Fire Safety Strategies

FAQ's

• What aspects does a fire strategy report from Pyro cover?

  A fire safety strategy from Pyro Fire will ensure that your building will comply with the functional requirements on fire safety given in The Building Regulations and incorporate our value-engineering solutions. The functional requirements are:

  • Means of warning and escape
  • Internal fire spread (linings)
  • Internal fire spread (structure)
  • External fire spread
  • Access and facilities for the fire services
• I don’t have a fire strategy for my existing building, do I need one?

  A fire strategy acts as the bible for a building’s fire safety measures and consolidates all the building information into one simple report. Any question surrounding fire safety for the building can usually be answered by consulting the strategy. However, fire strategies often go missing or get lost during a building’s sale or changeover of management.

  A fire strategy is not strictly a legal requirement for an existing building, but from a safety perspective, it is ideal to have one. We often produce fire strategies retrospectively for our clients or update existing strategies to ensure the building has a suitable document showing the information that need not be included in a typical fire risk assessment.

• Do you work to the RIBA Stages?

  Our fire engineers are prepared to work through the RIBA stages 1 -6. Ideally, we would prefer to be appointed prior to planning to get the basics of the scheme right, advise on the spatial layouts and access requirements. It is here our expertise can have a major impact on the scheme to save on abortive works later on. We will prepare a concept report to stage 3 that can often accompany a planning application

  At RIBA design stage 4 we work with the client’s appointed architects to optimise the design and identify value engineering opportunities that will still satisfy the functional requirements on fire safety. We will prepare a detailed fire safety strategy report exploring opportunities before it is agreed and submitted for Regulatory Approval.

  We do not stop there and if required we will work through RIBA stages 5 and 6 with the appointed contractor providing advice during construction on fire safety systems and materials that meet the fire strategy specifications. At the end of this process, we will deliver an ‘as constructed’ fire safety strategy report as part of the main contractor’s requirements to meet their obligations under  Regulation 38.

• How much does a fire strategy cost?

  A fire strategy can be a time-consuming exercise for a fire engineer. A fire strategy may take anything up to 7 working days to produce. Every fire strategy is different and therefore priced on request.

• I just need a compartmentation plan, do you offer this service?

  Where a fire strategy is requested as part of a fire risk assessment, fire door survey, or fire compartmentation inspection/fire stopping survey, it is usually to determine the locations and requirements for fire resisting construction. In this circumstance, Pyro can retrospectively produce a Compartmentation Plan.

  This type of plan is an indicative mark-up of a property’s floor plans. Pyro’s qualified fire engineers will carry out a review and analysis of the site floor plans against the Building Regulations or relevant design code to determine the best approach to achieve a compliant design in terms of compartmentation for the premises.  Using the information provided, and fire engineering knowledge and expertise, we will provide new compartmentation plans which reflect the required lines of fire resistance for the premises as required under Requirement B3: Internal fire spread (structure) – Approved Document B Volume 2.

  Where required, we will propose solutions to aspects of the design that deviate from standard guidance, or where an alternative solution would benefit occupant safety, aesthetics, economics or reduce risk.

  The production of compartmentation plans will allow us to identify necessary lines of fire resistance, which can be used for the benefit of performing passive fire protection inspections (compartmentation, fire stopping and fire doors) to accurately check the areas where fire resisting construction is deficient and where upgrades/improvements are required.

• What is a Fire Risk Management Strategy?

  Fire risk management strategies are necessary for organisations with multiple sites or buildings. Our engineers are experienced in the use of PAS 7:2013 (Fire Risk Management System Specification). 

  The systems can be adopted by any organisation wanting to implement a formal procedure to reduce the risks to life (of employees, customers and the general public), property, assets and the environment that are associated with fire in the working environment. PAS 7 complements existing standards for fire risk assessment, such as PAS 79. It specifies requirements for integrating fire safety as a management system approach and can also be implemented with reference to BS 9999:2017, which defines a number of management levels and factors to be used in assessing fire safety management.

  Our fire risk management systems deliver key objectives and underlying requirements and our team of experts are always on hand to give guidance or offer advice where necessary.

• What information do I need to get a fire strategy?

  In order to work on a fire strategy, we need as much information as possible. This usually stems from floor plans – we will need to-scale plans showing elevations, cross-sections, and site boundaries.

• Are you experienced in Fire Damage Reinstatement?

  Pyro Fire’s consultants have specialist knowledge on the effects of fire. Fires in buildings cost money not only in damage to the structure but loss in business continuity which can threaten its viability.

  For steel framed buildings and structures it is often assumed that the effects of smoke and heat from the fire cause a permanent loss in strength properties of the structural members thereby requiring complete rebuilding. This is often not the case.

  Where steel members are still relatively straight it is possible the fire has only had a negligible effect on their strength levels and therefore may be re-used to most if not all of their original load-bearing capacity. This can save the client money in not having to incur the costs associated in replacing steel members but also reduces the time taken to restore the building back to its original use.

  Based upon over 35 years of materials research and experience in the steel industry of real fires in buildings Pyro Fire consultants have specialist knowledge on the effects of fire on the strength properties of structural steel and steel components such as welds and bolts.

  It is because of this knowledge that we can provide on-site assessments and non-destructive tests to establish the viability of reusing the steel members of fire damaged buildings and structures. Loss adjusters contact us because we can save money.

  Fire not only costs the business in terms of the damage caused to the building fabric, it also has a bearing on costs due to business continuity. It is often assumed that when a building is involved in a fire, that the damaged caused through fire and fire fighting operations, the building structure would be unusable and would need to be completely rebuilt. This is not necessarily the case! Steel members can often be reused, which is shown through decade’s worth of research.​

  Laboratory investigations carried out on structural steels have shown that once they have been exposed to high temperatures there is a permanent loss in the yield and tensile strength of the material. This loss is associated by changes in the micro structure of the steel which are visible under a high powered microscope.

  Using a relatively simple on-site test these changes can be picked up which have a direct influence on the tensile strength of the material. Based upon the previous research it is then possible to establish whether there has been any significant loss in the yield strength of the material and if the structural members would still meet the relevant specification at the time the building was erected.

  This type of evaluation was fully investigated by taking steel samples from fire damaged buildings back to the laboratory for more detailed examination.

  Because Pyro are knowledgeable in both materials technology and fire behaviour we have found only a limited number of structural members need to be tested before coming to a firm conclusion on what can remain in the rest of the building.  An important aspect of the service we provide is also to check the welds at the connections for obvious of detachment at key locations.