The LWF Blog
Fire Safety Engineering for Design – Sprinkler Protection – Part 213
December 9, 2024 11:38 amLWF’s Fire Safety Engineering blog series is written for Architects, building designers and others in the construction industry to highlight and promote discussion on all topics around fire engineering. In part 212, LWF discussed fire suppression, including with what comprehensive fire protection for a valuable building or contents might comprise. In part 213, we talk about sprinkler protection in more detail.
Sprinkler protection is often thought of as a modern invention, whereas it was originally conceived back in the 1800s. The earliest known fixed sprinkler system in the UK was installed in the Drury Lane Theatre in London in 1812. Prior to that, very early systems existed and consisted of simple arrangements of sparge pipes in vital areas which were controlled manually.
Surprisingly, little has changed in the essence of sprinkler design, aside from automatic detection and aesthetics. The original idea of sealing a waterway in a fixture with an element that reacts to local heat increase still stands. This is largely because such systems work best without unnecessary complexity and any steps introduced between fire detection and sprinkler activation should be carefully considered to ensure they do not result in a lack of results or reduced reliability.
Water is a perfectly-designed medium for fighting class A fires and therefore, most sprinkler systems are most effective when it comes to risks of this type. The use of sprinkler systems on class B, C, D and E fires would need to be carefully considered and may not be ideal.
Film and TV would have us believe that when a fire starts in a building with a sprinkler system, the sprinkler system activates throughout the building. This does not happen in real-life situations. A sprinkler is basically a system of pipes with heat-sensitive valves/sprinkler heads connected to a water supply. When a fire is detected in an area of the building by individual sprinkler heads, those heads open to release water in the form of spray to that area only.
The fire alarm is activated at the same time and the fire is controlled by the system until the Fire Service arrive to deal with the source. Although the primary aim of the sprinkler system is to subdue the fire and keep it from spreading, it is often the case that the Fire Service arrive to find the fire has already been extinguished (but it is still important that they are called to attend).
In part 214 of LWF’s series on fire engineering we will continue discussing sprinkler systems. 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 since 1986 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.