"This research effort addresses key challenges associated with the technical review and acceptance of performance-based design approaches to fire safety engineering through development of a decision support framework and associated tool. Such design approaches seek to confirm that the overall fire safety system, which includes the building and its protective features, meets a set of fire safety objectives established by relevant stakeholders, and this confirmation is achieved through fire safety analysis, or the application of analytical and computational tools and methods. While the current approach to performance-based fire safety analysis relies on guidelines and standards, these rather generic, process-oriented documents do not provide fire protection engineers (FPEs) sufficient guidance to address critical elements of the analysis process in a systematic, consistent and technically adequate manner. Should a fire safety analysis contain technical deficiencies, then it becomes less clear that the design solution being proposed truly achieves the desired fire safety objectives. Moreover, project stakeholders, including the authority having jurisdiction (AHJ), may lack the necessary qualifications, expertise, or design intimacy to, suitably and reliably, identify and challenge deficient analyses. As a result, the current approach to fire safety analysis and its quality assurance has led to large variations in analysis quality and consequently levels of delivered performance. With no existing equivalent, a decision support framework is proposed that will assist the AHJ and FPEs in determining whether a fire safety analysis is of sufficient technical adequacy to support decision-making, regulatory or otherwise. Additionally, a decision support tool is developed to provide measures of confidence regarding an analysis’s conclusions and assist in identifying those aspects of the analysis most requiring corrective action. Lastly, while developed to address performance-based design approaches to fire safety engineering, the framework may easily be adapted to similar approaches in other fields of engineering, or more generally, applications that make use of process-oriented, analysis-driven design."

Review of decades of worldwide experience using standards, codes and guidelines related to performance-based fire protection design for buildings has identified shortcomings in the interpretation, application and implementation of the performance-based design process, wide variation in the resulting levels of performance achieved by such designs, and several opportunities to enhance the process. While others have highlighted shortcomings in the past, as well as some ideas to enhance the process, it is proposed that a more fundamental change is needed. First, the political and technical components of the process need to be clearly delineated to facilitate better analysis and decision-making within each component. Second, the process needs to be changed from one which focuses only on fire safety systems to one which views buildings, their occupants and their contents as integrated systems. In doing so, the activities associated with the normal operation of a building and how they might be impacted by the occurrence of a fire event become clearer, as do mitigation options which account for the behaviors and activities associated with normal use. To support these changes, a new framework for a risk-informed performance-based process for fire protection design is proposed: one which is better integrated than current processes, that treats a fire event as a disruptive event of a larger and more complex "building-occupant" system, and that provides more specific guidance for engineering analysis with the aim to achieve more complete and consistent analysis. This Ph.D. Dissertation outlines the challenges with the existing approaches, presents the "building-occupant" system paradigm, illustrates how viewing fire (or any other hazard) as a disruptive event within an holistic "building-occupant" system can benefit the overall performance of this system over its lifespan, and outlines a framework for a risk-informed performance-based process for fire protection design. Case studies are used to illustrate shortcomings in the existing processes and how the proposed process will address these. This Dissertation also includes a plan of action needed to establish guidelines to conduct each of the technical steps of the process and briefly introduces the future work about how this plan could be practically facilitated via a web-platform as a collaborative environment.

The purpose of this project is to create a theoretical dynamic analysis model to assess the dynamic response of light, wood-framed structures before and after fire conditions. This information is useful for predicting the damage to structural integrity due to a fire. The mass and stiffness matrices used for the dynamic model are derived from a standard residential building created for an existing project at WPI funded through the DHS/FEMA/USFA Assistance to Firefighters Grant program. The damping matrix is derived via the Rayleigh Damping Method using the mass and stiffness matrices obtained through SAP. Then, theoretical impact forces are applied to the developed dynamic model, and the acceleration response is estimated using Matlab. Both acceleration time history and frequency responses are used as the evaluation method. Finally, the dynamic model is integrated with a fire simulation model to investigate the impact of fire conditions on dynamic responses of residential buildings. The results show that frequencies can shift due to the structural degradation due to fire.

Recent improvements in equipment used by firefighters has increased the value of manual suppression in buildings. However, because there is no evaluation method available, the effectiveness of manual suppression can not be incorporated into a fire safety analysis of a building. This thesis develops a method for evaluating manual suppression in buildings. he evaluation is done through an analysis of the paths through a building firefighters will use to attack a fire. The analysis considers the building, fire and fire department factors influencing progress towards teh fire. The fire attack path analysis yeilds a value relating the relative difficulty of a path.

Thesis (M.E.F.E.)--University of Canterbury, 2008. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (p. 197-202). Also available via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (doctoral)--Tampere University of Technology, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the World Wide Web.

v anglickém jazyce Administrative defenses in the fire protection The aim of this thesis is to evaluate the current state of legal regulation of administrative offences in fire protection. With the new administrative offence law, there have been significant changes in the area of offence law, which bring many complications in the area of fire protection. The term " administrative offence" has been expanded with other significant changes have been made. Administrative offences, which previously could only be committed by natural persons, can also be committed by legal entities and natural business persons. In the first part, the thesis deals with the general principles governing the offence law and with their influence on fire protection offences. These principles are fundamental for the understanding of other offence law instances. The thesis also deals with the development of legislation in the area of fire protection. Currently, the most important laws in this area are the Fire protection law and the Fire rescue brigade law, where all fire protection administrative offences are regulated. However, the Fire protection law has not been amended to this day, therefore it does not respect the new general regulation of administrative offence law, which causes interpretative complications. In the main...

Purpose: The purpose of the degree project was to investigating fire protection work during construction at various companies and proposing improvement proposals to reduce the risk of fire at construction sites. Method: The method on which the thesis project was based on was a literature study, interviews and document analysis. The literature study has been carried out to gain in-depth knowledge regarding the fire protection during the construction phase. The interview study was conducted at different construction companies to get an idea of ​​how the different companies handle fire safety at construction sites. The document analysis has been carried out with the help of various companies requirements documents, which form the basis for the fire protection work at the construction sites. Results: The results present the companies fire protection work during construction. Prior to the start of construction, a fire protection description is projected that covers how to build to prevent fire safety, it also covers the how parts of the workplace should be designed. The fire protection that proved to exist mostly consists of two mutually independent escape routes with clearly visible escape signs, a dedicated collection point and strategically placed hand-held fire extinguishers that should be within a range of 25 meters. Hot work, electrical causes and arson have emerged as a recurring shortage and cause of most fires occurring at construction sites. There is room for improvement by, among other things, spending more time in planning, introducing a practice on fire and evacuation alarms and creating the company's fire protection description in connection with the production of the A-drawings. Conclusions: In conclusion, there are opportunities for improvement, but unfortunately nothing has been implemented in practice.

Äldre är överrepresenterade i dödsbrandsstatistiken där 90 procent av bostadsbränderna som inträffar i Sverige drabbar personer över 65 år. 2011 presenterade MSB en nollvision med målet att ingen ska dö eller skadas allvarligt till följd av brand, för att motverka att bland annat äldre omkommer och för att höja kunskapen kring individanpassat brandskydd hos kommunerna. Att bo kvar i sitt hem trots åldrande, sjukdom och funktionsnedsättning är en stigande trend hos den svenska befolkningen. Vid flytt till ett särskilt boende följer mer omfattande krav på det byggnadstekniska brandskyddet, vilket är en följd av att bland annat funktionsförmågan hos de boende kan vara nedsatt. Denna studie består av litteraturstudier, intervjuer och en kostnad- och nyttoanalys där målgruppen var personer över 65 år som är hemmaboende och fått en behovsprövning med hemtjänst som följd. Litteraturstudierna undersöker hur lagar, regler och rekommendationer behandlar individanpassat brandskydd. Genom litteraturstudien har också vägledningar som beskriver för kommunerna hur det går att arbeta med individanpassat brandskydd granskats och jämförts mot verkligheten. Intervjuerna genomfördes för att undersöka hur de upprättade vägledningarna implementeras hos kommunerna, i vilken utsträckning arbetet med individanpassat brandskydd bedrivs och vilka svårigheter och utmaningar som finns. Kostnad-och nyttoanalysen berör de tekniska tillämpningar som både kan och har använts hos de riskutsatta personer som identifieras i verksamheten. Denna genomfördes för tre olika fall där kostnaden av olika tekniska lösningar, så som brandvarnare, brandfilt, brandsläckare, spisvakt och portabel sprinkler, jämfördes med deras effekt. Målet var att undersöka om det fanns en samhällsnytta med att installera ett tekniskt brandskydd för olika fall, där effekten varierar mellan 10, 50 och 90 procent för tre olika fall med olika brandtekniska skyddsnivåer. Kostnad- och nyttoanalysen visar på en samhällsnytta för två av de tre fallen där flertalet liv kan räddas vid installation av ett aktivt brandskydd. Studien visar på att lagar, regler och rekommendationer i dagsläget inte direkt behandlar hur arbetet med individanpassat brandskydd ska bedrivas. Genom vissa tolkningar av befintlig lagtext och gällande regelverk kan dock ett visst arbete motiveras, dock har intervjuerna i denna studie visat att en tydligare styrning och ansvarsfördelning behöver tillkomma för ett mer enhetligt arbete i landet. Intervjuerna visar på att kommunerna är medvetna om vikten och innebörden av att bedriva ett arbete med individanpassat brandskydd. Dock finns det stora skillnader i hur långt i arbetet olika kommuner har kommit. Till grund för detta ligger ofta organisatoriska och ekonomiska svårigheter, där det upplevs oklart vem som har ansvaret samtidigt som uppfattningen är att det är dyrt att bedriva arbetet. Samtidigt prioriteras de uppgifter som är kravställda i större utsträckning än övrigt. För att uppnå MSB:s nollvision om att Ingen ska omkomma eller skadas allvarligt till följd av brand och de upprättade målen krävs mer än bara tekniska lösningar hos de boende. En av många svårigheter är ansvarsfrågan, vilken behöver förtydligas från politiskt håll. En annan problematik finns i hanteringen av vägledningar som är för svåra för kommunerna och dess verksamheter att implementera med dagens utformning. Som en lösning på detta bedriver MSB tillsammans med Socialstyrelsen ett arbete med att uppdatera befintlig vägledning Brandsäker bostad för alla. Detta för att kommunerna enklare ska kunna upprätta och bedriva arbetet med individanpassat brandskydd, som en naturlig del i den befintliga verksamheten samtidigt som ansvarsfrågan också hoppas kunna bli tydligare än i dagsläget. Studien visar att en tydligare politisk inriktning, ett bättre underbyggt stöd från MSB och en insikt i organisation, ansvar och ekonomi kan leda till att arbetet med individanpassat brandskydd kraftigt underlättas för kommunerna. / The elderly is over-represented in the death statistics regarding fires at home, 90 percent of the housing fires resulting in deaths in Sweden affect persons over 65 years. In 2011 MSB presented a vision that nobody should die or be severely injured as a result of fire, to counteract that elderly die and to raise the knowledge amongst the municipality. Continued living in your own home despite increasing age, sickness and disability is a rising trend among the Swedish population. When moving to a retirement accommodation, the demands on the building's fire protection are increased and the expectations of the residents are reduced. But what happens to the fire protection and expectations regarding, for example, evacuation for the elderly who want to, or are forced to stay in their homes? This study consists of literature studies, interviews and a cost-benefit analysis in which the target group was persons over 65 years of age, who lives in their own homes and has a need for home care. The literature studies examine how laws, rules and recommendations deal with individualized fire protection. Through the literature study, guidance documents describing how to work with personalized fire protection in municipalities has been reviewed and compared to reality. The interviews were conducted to investigate how the established guidance documents are implemented in the municipalities, the extent to which they work on personalized fire protection is conducted and the difficulties and challenges that exists. The cost- and benefit analysis concerns the technical applications that both has been- and can be used in the homes of risk-sensitive persons. This was carried out for three different cases where the cases of various technical solutions, such as fire detectors, fire blanket, fire extinguisher, stove guard and portable sprinkler, were compared with their effect. The goal was to investigate whether there was a societal benefit in installing a technical fire protection for different cases, where the effect varies between 10, 50 and 90 percent for cases 1–3. The cost and benefit analysis show a societal benefit for two out of three cases where most lives can be saved when installing an active fire protection. The study shows that laws, rules and recommendations does not directly address how the work with personalized fire protection should be conducted. Interpretations of existing legal texts and regulatory frameworks may provide guidance for some work to be justified. However, the interviews have led to the result that clearer governance and responsibilities need to be added for more uniform work in the country. The interviews show that the municipalities are aware of the importance and meaning of pursuing a work with individualized fire protection. However, there are major differences in how far the work in different municipalities have come. The reason for this is often organizational and financial difficulties, where it is unclear who is responsible at the same time as the perception is that it is costly to carry out the work. At the same time, priority is given to other things in the municipality, which are required and must be carried out instead of something that is not controlled or followed up. In order to achieve the MSB's vision that Nobody should die or be seriously injured as a result of fire and the defined goals, it takes more than just technical solutions. One of many difficulties is the question of responsibility, which needs clarification from political quarters. Another problem exists in the handling of guidance documents that are too difficult for the municipalities and its occupations to implement with the current design. As a solution to this, MSB along with the National Board of Health and Welfare conducts a work to update the existing guidance Brandsäker bostad för alla. This is to make it easier for the municipalities to both establish and carry out work on personalized fire protection, as a natural part of the existing business. While the liability issue also hopes to be clearer than it is at present.

It is very important to protect buildings against fire. Especially older wooden buildings and areas with a historically important heritage, i.e. areas that cannot be restored to their original condition upon loss. In Eskilstuna one such area is located - Rademachersmedjorna. On behalf of Eskilstuna Kommunfastigheter AB a documentation of Rademachersmedjorna’s constructional fire protection has been conducted in this report in order to have the area's fire protection level documented. The purpose of this study has been, via systematic field studies, to provide an overview of Rademachersmedjorna and document the area’s current fire protection level. Based on this information, a visualization of the area's constructional fire protection and risk zones has been developed to give a simple overview for users, managers and owners. The inventory can be used by Eskilstuna Kommunfastigheter AB for a quick and easy visualization of Rademachersmedjorna’s fire protection level and risk zones. Furthermore, this information could be used as a basis for planning future safety prevention efforts. The documentation over the area is based on the assessment method Bedömning av brandskydd i kulturbebyggelse (hereafter referred to as BSV-k) and the parts this method includes. There are a total of 16 buildings at the Rademacher area and only one building achieved an acceptable fire protection level according to BSV-k. There are several zones in the area that pose a higher risk for the occurrence of fire and fire spread. These higher vulnerable fire hazard zones are spread out over Rademachersmedjorna which means that the whole area quickly can get involved in case of fire. In this context it is important to avoid fire what so ever may arise. Removing combustible material in escape routes, in attics and combustible materials nearby the buildings are some fire prevention measures which can be applied. It is also important to note objects such as bins and wooden planks that exist between the buildings being potential fire carriers. In cases where the buildings distance to a nearby located building is very short, the potential fire carriers pose little threat as the fire can spread directly from building to building. To achieve an acceptable level of fire protection for Rademachersmedjorna - according to this study's assessment method - is sufficient in many cases to apply fire prevention.