Benefits of Precast Concrete Construction in Fire Prevention
Location
CSU Ballroom
Start Date
20-4-2015 10:00 AM
End Date
20-4-2015 11:30 AM
Student's Major
Construction Management
Student's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Mentor's Name
Mohamed Diab
Mentor's Email Address
mohamed.diab@mnsu.edu
Mentor's Department
Construction Management
Mentor's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Description
I chose to research the pros and cons of using precast concrete in our buildings to help prevent and control building fires. Fires in our communities are something that is often overlooked until it happens. If we have the technology like precast concrete to help prevent the spread of fires throughout buildings and save lives I don’t know why we wouldn't use it just because it costs a little more. Our current fire prevention systems definitely have their flaws and the sooner we realize this and start changing our construction practices the better off we will be. Precast concrete is a noncombustible material allowing design of new buildings to separate the building into compartments, which helps contain a fire, which in return gives the fire department more time to reach the building as well as more time evacuating the building. I found in my research that the best approach to fire protection is a balanced design of a building that combines active and passive fire protection systems. A passive system would be the use of precast in the building design, and an active system would have a sprinkler system as well as alarms in the building. With increasing emphasis on the risk of buildings, insurance companies are taking note of precast concretes fire advantages, offering lower rates in some cases. I found a lot of my information from journals from the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute. The information was very convincing, with not a lot of downsides to the new practice.
Benefits of Precast Concrete Construction in Fire Prevention
CSU Ballroom
I chose to research the pros and cons of using precast concrete in our buildings to help prevent and control building fires. Fires in our communities are something that is often overlooked until it happens. If we have the technology like precast concrete to help prevent the spread of fires throughout buildings and save lives I don’t know why we wouldn't use it just because it costs a little more. Our current fire prevention systems definitely have their flaws and the sooner we realize this and start changing our construction practices the better off we will be. Precast concrete is a noncombustible material allowing design of new buildings to separate the building into compartments, which helps contain a fire, which in return gives the fire department more time to reach the building as well as more time evacuating the building. I found in my research that the best approach to fire protection is a balanced design of a building that combines active and passive fire protection systems. A passive system would be the use of precast in the building design, and an active system would have a sprinkler system as well as alarms in the building. With increasing emphasis on the risk of buildings, insurance companies are taking note of precast concretes fire advantages, offering lower rates in some cases. I found a lot of my information from journals from the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute. The information was very convincing, with not a lot of downsides to the new practice.
Recommended Citation
Gruis, Adam. "Benefits of Precast Concrete Construction in Fire Prevention." Undergraduate Research Symposium, Mankato, MN, April 20, 2015.
https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/urs/2015/poster_session_A/51
