Fire safety

To draw up an effective fire safety policy and system, you must first have a fire safety scan performed. This scan can be performed for existing buildings as well as projects newly to be built, in which case we will work on the basis of drawings or preliminary designs. By performing an in-depth analysis, we will get an understanding of the current fire safety situation in the building and be able to identify potential risks. We will use the results of the fire safety scan to draw up an appropriate fire safety plan.

Fire safety plans can be developed in one of two ways: a rule-based approach and a risk-based approach. When we follow a rule-based approach, we follow regular construction regulations, as laid down in the Dutch Building Code (Besluit bouwwerken leefomgeving). This approach is mainly designed to ensure that the building meets the legal requirements and focuses on the implementation of preventive measures and basic fire protection. 

We prefer taking the risk-based approach. This method involves fire safety engineering (FSE) and provides a more flexible and client-specific solution. FSE allows us to identify the particular risks inherent in a building or utilisation scenario and suggest measures specifically designed to address these. We use the fire characteristics chart to subdivide fire safety into five disciplines that are all interrelated.

A fire safety plan with a risk-based profile involves construction-related solutions, fire safety provisions and measures to be taken at the organisational level. By performing a thorough fire safety scan and drawing up a tailor-made fire safety plan, we give our clients a comprehensive and effective fire safety strategy. This not only makes all parties involved feel safer, but also helps keep the building and its users safer and safeguard continuity.

The plan takes into account the particular requirements and wishes expressed by the client, as well as the requirements imposed by the competent authorities (such as the Regional Security Partnership (Veiligheidsregio)), and the conditions imposed by the insurance company.

Our specialists can perform analyses and calculations such as evacuation calculations and simulations and fire spread calculations, but they can also perform ASET/RSET analyses with a view to safe evacuation procedures.

A risk-based approach allows us to tailor the solutions to the client’s particular situation. By identifying and analysing the risks inherent in the client’s situation, we can select appropriate safety measures and incorporate these into a fire safety plan. This allows us to realise the very highest safety level, tailored to the organisation, the building, the people who use it and the processes taking place in it.

In addition to allowing us to provide client-specific solutions, risk-based fire safety plans have other benefits:

• Cost-effectiveness: By analysing the risks inherent in a building or process, we can select the most effective and efficient safety measures. As a result, unnecessary expenditures will be prevented, and cost savings will be realised.
• Continual improvement: Risk-based strategies are designed to bring about continual improvement of the fire safety situation. By periodically re-assessing the risks and determining whether the measures taken previously still suffice, we can ensure that safety be safeguarded and improved where possible.
• Awareness: Risk-based strategies are a great way to raise employees’ and building or process users’ awareness of risks. Getting them involved in the identification of risks and the selection of appropriate measures helps raise their awareness of the hazards and teaches them how to deal with them. They may not be fire safety specialists, but it will certainly increase their safety awareness and may help prevent unsafe situations.

The healthcare sector has developed strongly in recent years. It is therefore not good enough to meet the requirements in the Building Works Decree for the Living Environment (Bbl). This is because these requirements do not fit well with the current use of healthcare buildings.

In addition, recent research by the Netherlands Institute for Public Safety shows that smoke disperses faster than previously thought, which compromises safety in care buildings with non-self-reliant people. Therefore, there is an increasing move towards a risk-based approach to fire safety in healthcare, where measures are taken based on a risk analysis.

To determine when a building is sufficiently fire-safe, administrators within the healthcare organisation need to reach consensus and set the level of ambition.