User Manual

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Consequently particular attention should be paid to
people who may be especially at risk such as:
 Students in unsupervised areas
 Non-native speaking students
 Employees who work alone and/or in isolated areas
(cleaners, security staff)
 People who are unfamiliar with the premises
(visitors, members of the public)
 People with disabilities (mobility impairment, hearing
or vision impairment)
On the basis of this assessment the following emergency
evacuation plans can be established:
 The GEEP (General Emergency Evacuation Plan)
 The PEEPs (Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans) –
for persons or groups of people with disabilities that
may hinder self-evacuation.
2.3.4 Fire protection concept
Based on the results of the fire risk assessment, a fire
protection concept should be developed which describes
all protection measures which help:
 Reduce the risk of fire breaking out
 Prevent the spread of flames and smoke
 Ensure that all occupants are evacuated safely
 Enable the emergency services to take action
2.4 Fire protection measures
Fire protection measures can be divided into passive
measures and active measures. Generally speaking,
passive (structural) measures define a building’s
resistance and endurance after a fire has developed,
while active measures are aimed at preventing the
outbreak of fire and the spread of fire and smoke.
2.4.1 Passive measures
The majority of college and university buildings were
purpose-built and designed to fulfill the building
regulations of the time. Although the fire safety aspects
of these buildings will be continually reviewed in the light
of more recent regulations, only when large scale
renovations are planned will fire safety related structural
alterations be implemented. Such alterations could
include improving the compartmentation of the building
to restrict an incipient fire to a single area and to prevent
smoke spreading throughout the building (e.g. fire doors,
enclosed staircases etc.).
Although passive protection measures are not the primary
focus of this document, they are extremely important.
The majority of passive protection measures are related
to the building structure, construction methods and
materials used.
The main elements of passive (structural) fire protection
include:
 Fire compartmentation of a building
 Use of materials that will prevent building collapse
 Fire-resistant construction elements to limit the spread
of fire and smoke
 Provision of fire-resistant escape routes/exits/
staircases/elevators
 Selection of materials that will reduce the fire load
 Selection of materials to prevent the generation
of toxic vapors (in the case of fire)
2.4.2 Active measures
Active protection can be divided into organizational,
detection, alarm and evacuation, and extinguishing
measures:
Organizational measures
During normal working hours the majority of colleges and
universities will be able to summon professional help
relatively quickly in emergency situations. Despite this
fact, the management of such buildings should aim at
developing a high level of competence within their
institution in dealing with any fire-related emergencies
and in recognizing potential sources of danger,
independent of outside assistance.
Organizational measures include:
 Staff training (prevention and intervention)
 Provision of alarm and emergency plans
 Periodic maintenance and checking of firefighting
equipment
 Keeping escape routes accessible and unobstructed
 Enforcement of good housekeeping rules, e.g.
 Correct storage of flammable materials used
for cleaning or restoration work
 Electrical appliances switched off as soon as
no longer in use
 No portable heating equipment permitted
 No smoking in any part of the building or in the
immediate vicinity
Universities are more
than just learning
factories; they become
virtually a second home
for the students during
term time.