Fire Safety
The introduction of the New Zealand Building Act 1991 provided for a fundamental change in the manner in which fire safety in buildings was to be designed. The prescriptive approach of the obsolete NZS 1900 Chapter 5 was replaced by performance based requirements.
Spencer Holmes invested in the expertise to provide cost effective design solutions to meet the new challenges raised by a performance based system. The experience gained since the introduction of the Building Act offers benefits in current design to ensure the solutions offered maximise both the protection of life and property at a realistic cost.
In 1992 when the Fire Safety and Evacuation of Buildings Regulations were introduced, more onerous requirements were placed on building owners and managers to ensure that evacuation schemes were prepared and approved by the New Zealand Fire Service. Unlike the Building Act, the Fire Safety and Evacuation of Buildings Regulations empowered the New Zealand Fire Service to require upgrading of the installed fire safety systems in order to have evacuation schemes approved.
Spencer Holmes’ particular fields of expertise include the following:
- Fire Engineering Design for New Buildings
- Specific Fire Engineering Design for Change of Use and Alterations
- Fire Safety Assessments for Existing Buildings
- Fire Safety Assessments for Industrial Processes
- Independent Qualified Persons (IQP) Inspections
