Combustible Construction

 This seminar will discuss the fire-related national building and fire code changes related to a new construction type called Encapsulated Mass Timber Construction (EMTC) to be used for wood buildings up to twelve storeys. As well, it will provide an overview of ongoing fire research at the National Research Council of Canada into various performance aspects of mass timber construction and tall wood buildings.

The risk of involvement of cladding in non-combustible construction has long been an issue culminating in the advent of  Exterior Insulation and Finish Systems (EIFS) in the 1980s and 90s. The development of the CAN ULC S- 134 test method for use in non-combustible construction enabled representation of the typical scale of exterior fires and is generally indicative of the potential hazard arising from cladding in non-combustible construction.