news from the BRE Group
published: 5/3/2009
This press release is over six months old and the details may have been superseded. Please contact the Press Office for the latest information.
Fire fighting with the benefit of 'hindsight' to save lives and reduce damage to property
A new system called FireGrid has been developed to help the fire and rescue services save lives and reduce damage to property. FireGrid will be demonstrated at a workshop on March 24, 2009 at BRE Global, Watford.
Society's continuous demand for ever safer buildings (that are also more sustainable and efficient), means that our approach to fire safety is constantly evolving. With UK fire-related deaths in 2006 the lowest since 1959, this approach is clearly working - but 491 fatalities show that there is still room for improvement.When fire fighters arrive at the scene of a fire they often don't know the exact size of the blaze, how it is likely to spread, how the structural integrity of the building will be affected or how its occupants will react.
It is often said that if information available at the time of a major fire could have been made known to the emergency services when they arrived at the scene, the incident might have been handled differently. Such information includes that derived from sophisticated computer modelling tools used in building design to establish in-use fire strategies.
The FireGrid project is developing an integrated emergency response system that, when there is a fire, will capture data from building sensors, assess its validity and accuracy and use it to steer faster than real-time computer modelling of the fire.
These allow, for example the egress of occupants to be modelled to calculate times for total evacuation. Fire growth can be predicted to define potential hazards and to compute the impact of the fire on the structure. Weaknesses can be identified and corrected before the structure is built and optimal management strategies can be organised.
This means that fire fighters can now be provided with information - previously only available in hindsight - about the likely spread of the fire as well as the structural response of the building and the reaction of its occupants before such events unfold.
For details of the event visit: www.bre.co.uk/events or telephone: +44 (0)1923 664100 or click here
ENDS
Press enquiries: SUSAN ALLDER, tel +44 (0)1923 664520, Email: allders@bre.co.uk
Event enquiries: PAULINE TRAETTO: tel + 44 (0)1923 6649754, Email: traettop@bre.co.uk
Notes for Editors
BRE Global Limited (incorporating LPCB & BREEAM) is an independent third party approvals body offering certification of fire, security and sustainability products and services to an international market. BRE Global's product testing and approvals are carried out by recognised experts in our world renowned testing laboratories.
BRE Global Limited is custodian of a number of world leading brands including:
- LPCB for the approval of fire and security products and services, listed in the Red Books
- BREEAM the world's leading environmental assessment method for buildings, sets the standard for best practice in sustainable design and has become the de-facto measure of a building's environmental performance.
BRE Global's mission is to ‘Protect People, Property and the Planet' and is a trading subsidiary of the BRE Trust, the registered research and education charity which owns the BRE Group. For further information please contact: BRE Global, Garston, Watford, WD25 9XX, Tel: 01923 664100, Fax: 01923 664910, Email: enquiries@breglobal.com or visit http://www.breglobal.com/
Please contact BRE Global (E: enquiries@breglobal.co.uk T: + 44 (0)1923 664100) if you are reading this press release past the issue date, for an update on specific product or service content.
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