An integrated fire safety assessment of a student housing facility

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present an integrated approach to fire safety assessment, through combining the outcomes of a checklist tailored to the requirements of the International Building Code (IBC), and an evacuation simulation tool (EVACNET4), applied to a student housing facility as case study.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors reviewed relevant literature and previous studies pertaining to fire safety assessment and management. An assessment checklist was developed according to the requirements of the IBC. EVACNET4 simulation tool was utilized to model the evacuation of the facility under review. The results derived from the aforementioned steps were correlated to identify potential corroborating or conflicting issues pertaining to the safe evacuation of building occupants in the occurrence of a fire incident.

Findings

Fire safety provisions were found to be adequate, and the building can be evacuated safely in about 190 seconds, should a fire occur. The architectural design aspects of the exit doors which might cause potential bottlenecks were identified.

Originality/value

A completely fire safe building does not exist, and thus more integrative approaches to fire safety assessment and management will reduce to the least extent possible fire risks. A holistic fire safety management of campus housing is of paramount interest to the campus community, and the building industry at large.

Citation

Sanni-Anibire, M.O. and Hassanain, M.A. (2015), "An integrated fire safety assessment of a student housing facility", Structural Survey, Vol. 33 No. 4/5, pp. 354-371. https://doi.org/10.1108/SS-03-2015-0017