Fireproofing Your Property With Intumescent Coatings
Fire protection is one of the most important issues ever to be addressed by building owners and facility managers. Many facility features can be optional or arbitrarily implemented by facility managers, but a fire protection program is not. It is so important that no facility can ever be operational without it, because it is a part of the requirements for Building Regulations compliance.
Fire protection systems are critical to the operations of the facility for several reasons. The first and most important is to save lives. Fire protective coatings systems should allow for the safe escape of people when fire breaks out. A slow spread of fire and its rapid extinguishing also preserves the structural soundness of the building and saves assets and the overall infrastructure from costly damage. And in the event of emergency fire-fighting operations, fire protective systems can also prevent any harm to rescuers and fire-fighters on the job.
Concrete vs. Steel
The debate over whether or not steel or concrete is the more suitable building material from a cost and safety factor is still continuing. Before modern engineering and the technological developments in concrete and steel construction the building systems favoured were wood and brick. The components which are at the forefront of construction development today, however, are steel and concrete; both materials provide a number of added benefits.
Start with the factor of safety as provided by concrete construction. The development of concrete for use in the new World Trade Center project in New York City makes a strong argument for the safety of concrete. There will be two foot thick concrete for protection of the inner core of the building against terrorist attack or fire. Reinforced concrete is very resistant to explosion and impact. Concrete can also endure high temperatures from fire for a long time without the loss of structural integrity. Concrete’s inherent mass and strength can resist extreme hurricane force winds. The proper design and construction of concrete is also highly resistant to seismic activity.