- Author
- Spearpoint, M. J.
- Title
- Integration of Building Product Models with Fire Simulation Software.
- Coporate
- University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand
- Report
- Fire Engineering Research Report 06/4, 2006, 355 p.
- Keywords
- construction | information dissemination | building design | building construction | fire protection engineering | fire growth | computer programs | building materials | heat release rate | simulation | mapping | architecture | databases | zone models
- Identifiers
- information technology in construction; web-based markp-up languages; potential impact of building product models on fire protection engineering; development of a web-based database of rate of heat release measurements using a mark-up; interfaces to the FIREBASEXML database; properties for fire engineering design in New Zealand and the IFC building product model; integrating the IFC building product model with zone fire simulation software; review of fire protection engineering entities in IFC 2X2; fire engineering properties in the IFC building product model and mapping to BRANZFIRE; transfer of architectural data from the IFC model to a fire simulation software tool; IfcSTEP Parser; EXPRESS; EXPRESS-G; IfcSTEP-BRANZFIRE Parser; parameters required by selected fire simulation software tools; FIREBASEXML Schema; web-based interface scripts to FIREBASEXML databases; BRANZFIRE transformations for a FIREBASEXML database; STEPPARSER-DATA-CONSTRUCTION scheme
- Abstract
- There is considerable interest within the construction industry to develop models that are able describe the whole life-cycle of a building in an electronic form. Such models would allow for the sharing of building information across the wide range of industry disciplines and lead to efficiencies in the design and construction of buildings. This thesis examines the technologies available and specifically within the context of fire engineering. Database methods are used to create a repository of fire growth information which can be accessed through web pages or client applications. The IFC Model has emerged as an internationally agreed building model and this thesis investigates its applicability to fire engineering. A suite of software applications have been developed that interpret IFC documents in a form that can be imported into fire simulation models. The thesis discusses the limitations of the current IFC model for use by fire engineers, the challenges in developing IFC interpretation software that can be successfully integrated with the range and complexity of fire simulation software and suggests where future work should be directed to overcome these concerns.