30 + Years Experience in Design, Construction Industry
12 + Years Experience Exclusively in the Area of Commissioning
10 + Years Experience in Fire Life Safety Review and Inspection
Managed the Commissioning of Over 2,500,000 m2 of new buildings and 250,000 m2 of existing buildings
Former Director and Treasurer of the Building Commissioning Association
Need for Tower Smoke Management Sample GCC Tower Fire Events 2012 Code & Standard Design Requirements NFPA 92 2012; Standard for Smoke Control Systems 5.2.1 Pressure differential across smoke barriers shall be 12.5 Pa for fully sprinklered buildings.
5.2.2 Pressure differential across doors shall not cause the force required to open the doors to exceed 133 N.
5.3 Stairways are to be pressurized to a minimum of 12.5 Pa and a maximum level that causes door opening forces to be less than 133 N.
5.4 Elevators shall be considered a separate smoke zone when smoke control is required.
5.3.5.1 Vestibules shall not be required, but shall be permitted as part of a building smoke management system. Code & Standard Design Requirements Qatar Civil Defense Fire Safety Standards FSS 2.2.13 Smoke Stop or Fire Fighting Lobby required when: (i) Stairway has no natural light or ventilation, or (ii) Stairway traverses more than 4 stories (incl. basements), or (iii) Has a habitable height more than 28 meters above Ground.
All Fire Fighting Lifts shall be provided with a Fire Fighting Lobby.
Mechanical Ventilation/Pressurization to be provided at 10 Air Changes per Hour (ACH).
Mechanical equipment is to be provided with 100% stand-by power.
Smoke Stop Lobbies shall be no less than 3 square meters in area. Fire Fighting Lobbies shall be no less than 6 square meters in area with no dimension less than 2 meters.
Code & Standard Design Requirements Qatar Civil Defense Fire Safety Standards FSS 2.2.13 Basements exceeding one story in depth require a Smoke Stop Lobby adjacent to the Fire Fighting Lift and its adjacent stairway only. Other basement stairways do not require Smoke Stop Lobbies.
FSS 6.6.3 Fire Lift required when building habitable height exceeds 23 meters above ground level or 9 meters below ground level.
FSS 1.5 A high-rise building exceeding 30 storeys shall be provided with refuge floors at an interval not exceeding 20 storeys.
A high-rise building exceeding 30 storeys shall be provided with refuge floors at an interval not exceeding 20 storeys.
A minimum of 50% of the gross floor area of the Refuge Floor must be a protected Holding Area.
Code & Standard Design Requirements Qatar Civil Defense Fire Safety Standards FSS 1.5 The Holding Area is to be ventilated: (ii) Naturally ventilation requires the total area of the ventilation openings to not be less than 25% of the gross floor area of the Holding Area. (iii) Mechanical ventilation is also acceptable as long as the equipment is powered via 2-hour fire rated cables and 100% stand-by power is available.
Fire Lift Required Evacuation Lift may be required Bsmt Stairs, Tower Stairs, and Refuge Require Pressurization High-Rise Bldg w/ Fire Floor Isolation Same physical features as High-Rise
In addition to standard High- Rise smoke mgmt, two floors above and below the fire floor are pressurized. Typical Floor Plan (No Fire Floor Isolation) Pressurized Floor (Fire Floor Isolation) Typical Floor Plan (Fire Floor Isolation) Code & Standard System Sizing Method Recommendation and Test Requirements Document NFPA 92 - 2012 Qatar Civil Defense - FSS System Sizing Method Recommendation SFPE TR 82-4 Designing Stair Pressurization Systems (Similar to British Standard Method)
ASHRAE Chapter 52 Fire and Smoke Management
None Provided System Test Requirement Maintain pressure differential across closed doors when (1) 3* Stairway Doors are open, or (2) Lifts parked with doors open. None Provided * The number of open stairway doors is determined by the local fire authority and is not NFPA prescribed. Calculation ASHRAE 52 Q SP = 0.839 * A sb * (Delta-P sb ) 1/2 + 0.452 * A OD * (Delta-P sb ) 1/2
Q SP = Fan Flow Rate for Pressurization of Stairway to Required Static Pressure (m3/s) H S = Total Height of Stairway A sb = Total Flow Area between Stairway and Building (m2) - walls and closed doors A OD = Flow Area through Open Doors (m2) Delta -P sb = Primary Pressure Difference between Stairway & Building (Pa) Calculations Industry Leakage Data ASHRAE HANDBOOK 2007 Chapter 52 Field tests have repeatedly shown that LOOSE wall construction should be utilized for system sizing in the region. Calculations Industry Leakage Data S e l e c t
D o o r s
a s
A p p r o p r i a t e
f o r
t h e
P r o j e c t
( B l u e
B o x
C a n
B e
I g n o r e d )
Calculations Industry Leakage Data Important Note: If a stairway has a door with double-leafs, BOTH leaves of the door must be open for testing and it only counts as One Door Open. Calculations Industry Leakage Data Data from a Tamura and Shaw Study, 1976 Typical System Layout Air Injection Points Single point injection OK for lifts to approx. 40 storeys
Single point injection OK for stairways of approx. 15 to 20 storeys, but will not satisfy Bsmt Stairways Recommended System Layout Air Injection Points Inject air to Lift Shafts at top, bottom, and approximately every 40 storeys
Inject air to stairways at top and approximately every 15-20 storeys
Inject air to all basement stairways Lessons Learned (Page 1 of 5) Pressurization systems to be sized based on ASHRAE 52 methodology with loose leakage rates and appropriate safety factors.
Stack effect is negligible based on field test results and may generally be discounted in system sizing calculation.
Wind effects are negligible based on field testing and may generally be discounted in system sizing calculation unless stairways or lift shafts are located against an exterior wall. Lessons Learned (Page 2 of 5) Pressurization system intakes and reliefs should not be directly exposed to wind pressure and need to have tightly sealing dampers. Either condition may allow humid outside air to enter a stairway or shaft and could result in mould issues.
Masonry shafts are not appropriate as air plenums for pressurization systems; excessive leakage and excessive friction loss.
For towers taller than 40 storeys single point air injection at the top of the building is generally insufficient for pressurizing lift shafts.
Lessons Learned (Page 3 of 5) Pressurization system fans should be equipped with VFDs for the setting of fan maximum speed.
Pressurization systems should be equipped with adjustable pressure relief dampers to prevent system over-pressurization of stairways. Pressure sensor control may have excessive response time.
Basement stairs should be equipped with stand-alone pressurization systems and not combined with tower pressurization systems.
Lessons Learned (Page 4 of 5) Pressurization system fans should be equipped with VFDs for the setting of fan maximum speed.
Pressurization systems should be equipped with adjustable pressure relief dampers to prevent system over-pressurization of stairways. Pressure sensor control may have excessive response time.
Basement stairs should be equipped with stand-alone pressurization systems and not combined with tower pressurization systems.
For towers taller than 15 - 20 storeys single point air injection at the top of the building is generally insufficient for pressurizing stairways.
Lessons Learned (Page 5 of 5)
Construction schedules should prioritize early completion of pressurization systems and the execution of pressurization system testing. (Failure to validate the systems early could result in extensive delays to the approval for occupancy for the project.)