The March/April edition of Architecture Australia contained an article on the relatively recent specialised field of fire safety engineering. The jist of the article was that some engineers are specialising in fire safety issues and have the expertise to come up with case specific solutions to problems that would otherwise have to comply with the more restrictive Deemed to Satisfy Provisions of the BCA.
Since 1996 the BCA has been performance based, so if an engineer can demonstrate that an alternative solution to a fire safety issue is viable then it will gain planning approval. This has a large impact on public, commercial and industrial architecture in regards to new possibilities in economy, time saving and architectural form. Examples of the rationalised approach to fire safety include structural steel members not neccessarily needing fire protection such as concrete to comply, and new possibilities for voids between floors where performance based smoke management systems are developed.
O'Meagher, T and Poon, L, "Fire Safety Engineering", Architecture Australia, Architecture Media Pty Ltd, March/April 2007, pp110-112.
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