Fire Safety Report
What is a Fire Safety Report?
A Fire Safety Report involves a thorough inspection of a building and careful assessment of available plans to determine whether a building complies with current regulations for fire safety.
Who does it?
One of our specially trained building consultants.
When?
Prior to the purchase or upgrade of the property, or voluntarily during
occupancy.
Aim?
A Tyrrells Fire Safety Report will assess the fire risk of a building to its occupants and examine whether it complies with current Building Code of Australia fire safety regulations. In more complex buildings, this can involve using fire engineering, whereby a properly tested alternative is used that shows the building occupants can safely exit from the building and achieve the same result required by the Building Code of Australia.
For example, it will determine if the building's doors or walls have been built with specially constructed elements to make it as fire-resistant as possible.
Why?
Many buildings are potential fire hazards, especially units and apartments built prior to the Strata Titles Act (1971) when today's stringent fire safety regulations were not common building practice.
Even relatively new buildings can face expensive upgrade because they may not comply with the Building Code of Australia that became law in 1993.
Granny flats, residential space built above shops and offices and warehouses which have been illegally converted to residential buildings are also at risk.
What is inspected?
Typical fire safety breaches in buildings include:
- absence of a fire-resistant door;
- absence of effective fire protection between adjoining buildings;
- inadequate escape from a building - the staircase may not be fire isolated;
- absence of fire services such as hydrants and hose reels;
- ceiling not being fire rated for one hour (ie resistant to spread of fire for one hour).
Which types of properties?
Flats, units, townhouses, strata properties (including common areas),
shops, factories, warehouses and commercial buildings.
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