Stadia Fire Safety - Where Failure Is Not An Option

With everything from storage rooms to kitchens and meeting rooms, fire protection in stadia is complex. In some stadia over 50 distinct fire protection systems are required, ranging from sophisticated electronic detection systems, to concealed sprinkler installations, fire extinguishers and small dry systems. In addition, there are various laws and legislation governing fire safety in sports grounds. In the past, many pieces of legislation have covered passive fire safety. In the UK for example, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order covers stadia as Large Places of Assembly; Germany has a number of regulations under DIN 4102 and any products used in fire protection must meet EU standards under the Construction Products Directive 89/106/EEC (CPD). Fire safety remains a major concern as capacity at stadia increases and active fire safety is also getting more and more attention.

If you cannot stand the heat
One of the most vulnerable areas of a stadium is the kitchen. High temperature cooking oils, deep fat fryers and busy, often-frequented areas with high staff turnover can lead to accidents. In the 1960s, before automatic restaurant fire suppression, kitchen fires were one of the greatest causes of restaurant loss and, in stadia, the hazards are perhaps greater. Deep fat fryers, for example, are more common, as fast food is often found at sporting venues and concerts.
Automated protection systems are essential in these areas. Sprinkler nozzles can be aimed at specific appliances where risk is highest. An overlapping system is also possible, where the targets of different sprinklers overlap, guaranteeing a fire-free zone over a protected area. Custom-built kitchens in stadia require a custom fire system design by a fire engineer, targeted to address the areas of highest risk.
Where hot grease and oil is present, a fire suppressant is needed in place of water in order to cool hot surfaces and prevent re-flash. Another point to bear in mind is that sensitive cooking equipment requires a Ph neutral suppressant. For other areas, an agent-plus-water fire suppression system is possible to guarantee efficiency in cooling and extinguishing. Designers should consult with their fire protection supplier and authorities with jurisdiction to ensure that the best system is in place in each defined area of the stadium.

Cad design
CAD design is one of the most up-to-date tools in fire suppression. Industry professionals such as engineers and software experts combine their knowledge to create realistic designs. One such system from Tyco, for example, can be used to design the layout of sprinkler systems, calculate hydraulics, create product material lists for designing requirements, allows the user to calculate the time taken to trip a dry valve and deliver water to the remote area, which is useful in evaluating design improvements. Full scale 3D models now allow the user to visualise the system in its entirety and construct virtual models – essential in complex buildings like stadia. The compatibility with BIM is also a useful feature, especially for challenging projects. The software also enables simple calculation of flow equations, including Hazen-Williams and Darcy-Weisbach equations, saving structural engineers time and effort.

Keeping to the code
Regulations are an essential yet challenging aspect in fire protection planning. For example, the Safety of Sports Grounds Act in the UK covers large, complex buildings used for major sporting events with a capacity of 10,000 or more spectators. These buildings require a safety certificate, for which strict criteria must be met. The “Green Guide to Safety at Sports Grounds” contains guidance on a wide range of measures, including stadium capacity and minimum rates of entry and exit. These recommendations are given force of law at individual grounds by their inclusion in safety certificates. Regardless of the various fire safety regulations in each region or country, working with an experienced supplier with good knowledge of these codes, or with software that includes their integration, can save difficulties further down the line.
NFPA 13 (National Fire Protection Association), often used as the standard code for sprinkler systems, details everything from ceiling height to aisle width, and at 414 pages, it is not light reading. The software referred to earlier allows the user to check his or her design in line with codes, penalties and credits and make simple updates to the design until it meets specifications.

Looking good
When designing an ultra-modern stadium, ambient aesthetics are important. Exposed pipes can appear unsightly, and obvious fire protection systems can cause visitors to worry, by calling fire hazards to their attention. Now, sprinkler systems are designed with discreetness in mind. Inconspicuous sprinklers also minimise the chance of damage by vandals, which can be a problem after hours in a large, unoccupied venue, or in an area where large crowds can gather.
Modern sprinklers, such as Tyco’s Raven sprinkler, are designed to be as unobtrusive as possible. Available in chrome or white to suit the interior of most environments, they avoid attracting unwanted attention. Tamper resistance is key, especially in venues where alcohol is served and patrons’ curiosity may extend beyond normal modes of behaviour. A quick response is also vital, as in a high-capacity venue, a few seconds make all the difference.

Build and maintenance
Stadia are often constructed with a specific event in mind, such as the UEFA EURO 2012 football tournament to be held in Poland and Ukraine. With a strict deadline for construction, simplicity becomes paramount, as does ease of maintenance over the lifetime of the building.
Grooved couplings are one way stadia engineers can save time. They are the fastest method with which to join steel pipes, as the need for two holing with flanges is eliminated. Fire hazards involved with welding or brazing are also avoided. Rigid joints provide the same resistance to movement as welding and flanging and pressure responsive gaskets can be used to seal pipe ends.
Another benefit of the grooved system is that retrofitting becomes much simpler. Fire guidelines can change rapidly in response to an accident, which results in new restrictions in fire protection systems. Changing fire system layouts and isolating equipment and piping systems is often necessary, whether for standard maintenance or an unexpected retrofit. Grooved products simplify this process without impinging on safety, keeping the stadium at the pinnacle of fire safety for years to come. These products can also easily be combined with metal framing and fixings for easy installation in a building.

Special environments
Fire damage to server rooms or IT centres on site can be costly. In these areas, commercial suppression units are recommended, due to the many electrical components. This requires choosing a suppression agent that is safe for use in telecommunications sites, computer centres and power generation installations and delivers the extinguishant quickly, minimising damage and downtime.
When using commercial suppression units, environmental impact should not be forgotten. Sustainability is a focus for many new stadia projects – with energy efficient design and construction using recycled rainwater or solar panels on roofs key considerations. The logical choice is a system, such as Tyco’s Sapphire that utilises 3M’s Novec 1230 fire suppression fluid, that causes zero ozone depletion, minimal global warming potential, and acute and chronic toxicity testing that ascertains that the extinguishant is safe for use in occupied areas.
Fire safety in stadia can be a minefield. A large, multi-purpose venue poses various challenges and risks, and with high-profile disasters in the past, the pressure is on for architects and engineers to stay in the spotlight for the right reasons. Guidance from fire engineers and experienced suppliers is essential in negotiating reams of legislation. The old adage, “safety first”, has never been more important.

Swedbank Arena in Sweden
Due to open in 2012, Swedbank arena will be one of the most modern multi-purpose stadia in the world. Construction costs have reached
US$ 300,000,000 owing to the high specification of the build. On-site restaurants will be able to seat up to 8000 visitors and there will be 92 VIP boxes overlooking the pitch. The roof will be retractable and stand at a height of 55 metres. With a high specification stadium such as this, maintaining the modern design of the building, ease of construction and ability to retrofit in the future is important.
Grinnell Grooved coupling fire protection products is one solution that has been adopted, which present a number of advantages over flanges or welded systems. These couplings allow for expansion, contraction and deflection of the piping system and the benefit of flexibility can reduce or eliminate the need for expansion joints. Field modifications and retrofitting will be easily accommodated, as couplings and fittings can be rotated, eliminated or added to facilitate modifications.
With pre-fabricated moulded insulation, the groove of the insulation matches the groove of the piping and keeps the system unobtrusive. Concealed sprinklers have also been employed to ensure fire protection is not only the highest standard in safety, but maintains architectural aesthetics. Couplings with elastomer gaskets and pipe end gapping also provide excellent noise and vibration dampening by helping to isolate, dissipate, and minimise noise and vibration transmission throughout the piping system. Metal framing and pipe supports ensured a quick and safe installation and pre-fabricated piping helped limit installation time on site.
In cold environments such as open air arenas, unheated store rooms or parking garages, pipes can freeze, disabling a sprinkler system. In these instances, dry pipe valves are used, where liquid is not introduced to the pipe until the system is triggered. Valves automatically control the flow of water into the sprinkler system which is pressurised with either air or nitrogen. When heat triggers a sprinkler, the loss of pressure causes the valve to open and water flows into the sprinkler system. In this particular instance, software analysis resulted in the installation of fewer than half the number of valves than were initially planned, saving time and cost.
Other fire safety items in use are portable extinguishers throughout the stadium and in areas defined as hazardous to fire, as well as suppression systems in telecommunications and IT rooms.

Wouter Bossink is Sales Director for Fire Protection Water EMEA at Tyco Fire Protection Products

For further information, go to www.tyco-fsbp.com