Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Assignment - Essay Example rning fire outbreaks in building structures are now widely used as a tool to understand the causes and consequences of fire in various scenarios which can be used by engineers in designing safety plans. Furthermore, several countries across the globe have undergone serious transformations in terms of their building safety regulations which is now increasingly focused on the performance based approach to fire safety design. However, the requirements related to fire safety design for various types of buildings differ largely according to circumstances of each individual case. Conforming to the requirements of the fire resistance norms laid down by the various regulating authorities, leads to a simultaneous increase in construction costs, since excessive use of safety materials during building construction is often inevitable yet superfluous and avoidable. These redundant expenses can be avoided through the recently emerged field of fire safety engineering and the latest trend which focuses on a performance based fire safety regulation policy aimed at enhancing the building designs in such a way that the safety of the inhabitants is not compromised and the costs are controlled. "The application of scientific and engineering principles to the effects of fire in order to reduce the loss of life and damage to property by quantifying the risks and hazards involved and provide an optimal solution to the application of preventive or protective measures" (Purkiss 2007, Pp.1). Such a concept applies to all situations where fire is a impending vulnerability. The low rise domestic buildings are the prime target of fire related damage since such buildings usually do not involve use of complicated design methods and also, in such building structures the chances of human fatality is higher as the causes of death in such a situation are usually the spread of smoke and other toxic gases, rather than through building collapse, which prevent the inhabitants from escaping (Malhotra,