Evacuation Pattern in High Rise Buildings

INTRODUCTION:

Of all the magnificence and grandeur that the tall skyscrapers and apartments possess, with time, they have become indispensable to meet the demands of the shelter of the ever-increasing population around the globe. Here we come across the term ‘high rise building’. This refers to a building whose height creates different conditions in the design, construction and use. Along-side the construction, the safety of the occupants has emerged as an essential aspect of the high-rise buildings. High-rise buildings are required to have a Fire Safety and Evacuation Plan in accordance with IFC 404.

Design and Construction:

Fire is the major concern of safety in the high-rise buildings. In the case of fire protection and effective evacuation, it has been quite evident that the design of the building plays an important role. A design where the influence of fire and smoke spread throughout the building is taken into consideration has become crucial.

Evacuation of occupants, near the fire, can be done by the vertical transportation system. While the ones remote from the fire can be protected inside the structure.

The hazard analysis is used to determine the fire and smoke analysis inside a building. Then the design fires are classified into smouldering fires, flaming fires and flashover fires.

Smoke Resistant Lift Lobbies:

Smoke resistant lift lobbies are designed which provide a safe place for the occupants and firefighting personnel using lifts during the evacuation of the fire floor. The lobby needs to be of sufficient size to accommodate all people who are at risk. The lobby also needs to resist the spread of smoke and fire from the floor of the lift shaft to other parts of the building. This ensures the safety of the residents in places where the fire has not spread.

This process put together can result in the minimal loss of time, life and property in case of a disaster.

The construction process can also be made fire-resistive. The building must be of fire-resistive construction and should be provided with smoke or fire compartmentation.

In addition to this, the alarm system and the smoke control system have to be complete and functional.



WRITTEN BY: Adarsh and Tanmay Dalal


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