Chris Jelenewicz, P.E., FSFPE
Fire Safety in Tall Building:
Performance-Based Solutions
Kingdom Tower -- Jeddah
Central Park Tower
Philadelphia, PAOne Meridian PlazaFebruary 23, 1991
SFPE/ICC Guide
• Partnership SFPE/ICC
• Does Not Define “Tall
Building”
• Not a substitute for a
Building Code
• Identifies challenges &
provides inside on how to
address in PBD context
Challenges
Emergency Egress
Fire Resistance
Smoke Control
Suppression
Facades
Construction/Demo
First Responder Issues
Other Challenges in Guide
• International Practices
• Hazard & Risk Analysis
• Integration of Building
Systems
• System Reliability
• Detection & Alarm
• Commissioning
Why PBD?
• Evaluate designs of fire protection
measures to achieve stated
objectives
• Support alternatives to prescriptive-
based code requirements
• Evaluate the building fire safety as a
whole
• Prescriptive codes can stifle
innovation
Design Fire Scenario
Standard (under development)
Couples:
• Scenario
• Design Fire
• Acceptance Criteria
Design Fires
Estimate Fire Growth Rate
Evacuation Strategy
• Simultaneous
• Phased/Progressive
• Refuge Floors/Areas
• Sky Bridges
• Evacuation Elevators
• Combinations
Based-On
• Egress Goals
• Occupants Characteristics
• Building Characteristics
• Evacuation Scenarios
• Emergency Management Personnel
Simultaneous Evacuation
• Popular After 9/11
• Discharge?
• Stairs Only?
• No preference to those in danger
• High demand on stairs
• Other Emergencies
• Assessment of Total Evacuation Systems for Tall
Buildings (NFPA Foundation)
Phased/Progressive Evacuation
• Local Regulations
• Information Age – Difficult
• Efficient Use of Stairs
• Evacuate Those in Danger First
• Not Good for All Emergencies
Refuge Floors
Refuge Floors in Hong Kong
• Refuge Floor 20-25 Floors
• Fire Separations
• 50% of Floor Dedicated to Refuge
• Fire Safety Strategies for Supertall
Buildings in Hong Kong, W.K.
Chow, Council on Tall Buildings
and Urban Habitat
The Strand-42 floors
500 West 43rd Street
February 2014-NYC
York, NY
Protect in Place
• Refuge Areas – Residential
• Occupant Response During a Residential
Highrise Fire, CRC Canada, Guylène
Proulx
Sky Bridge -- Petronas Towers
Evacuation Elevators
• Model Codes Have Provisions
• Access for Disabled
• Protection (Shaft, Machine Room)
• Smoke Control
• Back-up Power
• Communication
• NIST Report -- The Use of Elevators for Evacuation in
Fire Emergencies in International Buildings
Fire Resistance
Structural Fire Engineering
Smoke Control
Stack Effect
Piston Effect
Wind Effect
Suppression Considerations
Pressure Zones
Without Tank
Express Risers
Facades/Exterior Wall Assemblies
Tamweel Tower, Dubai, November 2012
• Cigarette discarded
onto pile of waste
materials left by
workers next to building
• 5-1/2 hr. fire duration
• Fire spread to interior
residential units
Marina Torch, Dubai, February 21, 2015
• Source of ignition:
barbecue grill on 51st floor
balcony
• Fire damage extended 28
stories to top of building
• 101 apartments damaged
Dubai January 1, 2016
• Address Hotel
New York, NYDeutsche Bank FireAugust 18, 2007
Two Career Fire Fighters Die Following a Seven-Alarm Fire in a High-Rise Building Undergoing Simultaneous Deconstruction and Asbestos Abatement—NIOSH
• Careful Planning/Design
• Water Supply
• Fire Suppression
• Standpipe Systems
• Egress Systems
Construction & Demolition
Where is F/F Intervention?
Fire Responder Issues
Command & Control
Communications
Building Access
Operations
Rooftop Helipads
OSHA Guide
Fire Service Features
of Buildings and Fire
Protection Systems
SFPE Handbook
5th Edition
e-Book
New Content
• Human behavior in fire -- egress system design, occupant evacuation scenarios, combustion toxicity, and data for human behavior analysis
• Fire protection systems -- selection of fire safety systems, system activation and controls, and CO2 systems.
• Recent advances in fire resistance design
• New chapters on industrial fire protection, including vapor clouds, effects of thermal radiation on people, BLEVEs, dust explosions and gas and vapor explosions.
Annual Meeting
New Committee Structure
Thanks to Simpson, Gumpertz & Heiger for the use of photos.
Feel free to contact me at [email protected]