Effects of interior doors on the audibility of fire alarms

Ágota Zsuzsanna Mohai; Barbara Elek

doi:10.14513/actatechjaur.00738

Authors

Ágota Zsuzsanna Mohai Institute of Safety Science and Cybersecurity, Donát Bánki Faculty of Mechanical and Safety Engineering, Óbuda University, Népszínház Street 8., 1081 Budapest, Hungary https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6762-5625
Barbara Elek Institute of Safety Science and Cybersecurity, Donát Bánki Faculty of Mechanical and Safety Engineering, Óbuda University, Népszínház Street 8., 1081 Budapest, Hungary https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7515-6374

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14513/actatechjaur.00738

Keywords:

fire alarm, evacuation, fire sounder, soundproof, sound pressure, alarm audibility

Abstract

One of the most important purposes of installing fire alarm systems is to provide an alarm signal in the protected building in the event of a fire. Fire alarms are most often provided by networked audible warning devices. The signal must be easily and quickly detectable and identifiable so that the occupants inside can start to escape after the alarm has been sounded. This is apparently a simple expectation, but if you look at the efficiency of fire alarms as a whole, and the effects that determine whether an evacuation will occur in response to an alarm during an actual fire, the question is not so simple anymore. In this article, we will examine the circumstances that may affect the alarm signal. Among these aspects, we will focus on the soundproofing properties of building structures, including interior doors, and their effect on sound propagation. By carrying out on-site measurements, we verify the design principles used in engineering practice, looking for the factors that may influence efficiency of the fire alarms in today’s construction environment. We hypothesise that the increase in sound insulation of certain building materials and structures has an increasingly negative effect on the audibility of fire alarm signals.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

L. Moore and J. Kast, „Wily welfare capitalist: Werner von Siemens and the pension plan,” Cliometrica, Vol. 4, pp. 321-348, 2009. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11698-009-0048-x

J. A. Tarr, „The municipal telegraph network: origins of the fire and police alarm systems in American cities,” FLUX Cahiers scientifiques internationaux Réseaux et Territoires, Vol 9, pp. 5-18, July-September 1992. https://doi.org/10.3406/flux.1992.930

P. J. DiNenno, H. E. Nelson and F. W. Mowrer, SFPE Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering, Third Edition, Quincy Massachusetts Bethesda Maryland: National Fire Protection Association, Society of Fire Protection Engineers, 2002.

Fire Protection Technical Guideline 5.4.: Planning, design and installation of fire alarm systems, Hungary Budapest: National Directorate General for Disaster Management, Ministry of the Interior (NDGDM), 2024. Available: https://katasztrofavedelem.hu/10502/beepitett-tuzjelzo-berendezes-tervezese-telepitese (last acceesed: 02/02/2024)

EN 54-3 Fire detection and fire alarm systems - Part 3: Fire alarm devices - Sounders, Brussels: CEN, 2001.

A. Bowyer, H. Butler és J. Kew, „Locating fire alarm sounders for audibility BSRIA,” 81Building Services Research and Information Association, Guildford, 1981. Available: https://www.thenbs.com/PublicationIndex/Documents/Details?Pub=BSRIA&DocId=284767 (last accessed: 19/10/2023)

„Attenuation of Smoke Detector Alarm Signals in Residential Buildings,” Division of Building Research, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, 1986. Available: https://nrc-publications.canada.ca/eng/view/ft/?id=a2765522-73ad-4aab-b62b-b757083b60b0 (last accessed: 10/10/2023)

P. Havey, M. Munoz, M. S. Klassen, M. M. Holton és S. M. Olenick, „Variability and Error Rates in Fire Alarm Audibility Measurements and Calculations,” Fire Technology, Vol 54, pp. 1725-1744, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10694-018-0755-6

„Soundproof Door Market Size Growing and Forecasted for period from 2024 - 2031 and provides complete market analysis of this market,” Impulse Insight, 2024. Available: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/soundproof-door-market-size-growing-forecasted-period-lcvke/ (last accessed: 08/12/2023)

EN ISO 10140 Acoustics. Laboratory measurement of sound insulation of building elements., Switzerland: International Organization for Standardization, 2016.

„Hosiden Besson,” Hosiden Besson Ltd, [Online]. Available: https://hbl.co.uk/app/uploads/2016/01/banshee_excel_lite.pdf. (last accessed: 19/10/2023).

„UNI-T,” Uni-Trend Group Limited, 2008. [Online]. Available: https://meters.uni-trend.com/product/ut352/#Docs. (last accessed: 20/01/2024).

C. Hopkin, M. Spearpoint és Y. Wang, „Internal door closing habits in domestic premises: Results of a survey and the potential implications on fire safety,” Safety Science, Vol 120, pp. 44-56, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2019.06.032

DIN VDE 0833-3 Alarm systems for fire, intrusion and hold-up - Part 3: Requirements for intrusion and hold-up alarm systems, Berlin: Beuth Publishing House, 2020.

NFPA 72, National Fire Alarm and Signalling Code, USA: NFPA, 2022.

BS 5839-1 Fire detection and fire alarm systems for buildings - Part 1: Code of practice for szstem design, installation, comissioning and maintenance, UK: British Standards Institution, 2017.

Fire Protection Technical Guideline 2.6. Evacuation, Budapest Hungary: National Directorate General for Disaster Management, Ministry of the Interior (NDGDM), 2024. Available: https://katasztrofavedelem.hu/315/kiurites (last accessed: 03/02/2024)