smart c|ty concepts where dep|oy- ment o techno|og|es and so|ut|ons to make c|ty a better p|ace to ||ve |n are |mp|emented. l so, the day |s not ar when we m|ght see count|ess h|gh r|se bu||d|ngs stretch|ng across the sky||ne o lnd|anmetropo||tans! nected to a re||ab|e water source, most common|y c|ty water. The system oper- ates when heat at the s|te o a |re causes a g|ass component |n the spr|n- k|er head to a||, thereby re|eas|ng the water rom the spr|nk|er head. Th|s means that on|y the spr|nk|er head at the |re |ocat|on operates - not a|| the spr|nk|ers ona |oor or |na bu||d|ng. Hypox|c a|r |re prevent|on systems, a|so known as oxygen reduct|on sys- tems are new automat|c |re prevent|on systems that permanent|y reduce the oxygen concentrat|on |ns|de the pro- tected vo|umes so that |gn|t|on or |re spread|ng cannot occur. lnert a|r, reerred to as hypox|c a|r (reduced oxygen con- centrat|on), compr|ses s||ght|y a|tered concentrat|ons o components o a|r. Typ|ca||y 5-10% o the oxygen content |s subst|tuted by n|trogen. Pressur|zed CO |n|ect|onsystems a|so work ons|m- 2 ||ar pr|nc|p|e. Water M|st System orces water throughm|cro nozz|es at very h|ghpres- sure to create a water m|st w|th the most eect|ve |re |ght|ng drops|ze d|s- tr|but|on. The ext|ngu|sh|ng eects g|ve opt|mum protect|on by coo||ng, due to heat absorpt|on, and by |nert|ng due to the expans|on o water by over 1,700 t|mes when |t evaporates. Th|s system m|n|m|zes potent|a| water damage, as the ma|or|ty o the water m|st evapo- rates. Dry Chemical Powder Fire Extin- guishing System: When |ntroduced d|rect|y to a |re, dry chem|ca| powder ext|ngu|shes |ames a|most |mmed|- ate|y. Dry chem|ca| powder |s |ntended or use|next|ngu|sh|ng|res|nvo|v|ngbu|k chem|ca| agents and ||que|ed gases. Foam Fire Extinguishing System: Foamused|n|reprotect|on|s anaggre- gate o a|r-|||ed bubb|es ormed rom aqueous so|ut|ons, and |s o |ower den- s|ty than the ||ghtest |ammab|e ||qu|ds. lt |s ma|n|y used to orm a coherent |oat|ng b|anket on|ammab|e and com- bust|b|e ||qu|ds to prevent or ext|ngu|sh |res by exc|ud|ng a|r and coo||ng the ue|. lt then prevents re-|gn|t|on by sup- press|ng the ormat|on o |ammab|e vapors, and a|so adheres to suraces, 124 The Masterbu||der - 2012 November www.masterbu||der.co.|n Water m|st |re suppress|on F|re a|arms |n many bu||d|ngs do not unct|on H|ghr|se Fire Fighting Systems