The LWF Blog

Fire Engineering Design and Risk Assessment – Fire Safety Management – Part 7

December 16, 2019 1:57 pm

In LWF’s Fire Engineering blog series for Architects and others involved in building design, we have been looking at the activities of a company which can be classed as fire safety management. In part 6, LWF looked at the provision of fire safety systems and designing for change of use and began looking at the process from construction to handover. In part 7, we will consider approvals, certification, commissioning and handover of a new build.

Approvals and certification documentation gained for the new build should be collected for inclusion in the fire safety manual and handed to the fire safety manager. Without this information, proof of appropriate action taken can’t be proved or referred to for the fire safety plan.
Before the building is accepted for occupation, the safety of staff, public and any contractors still working on the build, must be assured. The method of design and construction of the building and any systems installed must be recorded in the fire safety manual. Any fire safety systems must adhere to the guidance in Regulation 7 ‘Materials and Workmanship’ of the Building Regulations.

The commissioning and handover of fire safety systems is covered in the appropriate British Standards and other guidance documents. The fire safety system, once complete, must be checked for conformity with the system design and drawings and the handover to the building owner/occupier must include operation of the system.

The checks and tests on the fire safety systems should be recorded in writing to confirm they are installed appropriately and completely and each component is fully-functioning.

At this point, the systems are ready for acceptance testing. The extent and form of this testing should be agreed with the enforcing authority at the design stage. This is intended to show that the final integrated system complies with the specified design and has been correctly installed, it also should confirm correct functionality. Where possible, all options defined by the ‘cause and effect’ tables should be tested. The results of the acceptance tests should be recorded and verified.

Standby power supplies should be arranged and the resulting provision checked and tested.

In part 8, LWF will continue looking at the arrangements for commissioning and handover of a new build and its contents to the owner/occupier and fire safety manager. In the meantime, if you have any questions about this blog, or wish to discuss your own project with one of our fire engineers, please contact us.

Lawrence Webster Forrest has been working with their clients for over 25 years to produce innovative and exciting building projects. If you would like further information on how LWF and fire strategies could assist you, please contact the LWF office on 0800 410 1130.

While care has been taken to ensure that information contained in LWF’s publications is true and correct at the time of publication, changes in circumstances after the time of publication may impact on the accuracy of this information.