- Author
- Thomas, I.
- Title
- Progress in Australia Towards Engineering Design for Fire Safety in Buildings. CFR Video Seminar.
- Coporate
- BHP Melborune Research Labs., Victoria, Australia
- Report
- Video, March 20, 1990,
- Keywords
- fire safety | building design
- Abstract
- In Australia the design of buildings for fire safety is governed by retualtions which are restrictive, uneconomic and drafted, interpreted and enforced in a legalistic manner. The BHP Melbourne Research Laboratories have a research program to investigate whether many of the regulatory requirements are necessary and to provide a basis for changes to the requirements. Full scale fire testing of the burning of automobiles in open decfk, partially closed and closed parking garages and of fires fuelled by representative contents in atriums and offices form part6 of that program and will be described. A recent project on Fire Safety and Engineering at the Warren Centre for Advanced Engineering of the University of Dydney was aimed at using risk and engineering methods for the systematic design of buildings for fire safety. The project has been successfully completed and a follow-up project is proposed through an Australian Government task force reviewing building regulations and building regulatory practices. The rationale for conduct of, and technical progress achieved by the Warren Centre project will be described, as will the proposed project which aims to produce a draft Australian code for the Design, Construction, Operation and Maintenance of Fire Safety in Buildings and the necessary backup, documentaion, design aids and software.