SPECIFICATION FOR THE NATURAL VENTILATION OF FIRE FIGHTING SHAFTS - BRE SHAFT

The fire fighting shaft shall be ventilated by means of a natural ventilation shaft as recommended in BRE project report 79204.

The shaft shall be nominally straight and vertical as well as fire resistant, with a minimum cross sectional area of 3m², closed at the base and open at the top. A Colt Stairwell ventilator with a minimum free area of 1.5m² shall be installed at the head of the stairs to provide a source of inlet air.

At each storey an automatically controlled (select) fire rated smoke damper (or) fire door shall be connected from high level in the lobby to the shaft, providing an air flow path from the lobby to the shaft.
(select) A decorative grille or louvre shall be provided in front of each damper.
(or) The fire door(s) and any guarding necessary to avoid risk of falls through them will be provided by others. Operation of the door(s) shall be via the Colt Doorman actuation system. Each (select) damper (or) door shall have a minimum free area of 1.5m².

In automatic mode, the system shall be activated by (select) the building fire detection system (or) a dedicated fire detection system incorporating smoke detectors in the accommodation adjacent to each door into the fire fighting shaft and supplied as part of the ventilation system. The detection system shall have the capability of distinguishing on which storey the fire occurs and providing a dedicated output for each storey. A break glass switch shall also be provided in the lobby on each storey for manual activation.

Under fire conditions the (select) damper (or) door on the fire floor and the Seefire ventilators shall open. The (select) dampers (or) doors on all other storeys shall remain closed.

Control shall be (select) via the Colt OPV system (or) via an intelligent fully addressable control system.

The control system shall:
- be specifically designed and optimised for fire protection use
- use manufacturer's fully tested and proven standard control panels
- incorporate a mimic panel for fire service use
- be user re-configurable for basic operating parameters
- be capable of operating all equipment simultaneously, without need of cascade control
- provide full battery backup so that a maintained supply is not required
- provide local battery backup providing at least 70 operations
- provide visible and audible fault and fire condition warning at the control panel.

The design, manufacture, installation, wiring and commissioning of the complete system shall be carried out by one specialist company and their approved sub-contractors. The specialist company shall be responsible for gaining Building Control approval for the system.

The specialist company shall be a BSI registered firm for the design, manufacture, installation and commissioning of smoke control systems in accordance with ISO 9000. Proof of certification shall be provided with tender submission.

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Smoke Control