What is a fire protection system?

What are the components of the fire protection system?

Fire protection comprises:

• use of non-combustible and fire-resistant substances and materials;
• restrictions on the use and proper storage of flammable and explosive hazard substances and materials;
• Isolation of flammable and explosive hazard environments.
• devices that prevent the fire from extending beyond its initial area;
• use of building structures with regulated fire resistance rating and relevant fire extinguishing equipment;
• collective and individual protection means that ensures the safety of employees throughout the duration of fire hazards.

The fire protection system includes the arrangement of evacuation routes, smoke control systems, fire alarm and fire warning devices, as well as the arrangement of fire safety measures for facilities.

The fire protection system must include mechanical equipment that retains its functionality for the time required to suppress the fire (ladders, external fire ladders, emergency exits, fire-resistant elevators, etc.).

Every individual facility and production process requires the preparation of normative and project documentation that strictly regulates the required explosion and fire safety measures.

What is meant by the fire resistance of buildings and structures?

Under fire conditions, building structures are affected by high temperatures as well as static and dynamic loads, resulting in overheating, deformation, and destruction. The strength and reliability of buildings depend on the appropriate selection of fire resistance rating for main building structures, both during normal use and under fire conditions.

Fire resistance is the ability of building structures to maintain their operating functions under high temperatures in case of fire.

The main building structures include external and internal bearing walls (partitions), columns, beams, slabs, decks, etc. serving as enclosures, thermal insulators, and load-bearing elements.

In case of load-bearing structures (external walls, flooring, beams, trusses, columns), fire resistance is defined by the loss of their load-bearing ability, resulting in collapse, bending, and failure.

The enclosing capacity of building structures is characterized by the appearance of through holes or cracks in the structures themselves or at their joints, through which combustion products or flames penetrate into adjacent areas.

The heat-insulating function is the ability of structures to resist heat. Fire resistance in terms of heat insulation capacity is determined by a temperature rise on the unheated side of the surface by more than 180°C compared to the initial temperature of the structure.

How is the fire resistance of building structures assessed?

A characteristic of the fire resistance of building structures is the fire resistance rating.

The fire resistance rating is the time after which a building structure loses its load-bearing capacity, enclosing or thermal insulation functions.

The loss of the load-bearing capacity results in its destruction, the enclosing capacity – in the appearance of cracks, and the heat insulation capacity – in the temperature rise of the structure to a level that can lead to spontaneous combustion of materials in adjacent areas.

The fire resistance rating of building structures is determined experimentally or by calculation.

Experimental determination involves testing building structures at full scale in dedicated vertical or horizontal furnaces that use liquid or gaseous fuel. The type of furnace used depends on whether the structure is positioned horizontally or vertically in the building.