Challenge

Light-weight timber construction is particularly susceptible to fire during construction while none or little of the fire protection measures have been installed. At the Lendrum redevelopment, the proximity to neighbouring buildings was a point of concern for fire spread, in particular during construction where compartmentation may not be fully in place yet, potentially leading to a large volume of the development to burn simultaneously and pose a more significant risk to neighbouring buildings.

Solution

An analysis of radiation levels resulting from a fire during construction for both towers was performed to determine the intensity that neighbouring building would be exposed to. This was done from first-principles, coded into Grasshopper to determine exact radiation levels on each adjacent building surface. This allowed the analysis to be optimized instead of using prescriptive separation tables. Mitigation measures listed in NFPA 80A were recommended to keep the risk of fire spread to adjacent buildings at an acceptable level. The first-principles approach allowed the mitigation measures to be optimized and save both material cost and time during construction.