| 07 Sep 2007 |
|
Experts urge building construction officials to 'remove hidden risks'
- Text size
Bad materials used in building construction are the primary reason for loss of property and human lives during an emergency, fire experts reiterated at the Civil Defence Exhibition and Conference organised by Dar Al Sharq at the Diplomatic Club yesterday.
Speaking on the topic 'The Hidden Risk' Philip Field, Technical Director of Loss Prevention Certification Board (LPCB), UK, said "Bad building materials are the prime cause for loss of lives and property." In his presentation Field, who has been Chairman and Director of the Fire Test Study Group, UK, reminded the assembly of fire experts to "remove the hidden risks" that could endanger infrastructure and lives in an emergency.
These types of panels are mainly used by large warehouses, many industrial premises, airports and food processing units. These are hidden risks which should be removed because such materials would fail safety code standards applicable in some countries. Worse, inspectors from insurance companies will certainly make a note of the materials used in a building whose owners make a claim following an accident.
"No insurance company exists to pay out more money than what they take in," said Field. "We are not anti polymer. It is not the polymer that is causing the problem but it is the design." A viable solution would be using non-inflammable materials. "Mineral wool is a much safer option," said R K Dhawan, Section Head, Fire and Safety, Qatar Electricity and Water CompanyQatar Electricity and Water Company
.
"It is imperative that professionals engaged in building construction activity choose appropriate materials that minimise or substantial reduce the risk of loss of property and people," said Colonel Abdullah Jassim Fakhroo of Civil Defence Qatar. "We have seen in the recent past here in Doha that some apartments that suffered major fire could have reduced the risk had appropriate materials been used," he added.
In his presentation, Field showed on the overhead projector a sequential annihilation of a factory in Leicester. Photographs of the factory showed small clouds of smoke that progressively become dark and expand into a huge mushroom cloud over the locality. The entire factory was reduced to ashes in just eight minutes. Nobody died, but the business never re-established itself and 200 employees were rendered jobless. "One in three big industrial businesses affected by a major fire never opens again," said Field. "The insurer sued the architect for deliberately not choosing a LPCB approved sandwich panel system. The architect lost £16m."
Such cases only reaffirm the need to follow use safe materials while constructing residential or commercial buildings and reduce the risk of loss.
By Sudeep Sonawane
© The Peninsula 2007
Zawya is a distributor (and not a publisher) of content supplied by third parties and subscribers. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers, or other information or content expressed or made available by those third parties, including information providers, subscribers or other users of the Service, are those of the respective author(s) or distributor(s) and not of the Company. The Company neither endorses nor is responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, advice or statement made on the Service by anyone other than authorized Service employee spokespersons while acting in their official capacities. The Company is not responsible for any infringement of intellectual property rights or breach of any applicable law or regulation, including regulation in relation to financial services or the distribution of financial products, defamation, data protection, telecommunications (including regulations relating to excessive use, spamming or other abusive activities) or obscene, offensive or illegal content). Under no circumstances will the Company be liable for any loss or damage caused by a member's reliance on information obtained through the Service. It is the responsibility of member to evaluate the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information, opinion, advice or other content available through the Service. Please seek the advice of professionals, as appropriate, regarding the evaluation of any specific information, opinion, advice or other content.
Read the full Member Agreement
http://www.zawya.com/legal/NewsLetter.cfm?name=disclaimer
Post a Comment
1.1 Contain any material which is libelous or defamatory of any person, is obscene, offensive, hateful or inflammatory or causes damage to the reputation of any person or organisation.
1.2 Promote sexually explicit material, violence, discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age or any illegal activity.
1.3 Be made in breach of any legal duty owed to a third party, such as a contractual duty or a duty of confidence.
1.4 Be threatening, abuse or invade another's privacy, or cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety.
1.5 Be used to impersonate any person, to misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person, or be likely to deceive any person.
1.6 Give the impression that they represent Zawya.
1.7 Advocate, promote or assist any unlawful act such as (by way of example only) copyright infringement or computer misuse.