British Columbia Chapter of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers

Interconnected floor spaces are incorporated into many commercial and institutional buildings worldwide, yet they pose a unique challenge to the primary objectives of the Building Code to mitigate fire spread and safeguard occupant egress. The hazards presented by interconnection of floors within a building is recognised by building codes across the world; however, the accepted approach to mitigate these hazards differs across jurisdictions.

Day-to-day monitoring and mitigation of the fire risk during construction is a responsibility of the owner, and typically carried out by the contractor.  However it is becoming more common for local authorities to require a Fire Protection Engineer or other professionals to assess the risk of fire exposure onto adjacent buildings, and propose additional methods for protection when a building under construction is not sufficiently separated from adjacent property. 

Brian Meacham (Current President of the SFPE) will address the chapter on the newest initiatives of the Society.  Vancouver has been selected as the host city of the 2021 SFPE International Conference.  Brian will be able to provide some further insights in what benefits this meeting will bring to our local chapter.

Most Fire Protection Engineers are familiar with the Gas Safety Division as well as elevating devices division of Technical Safety BC.

Many of the fire and explosion risks set out in the BC Fire Code and other referenced standards- industrial ovens using flammable atmospheres, special atmosphere furnaces, industrial dryers and other potentially explosive operations- fall under the jurisdiction of Technical Safety BC.

While WorkSafeBC’s (WSBC) activities relate primarily to safety in the workplace, this requires, to a substantial degree, an assessment of facilities in relation to relevant Statutes, Regulations and (some) adopted standards.