User Manual

Siemens Switzerland Ltd

Building Technologies Division

Hidden voids One of the greatest threats of smoke and fire spreading in an uncontrolled

manner throughout historical buildings is the presence of unknown voids,

ventilation shafts and unused service shafts. As a minimum any connected voids

should be blocked off to ensure that defined fire compartments are maintained.

In some cases it may actually be possible to utilize the unused flues and

ventilation shafts for smoke extraction purposes, without detrimental impact on

the aesthetics of the building. Such creative approaches depend heavily on the

classification of the building concerned, the ingenuity of the fire engineers

involved and close cooperation with heritage protection and the building owner.

If an air-conditioning system is present, this should also be taken into

consideration and integrated into the fire protection concept.

Unstopped feedthroughs Over the years most historical buildings have been subject to the installation of

electric cables, heating, or ventilation infrastructure. Frequently this involves

cables or pipes passing through walls and ceilings from one room to another. In

many cases these feedthroughs have not been sealed and would allow smoke

(and fire) an easy pathway to spread throughout the building. It is essential that

these feedthroughs are sealed: this is an effective prevention measure that

should not encounter any opposition from the conservationist lobby as such

feedthroughs are generally hidden.

4.4. Evacuation

4.4.1. Objectives

The basic objective is to move those people in an endangered area to a place of safety. The evacuation of a

building, however, is a drastic measure and should only be initiated when absolutely necessary.

The measures required to ensure safe evacuation will vary from building to building and priority must be given to

the requirements specified by the local authorities. Unfortunately these regulations differ widely from country to

country and the local fire services often specify very distinct and individual evacuation concepts for buildings

within their jurisdiction.

Key objectives:

· Visitors should remain undisturbed for as long as possible

· An evacuation should be initiated as soon as it becomes unavoidable

· The evacuation should be carried out as quickly and efficiently as possible

4.4.2. Evacuation concepts

For each building an appropriate evacuation strategy must be defined in accordance with the physical

organization of the building, local regulations and in discussions with the local fire authorities. An important

consideration must be given to the building occupants and the concentration of people in the various areas within

the building. These factors can vary greatly in historical buildings which are also used for staging special events,

such as banquets, wedding receptions, concerts, lectures or even conferences.

Simultaneous evacuation

(general alarm)

In small-to-medium sized historical buildings and museums, evacuation will

simply consist of everyone reacting to the warning signal given when a fire is

discovered and then making their way to a place of safety outside the building.

This is known as a simultaneous evacuation and will normally be initiated by the

sounding of the general alarm (see above) via the fire detection system.