Window and Facade Magazine Global (May-June 2022)

GLOBAL Volume 4 | Issue 2 May-June 2022

FACE TO FACE Interview with Chris Browning, Director, NORR Group

A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TO FIRE SAFETY REGULATIONS & FAÇADE SYSTEM DESIGN Experts’ thoughts on norms & regulations, facade design & materials for fire-safe buildings

INDUSTRY SPEAKS Interview with Sam Robinson, Managing Director - Middle East, India & South East Asia, Hydro Building Systems

Founder’s Note

Dear Industry Friends, Time flies and WFM Media and WFM Magazine will complete a decade in Nov 2022 in India and the Middle East / GCC Nations.

We have kept on sharing the latest trends and developments for the best happenings and developments of the façade & fenestration world to all our readers with fresh and genuine content over the years.

As growth is important for all, we are now spearheading this initiative to take WFM Media into a Global Information and knowledge sharing platform under wfmmedia.com wherein we will be expanding our reach to all developing countries globally. From this edition onwards, we will be bringing you interesting and informative content from all around the world to help you learn the global trends and technologies.

AMIT MALHOTRA

Founder, WFM Media & Publications

Facade and Fenestration being the core, we have earned the respect of our Advertisers without whom this journey would not have been possible so thanks to all of you out there from India and the World.

We would also thank all our Global Contributors of Architects, Developers, Consultants, Engineers, and Product Manufacturers who have shared their insights and the latest developments happening around them and sharing with us to be able to share with all of you.

At the end, I would personally thank Team WFM who have been there and doing an amazing job from the beginning to make this Journey from India to Middle East / GCC to now the World.

Enjoy reading and sharing!

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Contents What is Being Overlooked from Façade Fire Safety?

Eiad Shami, Consultant Fire & Life Safety, WSP Middle East

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Proposed Changes to International Building Codes & Fire Test Standards Impacting Façade Fire Safety Shamim Rashid-Sumar, Vice President - Fire Codes and

Standards, National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA)

GCC Codes Façade Fire Key Methodologies Abdullah Faza, Associate Fire & Life Safety Consultant, AESG

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Experts’ thoughts on norms & regulations, façade design & materials for fire-safe buildings

Interview with Sam Robinson, Managing Director - Middle East, India & South East Asia, Hydro Building Systems

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Face to Face

Interview with Chris Browning, Director, NORR Group

Case Study

BAFTA 195 Piccadilly (LONDON, UK) and Campus Germany at Expo 2020 Dubai (UAE)

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A Comprehensive Approach to Fire Safety Regulations and Façade System Design

Industry Speaks

48

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Global News

Back Cover Courtesy: Ales Vyslouzil Published by: F and F Middle East FZ-LLC

Founder: Amit Malhotra Editorial: Renu Rajaram renu@wfmmedia.com

Sales & Operations: Kapil Girotra kapil@wfmmedia.com

Subscription & Circulation: Devagya Behl support@wfmmedia.com Design & Concept by: Chandan Sharma

Shefali Bisht editorial@wfmmedia.com

DISCLAIMER: With regret we wish to say that publishers cannot be held responsible or liable for error or omission contained in this publication. The opinions and views contained in this publication are not necessarily those of the publishers. Readers are advised to seek expert advice before acting on any information contained in this publication which are very generic in nature. The Magazine does not accept responsibility for the accuracy of claims made by advertisers. The ownership of trademarks is acknowledged. No part of this publication or any part of the contents thereof may be reproduced in any form or context without the permission of publishers in writing.

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Fire Safety WHAT IS BEING OVERLOOKED FROM FAÇADE FIRE SAFETY?

Eiad Shami

Consultant Fire and Life Safety, WSP Middle East

About the Author Eiad Shami is a Fire and Life Safety Consultant at WSP in The Middle East with experience ranging from designing fire and life safety strategies for commercial buildings and malls to developing county fire and life safety governance/compliance frameworks. This wide range of experience that Eiad has, provides a well-established foundation and experience in order to use regulatory requirements of fire and life safety of different regions to better provide engineering solution and performance-based designs to the groundbreaking projects currently underworks in the Middle East to realize client and architectural designs intent and providing a fire-safe structure and/or development.

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D

Grenfell Tower Image Courtesy: Jeremy Selwyn/Eyevine

ue to recent fire-related disasters globally, façades have attracted public attention, and façade fire safety is now being recognised as one of the most crucial aspects at the forefront of fire and life safety engineering design and construction.

In order to discuss façade fire safety and protection, the basic definition of fire needs to be noted. Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing light, heat, and smoke. It needs oxygen, heat, fuel, and a chain reaction involving the three. This is better illustrated with the fire triangle.

• Fuel: Anything that could burn including combustible cladding •

Heat: A source of ignition that would reach a high enough temperature to ignite the fuel (e.g., electrical hazards)

The Fire Triangle Image courtesy: FireTrainingCompany.co.uk

Oxygen: Necessary for the fire to start and propagate, but this is not something we focus on in the context of façades because they are open to the atmosphere

What are Façade Fires and their Most Common Causes?

Most commonly, fires start from inside the building and travel to the exterior, following oxygen and fuel,

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Grenfell Tower Image Courtesy: Jeremy Selwyn/Eyevine and when a building has a large amount of readily combustible façade material that will quickly ignite and spread along the exterior of the building. We have seen this in the Grenfell Tower in London (14 June 2017), where the fire started from a freezer on the fourth floor, apartment 16, and traveled to the exterior of the building. Due in part to the use of aluminum composite material (ACM), which is made

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from polyethylene, sandwiched by two thin sheets of aluminum, and multiple other materials and factors, this cladding burned easily and quickly, engulfing the 67.3 m tall tower within approximately three hours, which is quite slow, considering other façade fires that envelopes façades within minutes.

However, that is the difference between the leapfrog effect and a façade fire. Leapfrogging or

leapfrog effect is when a fire breaks out from one floor and travels past the façade vertically and into another floor, and so on. A façade fire on the other hand breaks out once and rapidly consumes the whole façade of the building.

As a result of the redesign process of Grenfell Tower, the cladding material installed actually promoted the spread of fire. It,

therefore, did not meet England and Wales Building Regulations, Approved Document B, Schedule 1, which stipulated that the building façade shall adequately resist the spread of fire, taking into consideration, the height, occupancy classification, and position of the building. Of course, this is only one part of the chain reaction that caused the Grenfell Tower disaster.

There are other common causes of fires, such as faulty electrical components, cooking, smoking, and others that are less common as a source of ignition such as exterior open-fire heating devices provided at restaurants and cafes during the winter season.

How to Mitigate Façade Fires?

Now that we understand what fire is and how fires need three main components to start a rapid oxidation process and the significance of façade fire safety with the Grenfell Tower fire, let’s discuss what is currently being done in the industry to mitigate façade fires.

First, during the conceptualising of a building, structure, or development it goes through a design stage where bases of design such as regulatory codes and international standards are noted for the specific asset, these codes and standards are then used to provide the minimum criteria for the fire and life safety design, which include façade material criteria. These are coordinated with the façade team and architect to ensure design intent is being met.

In Saudi Arabia, the Saudi Building Code and the Saudi Fire Code 2018 Edition are the regulatory codes, which are based on the

Fire Testing Image Courtesy: ICC NTA International Building Code and International Fire Code 2015 Edition, respectively. The SBC and SFC provide requirements on façade material rating based on the construction type of the asset and testing criteria. One of the most common and significant is the NFPA 285: Standard Fire Test Method for Evaluation of Fire Propagation Characteristics of Exterior Wall Assemblies Containing Combustible Components, which is invoked when significant quantities of the façade material (such as panels, siding, and insulation for

example) are not non-combustible.

It is worth noting that the SBC and SFC do allow exemptions to waive testing, provided that the material used meets set performance criteria referenced in the code and similarly is installed below certain heights from grade.

Therefore, for a new asset and/ or development, it is relatively straightforward to design out the risk of façade fires using code compliance, which in most cases of high-rise buildings are required to be provided with tested,

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Address fire Image Courtesy: AFP/Dubai or non-combustible material.

However, when there is an existing building with combustible façade material installed, the material and operational aspects of such a building are investigated in order to limit any causes of fires.

The treatment of the actual façade material, by replacement, partial replacement, or other means, is a subject within itself (see Volume 1, Issue 1, and Volume 2, Issue 1 in particular for more information).

However, in façade fire performance, operational aspects are often overlooked. For example, to mitigate fire risks for a high-rise business tower with substantial combustible façade material, the following approach

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to operational aspects may be considered: • The risk of breaking out of a compartment can be reduced using fire protection systems (sprinklers / active protection) and ensuring that they are comprehensive, maintained, and working robustly.

• Similarly, fire sources in close proximity to the façade (ignition risks) must be considered – potentially by isolation, replacement, or removal.

• Passive protection strategies and components, such as fire doors, must be robustly maintained.

• Means of egress within the building are defined and clear, to allow occupants to evacuate in a timely manner.

•

There is an appropriate procedure to notify all occupants within the structure to evacuate.

Following the above approach will provide insight into the main active protection components and aspects of fire and life safety such as the proper maintenance of automatic sprinkler systems, fire hose reels, and fire extinguishers.

Passive protection such as main building components impeding fire spread, robust means of egress, and evacuation procedure implementation, mitigating the risk of fire specifically on the occupants first and property second.

Perimeter Fire Barrier Systems Façades that are themselves fire-

Grenfell Tower Image Courtesy: Victoria Jones/PA

resistance-rated (i.e. preventing the fire from moving from one compartment to another) are relatively uncommon (one notable exception being basement car park lift lobby glazing).

Consequently, in the design and construction of façade fire safety, the main common component of fire resistance is the perimeter fire stop. This is a special linear joint seal that prevents the passage of flame and hot gasses through the gap between the interior surface of the façade assembly and the adjacent edge of the floor. The appropriate use of the perimeter fire stop will provide the required protection to ensure flame and smoke are prevented from moving through compartments.

It is important that other components of the façade, such as the spandrel panel, do not lose their integrity during a fire; otherwise, the applied seal will lose its preventative properties, and flame and smoke will spread through the façade voids.

Similarly, it is important not to overlook vertical seals, such as those required between

the shared walls of individual dwellings (apartments) and the façade.

Another commonly overlooked firestop is the cavity barrier - referred to as the fire break in the IFC and SBC. These are essential to prevent smoke movement in cavities behind or within façades.

Examples may include the cavity between the façade and a shear wall.

Conclusion Unfortunately, there have been more than enough disasters globally that demonstrate the seriousness of façade fire safety. Therefore project teams must design out or mitigate fire spread based on the specific building characteristics and during the implementation process.

Proper design and installation of required perimeter firestopping and cavity barriers is key to providing the required protection from flame and smoke moving through compartments. Additionally, when remediating existing buildings, the importance of the operational aspects of an asset is often not considered. However, ensuring that an asset implements a robust fire and life safety operational plan that includes periodic inspection of all active and passive fire protection systems, safeguards all components of the means of egress, and implements a robust occupants’ notification system is key to maintaining a safe environment to occupants and a protected asset.

REFERENCES 1.

NFPA, Reporter’s Guide: All About Fire, National Fire Protection Association, accessed 14 May 2022 https://www.nfpa.org/News-andResearch/Publications-and-media/Press-Room/Reporters-Guide-toFire-and-NFPA/All-about-fire#what

2.

History.com Editors, Grenfell Tower fire kills 72 in London, HISTORY, published 7 September 2018, accessed 14 May 2022 https://www.history. com/this-day-in-history/grenfell-tower-fire-2017#:~:text=The%20 fire%20started%20in%20a,of%20the%20building%20as%20well.

3.

Symodns, Tom. Grenfell Tower inquiry: 9 things we now know about the cladding, BBC News, published 23 March 2021, accessed 14 May 2022 https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56403431#:~:text=It%20is%20 made%20from%20polyethylene,projects%20all%20over%20the%20 world.

4.

Moore-Bick, Sir Martin (2019), Grenfell Tower Inquiry, Phase 1 Report, 30 October, HMSO, ISBN 978-1-5286-1602-7. https://www. grenfelltowerinquiry.org.uk/phase-1-report

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Fire Safety PROPOSED CHANGES TO INTERNATIONAL BUILDING CODES AND FIRE TEST STANDARDS IMPACTING FAÇADE FIRE SAFETY

SHAMIM RASHID-SUMAR

Vice President - Fire Codes and Standards, National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA)

About the Author Shamim Rashid-Sumar, PE, FSFPE is Vice President, of Fire Codes and Standards with the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association. In this role, she works with international model building codes and standards organisations to advocate for fire-resistive and non-combustible construction and provides technical support regarding codes, standards, regulations, and legislation at the national, state, and local levels.

She is a registered professional engineer and holds a Bachelor of Science in Fire Protection Engineering from the University of Maryland College Park. She was named a Fellow of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers in 2019 and is currently a Principal Member of several NFPA Technical Committees, including the Technical Committee on Fire Tests, which holds primary responsibility for NFPA 285, Standard Fire Test Method for Evaluation of Fire Propagation Characteristics of Exterior Wall Assemblies Containing Combustible Components.

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T

he testing of exterior wall assemblies with combustible components such as plastics and foam plastic insulation is an important consideration in fire safety design.

International building codes generally require full-scale testing to confirm vertical and lateral flame spread in buildings that will be limited to the acceptance criteria in the applicable test methods. Standards referenced by the building codes have historically required wall assemblies to be tested based on their intended installation. Ideally, components of the tested assembly must match the design identically as constructed - with no differences in materials, components, or configuration of materials.

As exterior wall assemblies become increasingly complex due to the demands of energy efficiency as well as resilience in buildings, there are challenges posed to fullscale testing of assemblies when

a variation at construction occurs (Greenwald & Banks, 2021). Such variations may be due to unique field conditions arising during construction, unforeseen design errors, or even supply chain issues impacting the availability of materials. These variances in the exterior wall assembly construction are likely to result in the delay of construction approvals and issuance of occupancy certificates if the differences cannot be reconciled or demonstrated equivalent to the approved design.

When replacing or substituting a component in a wall assembly that has been successfully tested with baseline components, the alternate components must be analyzed both individually and as a system. Each component can have a different effect due to the proposed changes and therefore must be evaluated.

It has been the industry practice to rely on fire protection engineering evaluations or engineering judgments based on sound technical

justification to resolve variances in exterior wall assemblies between the design specified in the approved documents and the final construction. However, in some instances, such engineering evaluations have lacked sufficient technical justification to demonstrate compliance with required acceptance criteria, or attempt to verify compliance based on data from bench-scale tests rather than reference full-scale exterior wall assembly fire tests such as NFA 285 Standard Fire Test Method for Evaluation of Fire Propagation Characteristics of Exterior Wall Assemblies Containing Combustible Components, BS 8414 Fire performance of external cladding systems, and CAN/ULC S134 Standard Method of Fire Test of Exterior Wall Assemblies.

This has fueled a need to provide guidelines for developing acceptable engineering-based analyses demonstrating compliance with applicable building codes and fire test tests.

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of deviations in construction or materials from a successful NFPA 285 test using accepted fire science and fire protection engineering principles to support approval of the assembly as modified. The analyses must consider the influences that the deviations will have on the performance of the tested assembly and determine that the deviations will not significantly alter the conclusions drawn based on the full-scale results (2022 Group “A” Public Comment Agenda, 2021).

CHANGES TO THE INTERNATIONAL BUILDING CODE Section 1402 of the International Building Code (IBC) requires exterior wall assemblies with combustible components to be tested for vertical and lateral flame propagation and comply with the acceptance criteria of NFPA 285 (International Building Code, 2021). During the 2021 Group A Code Development

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Cycle, changes to the IBC were adopted that will permit an approved analysis (based on an assembly or condition tested in accordance with and meeting the acceptance criteria of NFPA 285) to be an approved method of demonstrating compliance with the code requirements for limiting vertical and lateral flame spread. This code change, which will appear in the 2024 edition of the IBC, effectively allows analyses

The code change is clear that approved analysis reports must be based on an assembly or condition tested in accordance with and meeting the acceptance criteria of NFPA 285 and cannot rely solely on data from bench-scale test methods. The challenge of providing confidence to building and fire code officials and other authorities having jurisdiction over the accuracy of the technical justification, however, remains.

To date, applicable codes and reference standards have been silent on establishing guidelines and accepted practices for evaluating variations such as the substitution of one material for another material, differences in thickness and density of a specific wall assembly component, and variances in fire performance characteristics. Changes proposed in the next edition of NFPA 285 aim to provide the necessary guidance.

PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE NFPA 285 STANDARD Proposed changes in the 2023 edition of NFPA 285 include Annex B, Guide for Extensions of Results from Assemblies

that Meeting NFPA 285 Test Requirements. This annex covers extensions of compliant test results obtained from NFPA 285 tests to wall assemblies that differ from a tested wall assembly in materials, components, or configurations.

The purpose of the annex is to provide guidance to qualified engineers and design professionals when performing a design or developing an engineering analysis/ judgment on NFPA 285-based wall assemblies and is based on engineering principles and testing experience. The proposed annex will be discussed at the upcoming 2022 NFPA Technical meeting in June and subsequently balloted to the NFPA Technical Committee on Fire Tests for approval.

The extension of the data and results in the annex currently apply only to the fire test exposure and configurations described in NFPA 285 and may not necessarily be applied to other full-scale test exposures and configurations described in other standards such as BS 8414 or CAN/ ULC S134. With respect to the exterior wall assembly, the annex covers the analysis of components, including but not limited to base wall alternatives, floor line fire stops, exterior sheathing, weather-resistive barriers, air cavities, exterior insulation, and exterior cladding, attachment systems, and the window perimeter.

The proposed annex provides specific guidance on acceptability in changes in brands or types of insulation, the configuration of air cavities, and what brands/products can or cannot be changed. While

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this article does not outline all such guidance included in the proposed annex, a number of examples are presented here to provide a sense of the provisions intended to be included in the revised standard. For instance, if the base wall assembly is tested without any insulation, then the cavity can remain empty or contain insulation such as fiberglass or mineral wool. But if the base wall assembly is tested with mineral wool insulation, then the cavity must contain mineral wool insulation.

Depending on the component, the proposed annex also qualifies materials of greater or lesser thickness and/ or density based on whether minimum or maximum thicknesses and densities were tested in the baseline assembly.

For instance, testing the maximum thickness and density for EPS and XPS insulation allows for lesser density and thickness to be installed. An air cavity that is lesser in thickness than what was tested is also permitted.

A similar principle is applied to fire characteristics such as ignition time, peak and average heat release rates, total heat released, and effective heat of combustion.

For NFPA 285 analyses, products with the highest fuel content are typically considered the worst case.

In the case of weather-resistive barriers (WRBs), testing with a specific WRB allows for WRBs with lower or lesser fire characteristics to be used in lieu of the specified tested WRB. Similarly, successful NFPA 285 testing with aluminum composite material (ACM) cladding can potentially allow for claddings that have better fire performance or that have facers with higher melting points than

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metal composite material (MCM)/ ACM, such as uninsulated metal panels of aluminum or copper, non-combustible fiber cement, porcelain, mortared thin brick or another masonry, and materials of similar no combustibility. The proposed annex permits cone calorimeter tests in accordance with ASTM E1354 to determine the fire characteristics and outlines for which exterior wall components this approach is acceptable, such as WRBs and finish coats.

The proposed annex does not provide solutions for all variations to a baseline NFPA 285 tested assembly. Multiple changes can have a different cumulative effect than that of individual changes to be applied separately, and it may not be possible to analyze every configuration or change to a tested wall assembly. Where the engineering analysis/ judgment does not support the variation, it is recommended that an NFPA 285 test be conducted. Provisions of Annex B indicate that NFPA 285 testing with MCMs/ACMs does not allow for substitution with other combustible claddings.

Composite (non-MCM) panels must be tested per NPFA 285 when modified or not previously tested as part of the assembly, even if the exterior façade is noncombustible.

Changes to the location or type of

firestop or fire-blocking in a tested assembly are not recommended to be permitted. If a successful NFPA 285 test does not contain firestops of fire-blocking in its construction, the addition of firestops or fire blocking is not recommended to be permitted without resting.

Other examples include exterior insulation and finish systems (EIFS), which must also be tested and built with materials from the same manufacturer. EIFS components from different manufacturers cannot be mixed. A final example is a use of fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) as an exterior veneer, which requires an NFPA 285 test of the actual project wall construction.

Extensions or substitutions of these components are not permitted.

SUMMARY

Approved analysis to extend NFPA 285 test results is a practical means of demonstrating compliance with applicable building code requirements for limiting vertical and lateral flame spread where construction conditions present challenges. Recent changes to the International Building Code and proposed changes to NFPA 285 will codify engineering-based analysis and judgments and provide a means for meeting the demands for energy efficiency and other performance requirements without sacrificing fire safety in the built environment.

REFERENCES •

(2021). 2022 Group A Public Comment Agenda. International Code Council.

•

Greenwald, J. H., & Banks, E. W. (2021, March). NFPA 285 Extending Data with Comparative Engineering Analysis. IIBEC Interface, pp. 20-23.

•

International Building Code. (2021). International Code Council.

Fire Safety GCC CODES FAÇADE FIRE KEY METHODOLOGIES

Abdullah Faza

Associate Fire & Life Safety Consultant, AESG

About the Author Abdullah Faza is an Associate Fire & Life Safety Consultant at AESG. He holds a Bachelor of Science with Honour degree in Fire Safety Engineering from the University of Central Lancashire, UK. He is an Associate Member of the Institution of Fire Engineers in the UK. Abdullah is experienced in the fire and life safety industry with high skills and expertise in strategy design, passive fire protection, façade and exterior walls assessment, fire & gas mapping, inspection, and risk assessment. His experience was gained from working in both the construction and oil & gas industries. He delivered a variety of projects that include; residential, offices, healthcare, shopping malls, industrial, and oil & gas (offshore/inshore) projects. Prior to joining AESG, Abdullah was a senior fire engineer and the team leader of the façade fire risk assessment team, and in addition to the engineering experience, Abdullah was a fire safety instructor delivering fire safety awareness courses for different candidates such as fire marshals, security guards, hotel staff, healthcare staff, restaurant staff, and others. Some of his key delivered projects are La Mer Dubai, The Address Resort Fujairah, Expo Pavilions, Dubai Hills Offices, Hatta Hydropower Plant, Red Sea Airport, Avenues Developments in Riyadh and Khobar, and others in UAE, Saudi, Iraq, Oman, Egypt, and London.

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T

he understanding of façades within the Fire and Life Safety (FLS) industry is evolving and, in fact, we can see clear progress in the overall “design” of exterior wall systems in relation to fire risks. In our region, particularly in the GCC, the start of the fire / façade evolution took place immediately after The Address Fire in Dubai on New Year’s Eve 2016.

The unfortunate incident made the news worldwide since it was captured on the live broadcasting of Dubai Mall New Year Fireworks.

This added significant pressure on the industry to come up with urgent solutions to prevent such incidents from happening again.

This pressure by the various Authorities Having Jurisdiction over the industry experts, committees and consultant firms led to the issuance of the updated UAE Fire and Life Safety Code in

2018, which has a comprehensive section dedicated to the safe design of façade systems (Chapter 1, Section 4: Façade & Exterior Wall Covering Systems), taking the best practice approaches from both American and European international codes and standards.

In the same region, the Saudi Building Code-SBC 201, and Saudi Fire Code-SBC 801 (which are largely based on the International Building Code and International Fire Code, respectively) were published in the same year (2018), spearheading a new era of construction management in KSA and driving more countries in the region to be part of the overall construction evolution.

The UAE FLS Code 2018, Chapter 1, Section 4, includes a list of requirements applicable

to

design,

materials

The Address Fire, Dubai

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and

Civil Defence approval. In summary, Civil Defence approval can be obtained by following the ‘Ten Point Approach’, which is intended to mitigate the risk of façade fires. This approach can be summarised as follows: 1. The core of the façade material shall be tested in exposed form as per the test requirements of the code.

2. The façade panel as a product shall be tested as per the test requirements of the code.

3. The façade system shall be tested as a wall assembly or shall be a listed system (previously tested) as per the requirements of the code.

1. Curtainwall’s perimeter joints and fire stopping shall be a listed system.

2. Cavity fire barriers shall be provided in concealed cavities between the façade and the primary substrate, at every slab.

or shall hire a Civil Defence approved consultant (House of Expertise) who has experience and expertise in the design, selection and construction supervision of facade systems.

6. Façade

contractors

3. Fire barriers shall be provided vertically between compartments and different exterior wall systems.

and fabricators shall be approved by Civil Defence, with a valid Civil Defence license.

4. Exterior sprinklers should be considered for the balconies having combustible materials.

This is currently on hold by AHJ due to the uncertainty of external sprinkler effectiveness in such applications.

7. Façades shall be inspected throughout the installation process and certified by Façade Fire Experts or Civil Defence approved House of Expertise.

5. Consultants shall have competent and qualified façade specialists in-house

It can be said that the above points are implemented successfully in most new projects in UAE, apart from Item 7, which is currently under review by Civil Defence, and Item 9, which requires significant “legal” and

“commercial” coordination with government authorities other than Civil Defence.

Compliant façade design and installation in the UAE are formally recognised by Civil Defence through the award of Façade No Objection Certificates (NoC). This process starts during the initial Civil Defence approval of the design drawings and continues to the construction stage where five site inspections are conducted by façade fire experts and/ or house of expertise. It is the main consultant’s responsibility to ensure that the façade NoC is obtained prior to the installation and that compliant façade installation is carried out and suitably documented with inspection certificates.

Avenues Riyadh Project, Saudi Arabia

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Within the Saudi Building Code (SBC 201, 2018), the overall applicable requirements for exterior walls and roofing assemblies are detailed in Chapters 14 and 15. These chapters primarily set out to: •

Identify the performance targets in relation to fire resistance and fire propagation;

•

Classify the minimum required flammability based on building height and construction type: and,

•

Detail the requirements for metal composite materials, external insulation & finish systems (EIFS) and high-pressure decorative exterior compact laminates (HPL).

Moreover, SBC 201 includes six chapters that detail the requirements for specific materials that are typically used on external wall systems, namely: • Aluminium – Chapter 20 • Steel - Chapter 22 • Wood – Chapter 23 • Glass and Glazing – Chapter 24 • Gypsum Boards, Gypsum Panel Products and Plaster – Chapter 25 • Plastics – Chapter 26 Since SBC heavily relies on IBC as an international code reference, the material’s fire performance classification is assessed based on flammability (ASTM E84), heat radiation and fire propagation (NFPA 285). On the other hand, fire performance classifications in the UAE FLS Code 2018 are also based

Ideal fire/façade coordination at design stage

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on combustibility and self-ignition temperatures, in addition to the ones adopted in SBC. Despite the differences, both codes are aligned with the requirements of exterior wall fire resistance classification. However, they adopt different approaches in relation to cavity barriers (fire-blocking as per SBC terminology). SBC codes are flexible on the material type of cavity barriers, allowing for eight different materials to be used, including 13mm gypsum board, 6mm cement-based board or 50mm nominal lumber (refer to SBC 201, Section 718.2.1, Page 217 for the full list of materials).

However, Civil Defence in the UAE requires all cavity barriers to be listed and approved materials, as well to be part of full assembly tested in accordance with NFPA 285 or BS 8414.

In general, we can confidently say that both UAE FLS Code 2018 and SBC 201 & 801 - 2018 can be considered as the main regional reference for facade design in relation to fire safety, to minimise the likelihood of incidents like The Address fire from happening again.

Following the successful Façade NoC initiative by UAE Civil Defence in 2018, which enforced Clients, Consultants and Contractors to carefully follow the code requirements throughout the design and construction stages, we can expect other countries within the region to follow similar initiatives. We also hope for more workshops, hosted by the relevant local authorities that gather the industry

experts in one room to share their experience, thoughts and lessons learnt with the aim to push the industry towards better and safer façade design.

In the world of façade fire safety, the obligation of safe façade design will not be accomplished without assessing “ALL” of the following fire aspects, where applicable, irrespective of the code requirements: •

Fire resistance

•

Combustibility

•

Flammability

•

Self-ignition temperature

•

Heat radiation

•

External firestopping and

barriers •

Fire propagation

As a closing statement, I would like to emphasise that it is the fire consultant’s “ethical” responsibility to design safe buildings in relation to fire safety and not only comply with the minimum code requirements, which do not guarantee a safe design, especially in more complex buildings. It is our obligation to highlight to architects, consultants and clients any identified risks beyond the minimum code requirements, in order to achieve safe buildings for us and for many future generations to live in.

Ideal fire/façade coordination at construction stage

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Cover Story A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TO FIRE SAFETY REGULATIONS AND FAÇADE SYSTEM DESIGN One of the most vulnerable aspects of building design is the façade. Because the majority of the populace is unaware of the material’s performance, they frequently misunderstand the importance of façade design, particularly in limiting or spreading fire spread. Fire safety has traditionally been overlooked in favour of beauty, energy efficiency, cost, and other factors. However, in light of current market trends, this has progressed beyond only the aesthetic aspect and now plays a larger role in light conveyance, acoustical execution, and efficacy.

It is about the universal understanding of the reality that any possible fire threats can only be mitigated when façade systems, materials, and testing are given the attention they deserve. The emphasis should be on a comprehensive approach to examining the performance of façade materials, components of façade design for fire safety, fire testing of façade materials, compartmentalization, and much more.

The opinions and ideas of subject-matter experts are featured in this cover story. We sought to collect their thoughts on things like façade fire safety, laws and regulations, appropriate materials, the best approach to build a fire-safe façade, and so on.

MAYANK SHARMA

Market Development Manager - Façade & Airside (Asia-Pacific), Knauf Insulation APAC

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ALEXANDER CASTELLANOS Head of Fire & Life Safety Middle East, WSP

RAKESH RAMKUMAR

(CFPS), Regional Estimation Manager, Johnson Controls

Image Courtesy: Knauf Insulation

Common causes for fires in Buildings in the Middle East Fire safety has always been a critical issue and concerns are growing in the Middle East concerning building damage. In recent decades, the buildings we design have changed with the desire for ever taller, larger, and architecturally more pleasing multiple occupancy structures. At the same time, there has increasingly been a trend toward minimising the operating costs whilst optimising an occupant’s health and safety; two potentially conflicting requirements, says Mayank Sharma, Market Development Manager - Façade & Airside (Asia-Pacific), Knauf Insulation APAC. According to Alexander Castellanos, Head of Fire & Life Safety - Middle East, WSP, this is quite a complex question, and attributing common causes has to be carefully assessed. The most straightforward way to understand the common cause is to look at statistical data. For example, in the Emirate of Dubai which has published data by the Dubai Statistics Center, the reason accounting for the highest number of fires is an electric spark. There are others such as cigarettes and fuel leaks which are not as high statistically. Although this is a sample, it is indicative of what can be expected in the region.

Reducing risk is a task for everyone. I would say one of the primary mitigation measures is to be aware of fire safety and be responsible in our community. For example

no grilling on balconies and properly disposing of cigarettes. Then there are measures by building owners and operators to ensure maintenance for the buildings and their systems are undertaken.

Rakesh Ramkumar (CFPS), Regional Estimation Manager, Johnson Controls says that in recent years, most of the observed fires are associated with Old towers and warehouses which were built in the early years, which don’t comply with the modern code and regulations.

Image Courtesy: Knauf Insulation

Risk can be averted by properly designing the required fire protection system including both active & passive ones, then installing the systems as per the tested/ approved method of installation. Lastly, the installed systems have to be maintained as per the regulatory requirements to ensure systems functioning when a real fire occurs. This ensures risks related to any sort of fire are almost averted.

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Role of Design Systems in Fire-Safe Buildings Mayank believes that the basic role of fire safety design in a building is to allow people to escape the building before being overcome by the effects of fire along with limiting the material and economic damage.

Fire protection systems can be seen as insurance policies for the event that there is a fire and to control it. It is an important aspect of saving lives in the unfortunate event of a fire. It must be highlighted that the system design includes all stages, from concept, installation, and handover all the way to operation and maintenance, explains Alexander.

Rakesh explains that designing the right fire structures and fire protection system is the first and foremost step in progressing towards ensuring a fire-safe building. While designing along with regulatory compliance requirements, the designer has to take due consideration the practical aspects of installation, and any future requirements and focus on a sustainable type solution for a safer and green environment. This broader way of analysing and providing the right design will benefit both the owner and regulatory authority.

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Derby University Rocksilk Universal Slab Image Courtesy: Knauf Insulation

Role of Fenestration Design in Fire-Safe Buildings Façade design needs to be done in a manner that does not allow the fire to spread from one compartment to another the types of building we are designing and there are many cases where combustible material has been used in large quantities in exposed areas, notes Mayank.

Over the last few years, there have been fires in high buildings which have gained global media coverage.

Although façades have contributed to the magnitude of the fires, we have to look at these from a material perspective and not a façade perspective. It is important that all construction materials have an element of fire performance commensurate with the risk characteristics of a project as well as any code requirements, opines Alexander.

Rakesh says every occupancy will have a lot of utility systems like HVAC, ELV systems, fire protection, and other relevant systems. The system components including ducts, pipes, cables, etc. will penetrate and pass through various walls. In order to maintain the room integrity of the desired fire rating of the wall, if any penetration exists it shall be properly sealed with appropriate fire sealants which will restore the desired fire rating of the walls.

Passive and Active Fire-Safe Protection Methods Mayank explains, there are two types of fire protection systems, which every building needs to have to maximise its protection: active and passive systems. The two types of systems work together to help stop and contain the threat of a fire. Alone, each one can be effective, but, together, they offer you the best type of protection you can get for your building. An active fire protection system means that action of some kind is taking place.

This action can be manual, meaning that a person or persons may engage in it, or it may be automatic, deploying once fire, smoke, or heat is detected. In a passive system, stationary materials are designed to help prevent the spread of fire or smoke, keeping the fire to its original area and stopping it from spreading through the building. When combined with an active system, a passive system can help put out a fire faster and stop a lot of damage from occurring. Passive fire protection systems are mostly built right into the building. This may mean using fire retardant materials when constructing the floors, walls, and ceilings of the building.

A passive deal with material construction and mitigating fires due to the building construction while active systems such as sprinklers are intended to mitigate or extinguish the spread of fire, adds Alexander.

Passive fire safe protection includes fire doors, firewalls, fire-resistant glass, fire sealant, fire stop systems, and fire coating systems. While the active fire protection includes firefighting systems (standpipe, extinguishers), fire suppression systems (gas, foam, and chemicals), fire alarms, detection systems, etc., explains Rakesh.

Reaction and Fire Resistance: Classification of Materials in the Event of a Fire Mayank describes, that the regulation requires the fire performance of construction materials to be considered, and in simplistic terms, the building components must not contribute to the ignition and spread of a fire, whilst the fabric elements must be resistant to fire in terms of their ability to provide the necessary structural and (fire) separation functions. Designs to achieve these requirements typically call upon two types of fire test data – reaction to fire and fire resistance.

Image Courtesy: Knauf Insulation

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The former describes the combustibility characteristic of building materials, the latter describes the period for which particular construction can resist exposure to a specified fire load, whilst maintaining its form and function. A major difference between buildings built today and those built as recently as 50 years ago is the level of thermal insulation. The thermal benefits of insulation are well understood, however, consideration must be given to the effect of its presence – both in terms of the reaction to fire characteristics and the impact of high fabric insulation values of structures when involved in a fire. Reaction to fire classification is now largely based upon the European Standard EN 13501-1 giving European classes, or ‘Euroclasses’ and for most building materials, it is determined from a combination of four tests.

There are seven levels of classification from the A1 (non-combustible), A2 (limited combustibility), B, C, D, E, and F. A1 is the highest performance, and F is the lowest. From reaction to fire classification, the critical thing to note is that the nature of the testing changes from classes A1 and A2, where the focus is to show that a product is non-combustible, whereas for classes B and below the focus is on the degree of combustibility.

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Knauf Insulation’s colective house exterior wall Image Courtesy: Knauf Insulation

Where reaction to fire looks at a material’s individual property, fire resistance classification relates to how building elements, including specifically purposed fire protection products, and their installation, can be expected to behave in the event of a fire. Fire protection classifications are commonly reported in terms of a period of fire resistance, for example, 30 minutes.

The classifications relate to integrity (E), thermal insulation (I) and load-bearing capacity (R) either singly or in combination. In simple terms, where a fire occurs, stopping it from spreading (E), restricting the temperature rise on the opposing side of the element (I), and maintaining the element load bearing capacity (R).

The test methods are defined in British Standards (BS) which determine the conditions of the test as well as the preparation of the test element.

Alexander believes that this is a very important distinction when determining the fire performance

requirements of materials and sometimes leads to misunderstanding on the concept of fire rating. In simple terms, reaction to fire is the ability of a material to resist ignitions and the spread of flame. Fire resistance is the ability of materials to serve as a barrier and prevent the propagation of fire and this is the classification of fire rating to a standard of time.

FIRE CLASS CATEGORIES •

Class A: Consisting of ordinary combustibles such as Wood, Fabric, and general waste.

•

Class B: Fire associated with Flammable Liquids.

•

Class C: Fire associated with Electrical Hazards.

•

Class D: Fire is associated with combustible metals including lithium, potassium, magnesium, titanium & zirconium.

•

Class K: Fire is associated with cooking oil & fats.

- Rakesh Ramkumar (CFPS), Regional Estimation Manager, Johnson Controls

Scenarios that Cause an Internal Building Fire to Spread to the External Façade The risk of fire spreading through articulated elements of the façade or vertically around the façade via the mechanism of the flame leap poses new concerns for the newest class of super high-rise structures with a high amount of combustible products wrapped around the building envelope. Effective fire compartmentation of the façade using passive fire stop systems, be it cladding or the curtain wall must be incorporated into the design and construction, opines Mayank.

Alexander notes, that such a scenario is the result of a series of events allowing for fire to spread from the location of fire origin through the building. And in such cases, fire-rated barriers or active systems not being able to mitigate such fire spread. The reasons can range from storing items with high combustible contents which overcome fire barriers or active systems or a lack of maintenance to the fire systems. The preceding are examples of many combinations that can happen.

Therefore, it is important that routine maintenance is undertaken in order to mitigate the risk of fire occurring and ensure that means to prevent spread are not compromised.

Rakesh says, that from the following scenario internal building fire spreading toward the external façade can be seen: •

Not having the right active & passive fire protection internally will lead the fire to spread outside.

•

Materials used for architecture design are of the combustible type and they propagate the fire faster.

•

No proper maintenance of the installed fire protection system will lead to a system failure during a real fire incident.

All the above factors individually or together can contribute to internal fire propagating faster to the external surface. As highlighted above the designer while designing the fire protection system should have a holistic view of the right solution by considering regulatory, installation, and sustainable factors. Further, after the building is handed over the owner should allocate the right maintenance contractor to maintain the installed system for its efficient functioning during an emergency situation, Rakesh adds.

Importance of ‘Perimeter Fire Barrier Systems in the Prevention of Fire Spread Mayank explains that the perimeter fire barrier system seals the linear gap between the edge of the compartment floor slab and the external curtain wall, which acts as an obstruction to the internal spread of fire. Fire stopping is part of effective compartmentation, it is the building of the fire,

Image Courtesy: Knauf Insulation

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smoke, and other resistance-rated assemblies into “boxes” in buildings. These boxes are built to keep the fire from spreading from the room of origin to other parts of a building. Compartments are formed when the area or firewalls separate one space from another, allowing the collapse of one side without the other sides being structurally affected. They are also formed when resistance-rated walls are constructed in corridors, when resistance-rated floors are built for floor-to-floor protection, and when the spacing between buildings is added to protect against fire spreading from building to building.

According to Alexander, perimeter fire barrier systems are extremely important. Historically, the absence of a fire barrier has been catastrophic in building fires, particularly highrise. The perimeter barrier prevents spread from the floor of fire origin to floors above which were not involved in the fire.

Image Courtesy: Knauf Insulation

Rakesh notes, choosing the right Perimeter fire barrier system will ensure the curtailing of Leap Frog Effect of the fire spread when a fire incident occurs in an external façade.

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Image Courtesy: Knauf Insulation

Façade Openings, Ventilators, & Other Façade Designs to Prevent Fire and Its Spread Alexander divides the aspects into two parts: ensure that the façade materials have a fire performance fit for purpose and implement a perimeter fire barrier. And the second aspect including other measures such as ventilators and systems would play a minor role.

Normally assembly test results based on NFPA 285/ local regulations of the selected façade system will give all necessary design requirements including the maximum permissible air gap, panel joint sealing, fixtures, thickness of the material, Insulation material density, etc., so choosing the correct system from the available tested systems will play the major key.

For instance ,if the tested system will not suit for the building’s architectural designs then immediately the designers have to look for possible alternatives in consultation with the AHJ to avoid approval delays during execution, explains Rakesh.

Curtain Wall Systems Image Courtesy: Knauf Insulation

Choice of Materials Considering Fire Safety The choice of materials should be according to the application and area of use. The materials should be selected and installed according to what they are tested for and what the design is to achieve. Materials must be fire tested accordingly to the use. Cladding and cavity materials must be non-combustible, the components should have sufficient and provable fire resistance/burn-through time, and prevent fire from escalating on the outer surface of the façade, Mayank believes.

Alexander opines that it is important to identify that there is a wide range of choices for all projects. The key factor is that the materials are tested and listed for the required fire performance. There are of course limitations on the ability of certain materials to pass the relevant testing requirements.

While choosing fire protection materials, the designer / applicator should choose the approved & list fire protection systems only. Non-tested/ Non- Listed Materials shall not be chosen for any type of fire protection requirements. Further, if the local fire code insists on any additional test requirement, this also shall be taken into account before the right material gets selected, suggests Rakesh.

Parameters Defining the Performance of FireSafe Façade Materials Fire Safety Codes for Buildings in the Region According to Mayank, the two important parameters that define the performance of fire-safe façade materials are their combustibility and smoke production. If the façade material is combustible, it will contribute to the spread of fire to other parts of the building. Façade materials may also produce toxic smoke which causes more deaths, and the toxic content of the smoke will depend upon whether the materials are fire-safe or not.

The parameters are commensurate with the project riskmeaning that the high-risk consequence to a project will have a higher fire safety performance requirement for the materials. For example, a super tall tower such as a 500m tall high rise will have higher fire safety performance of its materials when compared to a two-story villa. This is the general principle of fire safety which is not only for façades, the higher the risk, and the higher standard of fire performance implemented, elucidates Alexander.

NFPA 285/ local regulations will define all the performance requirements that a façade material should be tested to consider that material as well as the system meets the minimum requirements set forth by the guidelines. Laboratories that are acceptable for the AHJ to conduct these performance requirements as per the local regulations/ NFPA 285 will carry out the

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performance tests and will endorse the materials with a test validity. Such materials are considered the right material selection, believes Rakesh.

Current Fire Safety Codes Almost all codes and standards in the Middle East region are derived from internationally recognised National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and International Building Code (IBC) codes and standards. The UAE Fire and Life Safety Code of Practice have the most detailed prescriptive requirements for façade fire performance of any international code and is periodically updated to reflect the latest fire standards and façade materials.

It also includes requirements for product or system approvals and specialist inspections during the construction stage. “I also believe for “Future-proofing” our buildings the codes must adapt with the use of new technologies and new materials are increasing with the demand for more efficient urban buildings, the fire codes in the region need to foresee the risk associated and incorporate relevant requirements and be future proof”, says Mayank.

Alexander says, “As part of the development committee for one of the regional codes I can certainly say that these

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codes have matured in a very short time to address fire safety as a whole and not only for façade materials. These codes provide some of the highest safety standards available, which is expected considering the high-profile projects being constructed”.

Most countries in the Middle East have a common practice of following NFPA an acceptable international code. UAE has set higher standards in defining the UAE Fire & Life Safety code of practice (2018 Release) and covers all possible factors of fire prevention for all types of occupancies. So every region in the Middle East with their respective AHJ’s is constantly monitoring and setting measures to ensure a safer living environment for their people, notes Rakesh.

Conclusion The regulators and construction professionals are increasingly paying attention to building envelope fire performance. There is optimism that these will lead to changes in legal frameworks in many nations, as well as improved awareness through education and seminars, all of which will help to make our buildings safer in the event of a fire.

Cover Story “REACTION-TO-FIRE AND FIRE RESISTANCE ARE INTEGRAL COMPONENTS OF THE BUILDING’S PASSIVE FIRE PROTECTION” •

Could you please explain some of the common causes of fire-safe fires in Buildings in the Middle East?

There are numerous ways a fire can be initiated and continued. However, according to statistical data, the most common causes of fires are associated with “cooking” and “electricity.” Smoking and “deliberately caused or intentional” are also some of the other major causes of fires.

AATIF ALI KHAN

Chartered Engineer (Institution of Fire Engineers, UK) Researcher at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University

In order for a fire to occur, three elements must be present, referred to as the fire triangle, i.e., heat, fuel, and air. Fuel is everything that can burn, even people can be fuel. If fuel is available and heated enough to reach its ignition temperature, it can start burning in the presence of sufficient oxygen (air). The combustion process is exothermic (producing heat) in nature which causes a chain reaction and adds another element to the “fire triangle”, called “chain reaction.” Now, the fire triangle changed to “fire tetrahedron.” Until all four elements exist, the fire will continue to burn and persist

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until one or more elements of the ‘fire tetrahedron’ are eliminated.

With regards to the Middle East, the causes of fires are no different from any other part of the world, except for ambient temperature that can be higher, which may require to pay special consideration for the finishing material used on the structural and nonstructural components of the building. The high ambient temperature may lead the combustible material to its ignition limit quickly, making the fire more rapid. Timing is very critical in terms of fire; a fire scenario may change in a matter of minutes and the fire may become catastrophic even before firefighters arrive on the scene.

• How can fire risks be reduced?

The occurrence of fire and its uncontrollable development is attributed to the failure of the different layers of protection. It is a typical case of the “Swiss cheese failure model.” The first layer is the failure of fire prevention measures such as inappropriate housekeeping, increase in fuel load, presence of combustible or flammable liquids in non-designated areas, and many others. Following the proper fire prevention techniques can reduce the risk of fire propagation and the extent of the fire.

The next layer of failures is related to maintenance. For a fire protection system either active or passive, to work as intended, it is necessary to follow the appropriate maintenance program and perform it on a regular basis in accordance with the time specified by codes or manufacturers. For example, it is not uncommon that valves for sprinklers system to be found closed and water did not arrive at the sprinklers, detectors failed to operate, the fire pump did not start, corrosion of pipes, and so on. Adherence to the appropriate maintenance program may reduce the risk of fire and the risk of the fire becoming catastrophic.

The third layer is a proper and adequate design and installation. The designer may have missed important aspects of the design requirements, or the wrong material may be installed, such as using standard sprinklers in areas where special types of sprinklers for example, ESFR, CMSA - is required. The contractor modified the pipe routing without consultation with the designer. Keeping all layers within prescribed limits and maintaining systems can reduce the risk of fire and the effects of fire on life and property.

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•

Please explain the role of design systems in fire-safe buildings?

Building safety demands the collaboration of many areas of science and engineering. Fire Engineering, includes the fundamentals of fire phenomena and basic principles of physics and chemistry, such as stack effects, buoyancy flow, combustion process, and understanding of the material properties and their reaction to fire.

Mechanical, electrical, and structural engineers play a vital role in providing a structurally stable building with proper piping and well-insulated electrical fittings. While ensuring the aesthetic appearance of the building, architects must adhere to the safety requirements proposed by different disciplines.

A well-coordinated project across disciplines at the outset of a project not only reduces the cost of the project but also ensures the safety of the building.

•

What is the role of fenestration design in fire-safe buildings?

Over the last few decades, the application of modern façade systems has effectively improved the performance of tall buildings as it provides multiple objectives of value to its occupants, such as a cost-effective solution for thermal insulation, and weatherproof (e.g., extensive rain) as well as the building aesthetic. However, because of the existence of polyethylene and other flammable core materials in the façade, such systems have become a route for fire to spread along with the building exterior and caused a number of recent severe fire accidents.

Moreover, during a façade fire, the toxic smoke which enters the building (through cavities, windows, or any other openings) can make occupants incapacitated and limit the egress time. For example, the recent tragic event of the Grenfell Tower fire in London in 2017 had claimed more than 70 lives.

For proper lighting in “green buildings,” glass walls are provided as the exterior of the building. While this is an excellent solution for “energy savings,” in the event of a fire, the failure of the glass can lead to a very critical and serious phenomenon called backdraft (sudden burning of superheated gases due to rapid entry of the oxygen), which can turn the fire in an inferno and put the life of occupants and firefighters in danger.

•

What are the passive and active fire-safe protection methods?

Passive fire protection methods are those that have no direct involvement in the suppression or control of the fire, instead, they confine the fire within a specific region and limit the spread of fire. Compartmentation, fireresistive coating on walls, ceilings, or floors, and fire doors are components of passive fire protection. In contrast,

systems that actively participate or act in fire situations are active fire protection systems, such as sprinkler systems which are activated upon sensing the high temperature and try to extinguish or control the fire from direct action.

A fire alarm system is also an active fire protection system as detectors detect the changes in environments such as heat or smoke and notify the occupants about the fire and guide for evacuation. The sprinkler systems and fire alarm systems are automatic active fire protection systems. On the other hand, fire hydrants and standpipe systems (hose reels) used by firefighters to extinguish the fire are manual active fire protection systems.

•

Reaction and fire resistance: How are materials classified in the event of a fire?

Material properties are altered with temperature.

Building materials, including those used in façade

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systems, behave differently at elevated temperatures.

All materials must be tested for reaction-to-fire (RTF) to evaluate their performance and response when exposed to fire. It is mainly associated with the combustibility and ignitability of building materials.

Fire resistance (FR) is the material property to resist or withstand the fire and continue to perform its intended function and contain the fire for a specified period. To maintain the compartmentation and confine the fire within a specified area, structural (beams, columns, and slab) and non-structural components (walls) are provided with specific fire-resistant ratings, such as 1-hour, 2-hours, and so on.

Designers and engineers must be aware of both properties of the materials (RTF and FR) and the required fire-resistant rating of the building (required hour(s)-rating may vary with the occupancy types such as apartment building, office building, and height of the building). The RTF and FR are integral components of the building’s passive fire protection.

•

What scenarios could cause an internal building fire to spread to the external façade and other parts of the building? What protection measures are in place to control fire?

The uncertainties associated with fire are enormous. Fire can spread and reach other parts of the building both in horizontal and vertical directions. De-compartmentation is one of the major causes of the fire reaching adjacent compartments, such as the failure of fire barriers and walls.

Fire can also reach other parts of the building through false ceilings. In many fires, the fire reached other parts of the building due to the collapse or failure of the false ceilings.

Fire tends to reach towards the high oxygen region (and maintain fire tetrahedron), so it stretches toward the openings. In many accidents and large-scale fire tests, the fire was observed close to the perimeter of the building. Due to heat, glass breakage occurs in the early stages of the fire. Generally, glass breakage temperature is somewhere between 200 – 400oC. From the window opening, caused by the glass breaking, the fire spreads to the outside of the building and ignites the combustible façade, and travels vertically, as observed in the Grenfell Building in London and Address Hotel fire in Dubai.

•

What is the importance of ‘perimeter fire barrier systems in the prevention of fire spread?

Perimeter fire barriers are one of the most critical elements of fire safety design, which restricts the spread of fire

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within a confined region of the building. These systems prevent the flames and hot gases from penetrating the lower floors to the upper floors. Perimeter fire barrier systems create a void at the intersection of the floor slab and the exterior wall assembly. Failure of perimeter barrier or unprotected void at the edge of the slab allows the fire to spread on the upper floor. Vertical fire propagation can make the fire difficult to control and, it may require additional personnel to fight the fire. In terms of sprinkler systems, which are basically designed for a single most demanding area in terms of pressure and flow rate, if the fire size increases, the automatic fire protection system may fail.

Brief about the choice of materials considering fire safety.

Building materials are chosen based on their fire ratings, such as RTF or RF. I will explain it further using one of the key components of the façade systems as an example, i.e., Aluminum Composite Panels (ACPs).

Aluminum composite panels include two layers of aluminum and a core material sandwiched between them. Polymer-based composite panels, such as ACP used in the façade system, are well developed because of their lightweight, formability, and cost-effectiveness. Despite a high fire risk, old buildings and relatively newer buildings in some developing and developed countries still use the ACPs with flammable core material (flammable generally means that the material can support a flaming fire). Based on the RTF, the core materials of ACPs are classified into various grades, as described in EN-13501-1,

DIN 4102-1, and other standards. The core materials are tested for combustibility and ignitability. Based on their combustibility, these materials are graded. For example, according to EN-13501-1, the grade-A1 core material must pass the non-combustibility test (ISO 1182) and heat of combustion test (ISO 1716), while grade-A2 must not only pass either of these two tests but also required to meet the requirement of single burning item test (EN 13823). For the grade-B core material, only a single burning item test and ignitability test (ISO 11925-2) are required. In general, most of these core materials have a certain percentage of ceramics or other non-combustible materials (e.g.,

STANDARD ABBREVIATION

ASTM E-84 BS 476- Part 6 and 7

mineral matter) to reduce their combustibility, and their utilisation of them is quite common in modern buildings.

As the high-cost A1 core materials are rarely used, the “non-combustible” A2 core is a preferable choice for ACPs in terms of fire performance in high-rise buildings. Besides, the B-core materials are also widely used in ACPs and building façades, because they are considered “limited combustible,” although the concept of “non-combustible” itself is questionable. There are various standard methods to test metal composite panels, e.g., ASTM E-84 in the USA with the guidelines of test methods in NFPA 285 and BS 8414-1 in the UK.

CONTENT Measures the distance of the flame spread and the light obstruction of the smoke development Measures speed and distance of flame spread

BS 8414-1

Assess the behavior of a non-loading bearing exterior cladding, it also measures mechanical performance as well

NFPA 285

Evaluate the inclusion of combustible material within wall assemblies. The fire performance of the entire exterior wall

EN 13823

Spread of flame and generation of smoke and also burning droplets

UL 723

Uses the test methods of ASTM and NFPA 285

ANSI/FM 4880

Tests the combustibility ratings of building panel assemblies with specific height installation

ISO EN 1182

Determine the non-combustibility performance of materials

ISO EN 1716

Determine the gross heat of combustion of the materials

ISO EN 11925-2 DIN 4102-16

Determine the ignitability of the building materials Fire resistance test for building material

Testing standards and methods for cladding materials or metal composite façade panels

•

Please throw some light on aspects such as façade openings, ventilators, and other façade designs that would help to prevent fire and its spread?

In the façade designs, to limit the spread of fire, one must,

without a doubt, use the right material. The right material means; it should not be flammable or easily combustible, or support fire spread. Because of buoyancy, the fire spread is much faster in the vertical direction, and it became more apparent in tall buildings due to the stack effect

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•

Please tell us about the parameters defining the performance of fire-safe façade materials?

The rating of the façade materials for their flammability and ignitability is provided based on the smoke production and flaming droplet production. For example, according to EN 13501-1, the rate of smoke production and total quantity of smoke and flaming droplets produced in 10 minutes of burning decide the rating of these materials. Materials that produce very little or no smoke and do not show any flaming droplets in ten minutes of the burning test are considered “non-combustible” or “A1” grade. It must be noted that although the terminologies like “non-combustible,” “limited combustible,” and “flammable” are often found in manufacturers’ marketing material, the test standard does not explicitly define these terms.

(or chimney effect: movement of air due to difference in temperature inside and outside of the building).

Properly designed ventilation systems help to limit the smoke layer generated in the fire compartment. Due to thermal feedback from the accumulated hot gases, the fire can reach flashover (the condition when all combustible in the fire compartment get ignited). Furthermore, ventilation systems maintain visibility for the occupants and firefighters.

By filling the gaps with the proper fire-resistive material, the fire can be confined within the fire zone, its spread can be stopped and fire may die itself as soon as all fuel (removal of “fuel”: an element of fire tetrahedron) is consumed (in case of the well-ventilated compartment).

CONTENT

A1 A2 B C

SMOKE PRODUCTION GRADE

DROPLETS GRADE

TESTS AND REACTION TO FIRE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS

-

-

s1/s2/s3

d0/d1/d2

ISO 1182 or ISO 1716, and EN 13823 (single burning item test)

s1/s2/s3

d0/d1/d2

ISO 11925-2 (Ignitability test), and EN 13823

s1/s2/s3

d0/d1/d2

ISO 11925-2, and EN 13823

ISO 1182 (non-combustibility test), and ISO 1716 (heat of combustion test)

Standard grading of the material reaction-to-fire (RTF) performance based on BS EN 13501-1

SMOKE CLASSIFICATION

s1

s2

s3

Smoke production rate (m2/s2)

≤30

≤180

not s1 or s2

Total smoke production in 10 mins (m2) Definition

≤50 No or little smoke

≤200 A lot of smoke

not s1 or s2 substantial smoke

Smoke production classification in EN 13501-1

DROPLET CLASSIFICATION

Droplet production

d0

d1

No flaming droplet in No droplet persisting more 10 min than 10 sec in 10 min

Classification for flaming droplet/particles in EN 13501-1

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d2

not d0 or d1

CLASSIFICATION OF MATERIAL EN 13501-1

DIN 4102-1

SMOKE DROPLETS PRODUCTION GRADE GRADE (TABLE A3) (TABLE A2)

GRADE

TESTING

GRADE

A1

DIN-4102-1

A1

-

A2

DIN-410216

A2

s1

wB

DIN-410216

B

s1

TESTING

REACTION TO FIRE (RTF)

REMARKS

-

EN ISO 1182, 1716,

Noncombustible

Supports no flame

d0

EN ISO 1182, EN ISO 1716, EN 13823

Highly preferable in high rise building exterior

d0

EN ISO 11925-2, EN 13823

Combustible, but limited flammable

Low flammability, regarded as fire retardant composite panel, difficult to spread quickly

Combustible (except A2) with higher smoke and droplets production

B

DIN-410216

(A2, B), C

(s1/s2), s1/ s2/s3

(/d1/d2), d0/d1/d2

(EN ISO 1716), 11925-2, EN 13823

B2

DIN-410216

D, E

s1/s2/s3

d0/d1/d2

EN 13823, EN ISO 11925-2

Flammable

B3

DIN-410216

F

-

-

No test (Failure of E)

Easily flammable

Restricted to use as signage only

Classification for material

•

What do you think about the current fire safety codes for buildings?

I have my views regarding codes and practices.

Unfortunately, engineers learn from mistakes and failures, sometimes more than they do from success. The great fire of London is an example of such a case, where nearly the entire population of the city was displaced, and it led the authorities to develop codes and instruction of new provisions to avoid such tragedies in the future. Ever since significant improvement and development have been witnessed in modern codes and standards over time.

However, the practices that may be applicable now may not hold in the coming years, given the enormous changes in technologies and the design of buildings and structures.

Codes are changing and improving continuously and

require inputs from industries and research institutions.

The advancement of computational techniques such as Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) may play critical roles in future codes, as seen in the 2016 Edition of NFPA 13, where a relaxation of the installation of sprinklers in cloud ceilings based on the results obtained from CFD simulations is accepted, which I see as a positive step towards the adoption of computational techniques in modern codes.

Will the future codes be more acceptable to the CFD modelings? The answer lies in the reliability of the results and validation studies. I also believe that in the future of fire safety engineering, machine learning and computer vision will play a very important role, but for that, we may need to wait a little bit.

37 WFM | May - June 2022

Industry Speaks “WE HAVE THE RESPONSIBILITY & ABILITY TO TACKLE TODAY’S AND TOMORROW’S MOST BURNING ISSUE: CLIMATE CHANGE”

SAM ROBINSON

Managing Director - Middle East, India & South East Asia, Hydro Building Systems

About the Author Sam Robinson: is the Managing Director of Hydro Building Systems Middle East, India and South-East Asia. Managing a team of over 130 executives, he is responsible for overseeing the overall operations, and effective promotion of widespread distribution of key Hydro Building Systems brands WICONA®, TECHNAL® and SAPA®. He has over thirty years of construction industry experience ranging from building contracting, aluminium fabrication and architectural aluminium systems. Sam was previously leading the operations at a leading contracting company for a tenure of four years and subsequently joined Alico Aluminium where he took on several responsibilities and functions for eight years. Sam has competed nineteen years in Hydro Building Systems Middle East, where he has taken several leadership roles from heading the supply chain, logistics, and sales and now overseeing the entire operations for Bahrain, UAE, KSA, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Phillipines and Australia.

In an exclusive interview with Window & Façade Magazine, Robinson talked about the journey of Technal, the products they offer in the market, the benefits of their products, and so on… Excerpts…

38 WFM | May - June 2022

The French Pavillion Image Courtesy: BOEGLY + GRAZIA

Please brief us on the history and objective behind the formation of your company?

Created in Toulouse in 1960, TECHNAL®, a French brand is part of the Hydro group. In the Middle East, the company has its headquarters ‘Hydro Building Systems Middle East’ in Bahrain, which mainly operates in UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Iraq, and supports the South Asia region mainly India and South East Asia. With over 40 years of experience and around 100 people in Bahrain & Dubai offices, it is also the technical hub for the South Asia region for Hydro Building Systems.

to corrosion, weather resistance (air permeability, water tightness, wind pressure resistance) and acoustics in EN and ASTM standards.

In addition to its 60 years of global experience in creating innovative solutions for aluminium windows, doors, and façades, TECHNAL® has also gained experience on the five continents where it operates.

This legacy has allowed it to work with a large number of architects, some well-known, others emerging, which has resulted in the acquisition of a global vision that knows no bounds, enabling it to provide effective solutions to the most complex architectural issues.

TECHNAL® solutions can be adapted to each project, linking inside and outside spaces with large dimensions, pure design, and maximum performance, to meet the various needs of the construction and residential markets, from new builds to renovations. We also develop tailor-made solutions to meet the aesthetic and comfort requirements of our customers.

TECHNAL® systems offer an optimal solution, for modern architecture combining outstanding energy performance with innovative ventilation solutions, maximum light provision, and safety performances.

Thanks to the in-house testing and innovation center, TECHNAL® systems undergo multiple tests on finished products, including a wide range of performances tests: mechanical strength, opening-closing, maneuverability, shocks, thermal resistance, resistance

Thanks to its globally recognised expertise and increasingly innovative and powerful technical solutions, the brand can respond to new challenges daily, resulting in creative, intelligent, and liberated architecture. In a word, it’s life! As a market leader, its excellence, know-how, unique design, and innovative vision have set the standard in France and throughout the world.

Imagination makes the world go round. Here at TECHNAL®, it’s our driving force and way of doing things. It allows us to move forward, innovate and inspire.

Where others see just a window, we see scope to introduce cutting-edge technology, catering to endusers desires, and addressing sustainability.

“We see the future”.

Please highlight briefly your products.

At TECHNAL®, we prefer to describe our range as

39 WFM | May - June 2022

Address SKy Views Image Courtesy: Ales Vyslouzil

flexible, rather than wide. In our view, the difference lies not only in variety but in versatility, efficiency, and capacity for implementation that meets the needs of any space. We provide solutions that connect indoor and outdoor spaces with large glazed surfaces and highly versatile designs that respond to market needs.

We also develop products that cover the specific needs of each country, which widens our area of influence.

TECHNAL® has made-to-measure solutions for all your projects, adding personality and unique levels of comfort.

TECHNAL® offers architectural aluminum systems that are designed to inspire contemporary architecture such as unitised façades, curtain walls, doors, windows, sliding doors, balustrades, conservatories, and pergolas.

Furthermore, TECHNAL® specialises in the supply of safety and security solutions such as fire-rated, bulletproof, blast-proof, and burglar-resistant windows, doors, and façades.

40 WFM | May - June 2022

Al Bayt stadium Image Courtesy: Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy

Could you please tell us about a few of your prestigious projects and the innovations you made?

Over the last 40 years, TECHNAL® has executed a wide range of projects from iconic highrise buildings

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Image Courtesy: SSHIC

to stunning hotels to uber-luxurious villas. Some of the projects which have won several accolades and awards in the recent past include – Address Sky Views, Burj Vista, Dubai Design District, Warner Brothers Hotels and Masdar Neighbourhood in the UAE, the prestigious Red Sea Coastal Village and KAPF (Sofitel Hotel) in KSA, the iconic FGRF tower in Bahrain, Oriental Mandarin hotel in Oman and the most iconic Lusail Plaza Towers in Qatar.

Standards. One such project is the Al Bayt Stadium where we have used our patented concealed hinged glass door solutions for the entrances and luxurious hotel rooms inside the stadium! A wide range of TECHNAL® solutions will also be in action at the Ras Abou Aboud Stadium inspired by containers for disassembly, the Al Thumama Stadium, and the iconic Lusail Stadium, where the finals of the FIFA World Cup will be played later in December 2022!

In the recently completed Expo 2020 in Dubai, TECHNAL® was involved in several pavilions such as the French Pavillion, UAE Pavillion, and the iconic Expo Village which hosted millions of travellers, tourists, and support staff of the Expo.

What advantages does Technal have over its competitors?

There are two strong partners for our business in the Middle East – the architects and the customers.

Some great innovations of TECHNAL® will also be seen at the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar later this year which is built with the highest levels of Sustainable

Our experienced design and technical support teams with over 1000 years of combined experience are on hand to work closely with designers, architects,

Al Thumama Stadium Image Courtesy: Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy

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consultants, and specifiers to achieve the best qualitative application solutions for all kinds of residential & commercial buildings.

We offer a wide range of proprietary TECHNAL® products for architectural aluminium applications and have the capabilities to respond to individual project needs through bespoke designs for specific schemes, performance enhancements, and innovations.

Our Support for architects and consultants includes: • Concept designs in BIM • Engineering solutions & services • Wind-load & other static calculations, • Uw values CAD drawings TECHNAL® in the Middle East has one of the largest Customers network of skilled metal builders across the region (commonly known in the industry as aluminium fabricators), all fully supported technically, commercially, and logistically, ensuring the best and consistent services are delivered and stringent international standards and norms are met.

For our customers, we offer a wide range of supports, including: • An ongoing training and workshop programs, • Factory and site audits, • Technical assistance, • All to guarantee the quality achievement of manufacturing and installation.

Our Customers can rely on a strong logistics operation that includes a sizeable integrated Central Distribution Warehouse which sprawls over 70,000 sq ft in Bahrain and which delivers all products to every country consistently and on time.

To promote digitalisation to our customer network, we offer the TECHNAL® TechDesign® estimation software.

TechDesign® is an essential aid to creative design and drawings, as well as to professional tender documents.

It helps TECHNAL® Customers to calculate precisely all types of architectural aluminium applications for windows, doors, façades, skylights, balustrades, internal office partitions, etc… and outputs quotations, estimation sheets, 2D & 3D viewing, DWG crosssections, generates generate BIM families thanks to its

42 WFM | May - June 2022

Burj Vista Image Courtesy: Dany Eid

interoperable connectivity to Tech 3D - TECHNAL®’s BIM object configurator for windows, doors, and façades.

The approach is trusted and well perceived by architects, contractors, developers, home owners, endusers, and TECHNAL® metal builders, resulting in lasting and mutually beneficial business relationships in every country. Our service and commitment to proactively addressing customer requirements is what sets us apart from our competition. This is a true testimony to our market-leading position in the region – our valuable customers.

Could you please tell us about your manufacturing facility and capacity?

Currently, TECHNAL® in the Middle East has established hubs of production in each country from Bahrain, Oman, KSA, Egypt, Qatar, and UAE in order to service more efficiently the local market needs and promote ‘In-Country Value’ and the local GDP. TECHNAL® proudly promotes its patented single-source hardware, fittings, and accessories which offer uncompromised quality and long-lasting performance which is desired by the project owners and stakeholders.

Sustainability in recent years has become one of the major focuses in the Building industry.

What does sustainability mean to you and how sustainable your products are?

At TECHNAL®, we believe, we have the responsibility and the ability to tackle today’s and tomorrow’s most burning issue: climate change. Earth is warming, and it is caused by humans.

This threatens every form of life and urgent action needs to be taken if we want our planet to survive.

Moreover, the world’s population is predicted to increase by 2 billion people in the next 30 years with 70% of the population living in urban areas, which means at TECHNAL®, we will likely see a higher demand for the building and construction sector. With more and more people living in buildings, this implies an increasing energy consumption and thus, skyrocketing CO2 emissions. The urge to rethink our products and processes has been even more challenging with growing pressure coming from regulations – from the European and international level with new norms and constraints for carbon neutrality; but also from national laws becoming more and more demanding. Moreover, we notice that developers in the Middle East are also actively seeking low carbon solutions – which is an ideal playground for TECHNAL®.

43 WFM | May - June 2022

Expo Village Image Courtesy: Propsearch LLC

Sofitel Riyadh (KAPF) Project Image Courtesy : KAPF

Lusail Stadium Image Courtesy: Foster + Partners

There are challenges in the building industry: • We are all aware of the climate crisis and environmental problems that we all need to work together to solve. The lifecycle of products - from manufacture to destruction - needs to be a priority when it comes to choosing certain products over others.

• A circular economy aims to start up new industrial processes that respond to these needs for recyclability and reuse of products.

Many products manufactured that uphold these principles are now certified with the Cradle to Cradle seal.

TECHNAL® in line with these guidelines and aims already has a wide range of aluminium building systems with the Cradle to Cradle distinction.

44 WFM | May - June 2022

FGRF Tower Bahrain Image Courtesy: MSCEB

Lusail Plaza Towers in Qatar Image Courtesy: Foster + Partners

How do you see the Middle East market for your business? What are the opportunities?

As mentioned earlier, sustainability will be a big driver for developers and governments in the Middle East.

The use phase is an important part of the lifecycle of a building. The most efficient way to reduce operational emissions is to offer performance products to optimise the energy consumption once the building is used.

The less energy that is consumed, the less energy is produced, and the fewer emissions are generated. We develop high-performance products which meet high requirements for thermal insulation, low maintenance, energy performance, comfort, and acoustics.

Masdar Neighbourhood Image Courtesy: bayut.com

In addition to operational carbon, the focus will now shift to embodied carbon. To build with a truly visionary mind involves taking our future seriously, including understanding the exhaustibility of our resources.

We are convinced that the future of urban planning is unimaginable without the sustainable reuse of materials. Today, our group Hydro offers CIRCAL, a range of premium aluminium manufactured from 75% postconsumer recycled aluminium (such as windows, doors, and façades that have been removed from buildings and fully recycled). This makes Hydro CIRCAL among the lowest carbon footprint in the world – around 2 Kg of CO2 – which is 84% or 6 times lesser than

Ras Abou Aboud Stadium Image Courtesy: Fenwick-Iribarren Architects

45 WFM | May - June 2022

Red Sea Coastal Village Image Courtesy: The Red Sea Development Company

the world average for primary extraction. TECHNAL® windows, doors, and façades are now available with Hydro CIRCAL which guarantees buildings promote low carbon buildings.

We are also happy to announce recently the development of CIRCAL 100R – which is an alloy made from 100% post-consumer recycled content that further pushes the boundary when it comes to promoting nearly carbon-neutral building façades!

What are your plans for the next 4-5 years? Do you have any geographical expansion plans or plans to include new products in your portfolio?

From a product point of view, we are constantly innovating and offering new solutions to cater to the market needs. From our new launch of TECHNAL® Artline, one of the slimmest panaromic sliders in the market to introducing TECHNAL® Tental, our new range of high performance, circular, large format curtain wall systems, the feedback and acceptance of these products have been phenomenal. We will continue to expand our product offering in these categories. We have also launched a new range of TECHNAL® inline sliders which have the highest performance in the inline sliding door category and offer exceptional budget-friendly propositions for developers and contractors who are looking for economic solutions without compromising quality and performance.

As a market, we have great ambition in Egypt. We are extremely happy about the confidence of the TECHNAL® brand within the Egyptian construction fraternity. We

46 WFM | May - June 2022

are moving in with investments and partnerships in the coming period to keep up with the steady growth in the Egyptian construction and development movement, especially in New Cairo, the new administrative capital, the new city of El Alamein, and also Giza Governorate.

TECHNAL® products are now readily available in the Egyptian market and meet the demands of the local market needs and evolving architectural needs of the modern Egyptian construction fabric.

We are also proud to have supplied two projects with Hydro CIRCAL, which also demonstrates Egypt’s push toward sustainable construction and adopting low carbon façades in its agenda. This gives a great opportunity for TECHNAL® to further expand its sustainable footprint in Egypt in the coming 4-5 years.

Warner Brothers Hotel Image Courtesy: Miral

SLEEK INTERLOCK SLIDING DOOR SYSTEM

HIGH WIND RESISTANT

+91 11 42368600

HIGH QUALITY

NON FLAMMABLE

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| May - June 2022 www.alupure.co.in alupure.india@profine-group.com 47 WFM

Face to Face “THE MIDDLE EAST HAS THE INGENUITY AND CAPACITY TO CATCH UP TO AND SURPASS INTERNATIONAL NORMS OVER TIME”

CHRIS BROWNING Director, NORR Group

About the Author Chris Browning, has built a reputation for leadership over the past 10 years of working in the Middle East. As Project Director for many of NORR’s most significant recent high-rise developments, Chris is an advocate for close collaboration of all stakeholders from project inception to successful completion. Chris enjoys leading multi-disciplinary teams, comprising architects, interior designers, engineers, and specialist designers, through all stages of the design and building process. Versatile by nature, Chris is open to taking on challenges that others may consider too risky – invariably proving that solutions are to be found through effective collaboration.

Here are the excerpts from his recent interview with Window & Façade Magazine…

48 WFM | May - June 2022

•

Tell us about your practice and design approach?

NORR is a multi-disciplinary Architecture & Engineering practice with offices across North America, the UK, and the UAE. NORR has been established in the UAE for 33 years, with a significant portfolio of work across the Middle East.

Championing the convergence of art and science, our approach to design is truly collaborative, combining the experience and specialist knowledge of our architects and engineers, in combination with external specialist designers and clients to deliver comprehensive and holistic solutions to design projects. In the role of Lead Consultant, from design inception to completion on-site, our team is carefully selected to ensure the best possible outcome of each project, combining local knowledge with global expertise.

•

Could you please tell us about your journey in the field? How did you think of becoming an architect? What do you enjoy most about your profession?

I have always been interested in design, in the wider sense. I studied design at school, and seriously

considered Product Design as the way forward. My first job was on an Orchid Farm in New Zealand, designing and building systems to simplify and automate the picking of delicate blooms. An internship at a small Architectural Practice in England, and with a small contracting company in Osaka, Japan, cemented my desire to further my interest in design in the field of architecture. Following graduation from the University of Dundee, I worked in Edinburgh for 15 years, working on hospitality, commercial and retail developments across Scotland and the North East, before relocating to Dubai in 2012. Over the past 10 years, I have led NORR’s multi-disciplinary teams on a variety of developments in the hospitality, residential and commercial sectors with NORR.

•

Please talk about your projects featuring very innovative and different kinds of façade and fenestration designs.

Ciel Tower. Slated to be the tallest hotel in the world on completion in 2024, is currently under construction in Dubai Marina, for The First Group. The tower has a curved plan and tapered section, resulting in a complex double-curved façade profile.

CIEL Tower Image Courtesy: NORR Group & Methanoia

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Working closely with our façade engineering consultant, AESG, we chose to use ‘cold bending’ technology to achieve the subtle curve required in each unitised glass panel. The technology is simple, in principle. One corner of the panel can be bent away from the flat plane, up to 30mm. The more extreme the bend, the more stress put on the glass, resulting in higher costs, and a greater risk of failure.

Grasshopper scripting Image Courtesy: NORR Group

An iterative design process using the parametric software Grasshopper was carried out to achieve two goals: • A achieve a panelisation layout across the tower avoiding oversized and under-sized panels, whilst achieving an aesthetic uniformity. A total of 6,200 panels.

• Rationalise the extent of cold-bending required for constructability and cost-efficiency.

Cold bending diagram Image Courtesy: NORR Group

The study required minor refinement of the floor-plate slab edge line on every floor, combined with panelisation optimisation to significantly reduce the volume of panels bent to the extremes, and the majority of panels now bending to 100mm or less.

From a baseline design requiring approximately 30% of panels requiring to be bent to 10 mm or more, the resultant design has just 18% of panels requiring a bend of 10mm or more, with the remaining 82% of panels bending at 10mm or less.

Before - Cold bending rationalisation Image Courtesy: NORR Group

After - Cold bending rationalisation Image Courtesy: NORR Group

50 WFM | May - June 2022

The building does not, fundamentally, appear any different from the design vision. However, the detailed collaboration between architecture and engineering has resulted in a clean, efficient solution, complemented by cold-bending technology.

•

How do you go about choosing materials for façade and cladding?

Material selection is the result of a number of factors.

Materials are selected considering the proposed façade systems, to combine the aesthetic, long-term durability, maintenance regime, value, and cost. With a long-term presence in the UAE, the selection of locally-sourced products and technologies from a fast-maturing local market improves the environmental impact of our choices, reducing ‘material miles’ wherever possible. The use of new materials and technologies is not a matter of fashion, but the careful consideration of emerging technologies, providing ever-increasing technical performance.

•

What do you think is the role of the façade in the sustainability enhancement of a building?

Sustainability does, of course, require a holistic approach to design, with contributions from all disciplines, from the macro – urban planning, infrastructure, and community - through to the coordinated approach and systems that develop the ‘building as a machine for living in.

The façade is the first line of defence. A shield between the internal and external environments. It is through exploring the visual and physical permeability of façades that creates opportunities to improve the performance of a building, through both active and passive sustainability measures, to improve the internal environment in terms of user experience, and energy levels required to sustain them. As an example, U-values and Shading coefficients of glazing systems are considered in parallel with light transmittance and reflectance values, to achieve an optimum balance between thermal performance, and natural light quality for the building occupants.

The thermal performance of all aspects of the façade is critical to achieving energy efficiency, avoiding the traditional warm bridging weak points at slab edges, balconies and projections.

•

How do you see the architectural industry in the Middle East? What are the challenges and opportunities?

The local and regional design codes are improving year on

year. The Middle East, and the UAE in particular, has the ability to catch up with international standards and surpass them with time. I believe a lot can be learned from regions faced with extremely cold climates – Scandinavia for example.

The challenges of dealing with extreme temperatures, whether hot or cold, are largely the same. Fully thermally broken systems and triple glazing are the norms in many countries, and I think we should expect them to make an appearance here, along with more sophisticated external wall build-ups, moving away from insulated masonry block and their inherent reliance on workmanship.

The UAE has seen recent experimentation in 3D-printed systems and buildings on a small scale. The expansion of modular construction, 3D printing, and automated installation techniques have the opportunity to increase construction quality and speed, whilst reducing reliance on low-skilled labour.

•

Please tell us about a few of your favourite projects you were involved in. Please share their façade & fenestration design details.

One of our more challenging façade designs offered the opportunity to push the boundaries of structural glazing.

The Sky Slide at The Address Skyview is an ‘all glass’ slide, providing an adrenaline-pumping ride from Level 53 to Level 52 of the Address Skyview in Dubai.

An international team of designers, comprising NORR, Koltay Façades, and M.Ludvik Engineering in New York, conceived a strategy using the latest available glass technology.

A mock-up of the slide was built and tested by users of every height and weight. The slide angle, run-out length, and surface treatment were adjusted to validate the design, prior to construction. Multi-laminated glass panels, built from individual sheets in excess of 14m sourced from Germany were created and held together using the structural sealant. Staggered lamination in the sidewalls creates a physical seat for the sliding plane.

The ‘square tube’ slide structure provides a fully airconditioned environment, extending the internal environment in free space, 220m above the ground.

The tube is supported solely at each end, through bespoke designed and engineered stainless steel fittings, designed to accept the thermal and structural movement of the system.

51 WFM | May - June 2022

Testing to failure of the system build-up, combined with extensive factory load-testing validated the design calculations, and inherent safety factor built into the design.

•

What are the changes you see in façade design over the years?

There has been a significant increase in the range of technologies available to designers. Whilst the standard systems continue to evolve by everdecreasing increments – improved energy efficiency, insulation values, and specialist coatings – new

Glass slide section Image Courtesy: NORR & Koltay Façades

The Skyslide Image Courtesy: Koltay Façades

Glass slide connection detail Image Courtesy: NORR & Koltay Façades

Laminated load testing to failure Image Courtesy: NORR & Koltay Façades

52 WFM | May - June 2022

opportunities are evolving through prototypes and into the market.

The size, in terms of length, overall area, and performance, provided by glass manufacturers is increasing significantly, as described in the Skyview slide, enabling statement façades.

Modular construction gives designers the opportunity to design a comprehensive façade, incorporating structure, solid panels, and glazing, in a myriad of materials, fully constructed in factory conditions.

Modular construction has moved on from bathroom pods to including full hotel rooms, apartments, and villas. ‘Plug & Play’ MEP systems and connecting structure results in fast, safe, construction, with modular construction starting to make its presence felt in mid to high rise development.

Technical fabrics, like ETFE, are now commonplace with pressure-balanced cells to better respond to significant temperature gradients.

Carbon fibre is increasingly an option for mullions, with a moulding approach that allows more complex forms than the traditionally extruded aluminium systems, both for aesthetics, and to pick up structural load paths.

Active solar shading systems, responding automatically to external weather conditions, reduce solar gain and increase user comfort.

3D printing offers the opportunity to create bespoke façade elements with little to no material wastage, and avoid the cost penalty of non-repetitive elements constructed more traditionally.

•

Please explain the role of design systems in firesafe buildings?

True fire engineering is a holistic process, coordinating all aspects of a building, both passive and active. A passive response incorporates building layout and configuration, escape routes and stairs, and sound material selection. Active systems, such as fire alarms, sprinklers, suppression systems & evacuation protocols, complement the passive design approach to provide a comprehensively fire-safe building. The thoughtful approach to the passive aspects of design has the opportunity to mitigate the complexity of active

Slide being hoisted into place Image Courtesy: Koltay Façades

systems, and to provide a safe, balanced response to the risk of fire.

•

One piece of advice you would like to give to aspiring architects?

An architect’s training should encompass far more than the content of a degree course. One piece of advice? Get your hands dirty! Spend time on site. Mix concrete, lay bricks, and do some joinery at home. Labour for a skilled craftsman. An understanding of what the lines on the paper really mean will vastly improve your understanding of how things go together, and the constraints and opportunities that different materials offer.

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Case Study HOW LIQUID CRYSTAL GLAZING IS HELPING THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY ACHIEVE SUSTAINABLE STANDARDS

BRUCE NICOL Head of Design, eyrise B.V.

About the Author Bruce Nicol, is an Architect with long-term interest in glass technologies. After completing his Diploma in Architecture at Mackintosh/Glasgow his first project was a groundbreaking curved point-fixed project at Criterion/Piccadilly, which sparked a life-long passion. Followed by a year at Atelier Burgstaller, he continued with Eckelt Glas whereby the team undertook glass projects worldwide. Eg Chanel Tokyo, Prada, Tokyo, NYC TKTS Times Square, The Gherkin, London. Following stints at Arup Façades in London and Dow Corning he now holds the position of Head of Design at eyrise B.V. bringing visibility for Merck’s liquid crystal dynamic glazing to the design community.

56 WFM | May - June 2022

The increasing attention to sustainability in the architecture and construction industry is leading to the development of innovative, high-performance solutions.

To reduce emissions and embedded carbon, research efforts have been made to develop new materials and technologies into sustainable construction options.

For the industry it is indeed pivotal to mitigate energy requirements and emissions, but also to increase the wellbeing of occupants.

One relevant example in façade and interior design is represented by liquid crystal dynamic glazing. While the most common areas of use for liquid crystals are electronic displays in smartphones, personal computers and flat-panel TVs, switchable windows are a new area of application in architecture and construction. Dynamic glass alters its optical and thermal properties when voltage is applied and is rapidly gaining popularity as an easier alternative for blinds and curtains, with far less maintenance. Building designers are considering this technology for its ability to provide sustainable opportunities for insulation, solar control, energy performance and visual comfort.

After pioneering work for over 100 years, the market leader for liquid crystal Merck KGaA equipped the architecture and construction industry with an unprecedented standard combining this technology with glass. eyrise®, a subsidiary of Merck based in The Netherlands, developed dynamic and switchable glazing for interiors and exteriors. This technology can block part of the light and heat, turning the glass into a dark state, or allow more incoming light, leading to a bright state. This transition is possible in less than a second, creating instant shading and temperature regulation while preserving natural light and outside views in all situations.

The construction industry is acquainted with switchable glass based on electrochromic technology, but this material shows slower switching speed and blue glass appearance in the tinted state. On the opposite, dynamic glazing based on liquid crystal technology is instantaneous and colour neutral. When also compared to standard sun blinds or louvered systems, it additionally offers reduced maintenance and mechanical breakdown, thanks to an estimated lifetime of over 25 years. Liquid crystal dynamic glazing therefore represents a higher-performing alternative because of its differentiating materials

and technological competitive advantage. But its contribution to sustainability does not stop there, being able to increase the score on various certification categories on multiple green standards.

Most of these certifications are based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) of the United Nations, which are more than only ecological goals. A building needs to score points in three pillars: Society, Economy and Ecology. Programs such as the Building Research Establishment Environment Assessment Method (BREEAM) and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) have set a high bar in building performance. Achieving the highest rating delivers benefits on both a financial and environmental front, with tenants willing to commit to premium fees.

In other cases, as for Estidama in the Middle East, they are initiatives and methodologies for building design.

Nonetheless, their goal is to spread a sustainable mindset for environmental, economic, cultural and social value creation. eyrise® liquid crystal glazing can increase the score on various certification categories of multiple green standards, with a contribution to the three pillars and to both embodied and operational emissions. To achieve the most abatement potential the building industry should indeed select materials wisely, not only for how much energy they help saving, but also because of their reduced embodied carbon footprint. eyrise® has a reduced carbon footprint being produced with renewable wind power and minimised waste. Operational carbon reduction is instead addressed through the thermal regulation properties of the glass that offer control over the amount of light and heat absorbed or dispersed, with buildings needing less air conditioning. More to the environmental impact, liquid crystal dynamic glass also shows significant implications to human-centered design. As it maximizes solar gain and ensures the best natural light conditions with no glare, eyrise® provides wellbeing and comfort to the end-user. The color neutrality supports occupants’ natural circadian rhythms throughout the day, offering a more positive impact on health and wellbeing.

A versatile advanced material that helps the industry advance towards a sustainable ethos, dynamic liquid crystal glazing will contribute to creating a built environment that fits for purpose.

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Case 1: BAFTA 195 PICCADILLY, LONDON, UK

One example comes from what The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) achieved after its reopening to the public in 2022. Built in 1883, the prestigious Victorian location at Piccadilly 195, London, has served as BAFTA’s headquarters since 1974. Its aim is to support and promote the next generation of performers and talented individuals helping them build careers in the creative industries. During the sevenyear renovation, BAFTA wanted ideas to improve the building’s contribution to their wide charitable remit.

The UK-based studio Benedetti Architects, who won the commission and was in charge for the redesign, had discovered forgotten structures and decorative plasterwork of two huge rooflights from the original 1883 building. These structures had been covered in 1976 when BAFTA moved-in to create a theatre, a dark space for a 227-seat cinema.

Benedetti proposed to create an additional new floor, that would generate the extra area BAFTA needed while preserving the existing theatre. The orientation given, glazing ratios became crucial to the design.

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However, a fully glazed floor turned out not to be ideal for a members’ bar or multi-purpose restaurant area in the additional floor. Crucially, removing up to 80% heat and glare necessary for the new top floor to function, eyrise® liquid crystal glazing system proved the right solution. To glaze the rooftop, 82 dynamic liquid crystal windows were installed, of varying shapes and sizes.

By raising the roof and re-integrating the roof lights with such innovative technology, the facility has been enriched by a bright new space doubling the building’s capacity. This increase in floorspace enables BAFTA to expand its cultural offer, with a greater variety of initiatives and activities.

not needed but can also be actively allowed to heat the space, when heating is required. Working the eyrise® glazing into our project ensured BAFTA’s certification has been upgraded from a G (the least efficient rating) to a UK EPC rating of 48, which corresponds to a B and is comparative to a new build, something that would never have been possible without the technology.”

The most visible and immediate impact of dynamic glazing to the building was however to provide instant solar shading without compromising natural daylight.

Remaining uniquely clear, the glass allows users to view the extraordinary St. James’s churchyard tree canopy, now embraced in the view from the 4th floor.

The windows increase the wellbeing of the occupants through visual comfort, thermal regulation and color neutrality, while also helping to reduce energy consumption. Despite the dramatic increase in glass used, the renovation has indeed paid back in terms of energy efficiency. “At the start of the project, our Victorian heritage building had old technology and original features which leaked heat, giving us a high EPC rating. Putting in a fully glazed roof was a challenge if we wanted to concentrate on sustainability,” said Pauline Campbell, BAFTA’s Head of Property. “The new rooflight structures developed by eyrise® can automatically adjust the shading of the glazing to reduce solar gain, resulting in a lower cooling requirement. This is controlled so that the solar gain can be limited when

While traditional glazing has historically lowered a building’s energy efficiency, implementing the latest developments in glass technology has helped BAFTA reduce its ecological footprint and create a sustainable centre of excellence.

PROJECT NAME: British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA) Headquarters LOCATION: 195 Piccadilly, London UK CLIENT: British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA) ARCHITECT: Benedetti Architects, London OTHER CONSULTANTS: Façade Contractor - IPIG Ltd., Main contractor Knight Harwood Materials used for façade & fenestration: eyrise® s350 Instant Solar Shading Glass

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Case 2: CAMPUS GERMANY AT EXPO 2020 DUBAI, UAE

The contribution of advanced building materials to sustainability is particularly pivotal in geographies facing specific climate conditions. In the Middle East, for instance, solar protection is not a luxury. It can contribute to create a comfortable light and temperature environment while reducing the need for air conditioning energy.

In line with the imperative of undertaking a sustainable path towards a future where the environment and communities are protected and preserved, Expo 2020 Dubai, made “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future” its central theme. Within the exhibition space, the Sustainability district showcased the world’s most advanced scientific, technological, economic and social progress from over 190 countries, each with a national pavilion.

Designed by Berlin-based architects LAVA, Campus Germany was the German representation aligning with the Expo’s central theme and built around the principles of the Sustainability district, where it was positioned. The structure is an interactive display of creative sustainable solutions alongside new innovations. The architecture is an ensemble of suspended cubes and steel poles covered by a floating roof and shelled with liquid crystal glass elements. The hybrid façade creates a dynamic effect where every material is sustainable and designed to respond to the different weather conditions during the six-month Expo period.

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“The German Pavilion puts an important spotlight on one of the key issues of our time,” said Céline Glipa, CEO at Eyrise® B.V. “Our instant solar shading glass contributes to this focus on sustainability by creating a comfortable environment for visitors to the exhibition while supporting the building’s energy efficiency ambitions.” Campus Germany approach was indeed bottom-up and humancantered. The purpose of the building was to achieve visitors’ comfort and ease the interaction between people and physical space. The design principles indeed focused on having a structure that could adapt and change. Even after sunset, when the Expo was still open, the architects wanted to create mystery around the inside of the pavilion. A dynamic façade perfectly contributed to the scope, being capable to switch between unveiling and hiding light coming from the inside of the building. This way, the German Pavilion provided visitors with a true spatial experience, where functionality, structure and technology blended harmonically.

PROJECT NAME: Campus Germany LOCATION: World Expo 2020 Dubai, UAE CLIENT: German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy ARCHITECT: Lava Architects, Berlin OTHER CONSULTANTS: Future Architectural Glass LLC, Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, ARGE Deutscher Pavilion EXPO 2020 Dubai GbR MATERIALS USED FOR FAÇADE & FENESTRATION: eyrise® s350 Instant Solar Shading Glass COMPLETION DATE: September 2021

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Global News Haptic and Ramboll Develops Conceptual Timber High-rise Building eradicate the need for demolition.

The timber high-rise structure is designed for maximum flexibility and lifespan, with the ability to modify its layout and, as a result, its functions to meet the changing demands of the city. The objective behind the design is to maximise the possibilities of locations in inner-city areas. To demonstrate the model’s regenerative potential, the architects adapted it to a congested urban region in the heart of Oslo, Norway.

OSLO, NORWAY: Haptic and Ramboll have conceptualised a novel structure that hopes to

The Regenerative highrise is built on a modular logic. It has the main structure frame consisting of threestory-high structural decks. Each deck can support either three intermediate floorplates or three levels of versatile

pods. This makes the system adaptable not only in the horizontal plane but also vertically. It allows for partitions to be single, double, or triple height spaces, following the desired function, be it residential, office, hotel leisure, or production use.

The triple high sky villages, as the designers call them, hope to bring to city centers some of the diversity and sense of community traditionally found in the city’s suburbs. This design concept is also a response to today’s need for retrofitting buildings in dense urban environments, a challenge that encounters significant difficulties in the case of high-rise buildings, often designed for a particular function.

Foster + Partners’ Reveals Design for BWDC Residential Tower in Manila, Philippines MANILA, PHILIPPINES: Designs for the BWDC Residential Tower, a luxury apartment building in Manila, have been revealed. The new tower adapts the city’s vernacular architecture and traditional veranda lifestyle to modern highrise living in a park front location.

This is Foster + Partners’ latest project in the tropics which response to the regions’ intense weather systems, mitigating high temperatures and humidity through passive design strategies.

The 45-storey tower has 43 wholefloor apartments. Each apartment has a wraparound veranda which is protected by large roof overhangs, shielding occupants from the extremes of Manila’s climate. The building is designed to provide residents with

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spectacular 270-degree views of the Manila Golf & Country Club and Manila Polo Club, a 60-hectare green lung in the centre of the city.

At ground level, the project extends the greenery of the adjacent park to provide lush, shaded spaces for residents and the local community to enjoy. Residents approach the building via a tree-lined avenue, arriving at an elevated drop-off with views over the park. The drop-off is located directly underneath the building to create a sense of arrival for residents and their guests while ensuring privacy and protection from the elements. From here, private lifts efficiently deliver residents directly to their apartments.

The lifts are housed in a semi-detached external core, which introduces natural

ventilation and daylighting to the lift lobbies, significantly reducing the energy consumption of the building.

Each carefully proportioned apartment measures around 550-square-metres and spans an entire floor of the building. Wraparound, semi-external verandas are integral to the building’s climatic design, acting as thermal buffers and protecting the interior spaces from direct solar radiation. The building’s windows are operable to achieve cross-ventilation to all units.

Deeply recessed clerestory windows reduce sky glare and admit daylight deep into the units while minimising the façade areas exposed to direct solar heat gain. For part of the year, thermal comfort can thus be achieved by natural means.

Global News New Fire Safety Guidance Introduced in England ENGLAND: New improvements to fire safety guidance and building regulations have been introduced in England to ensure tall buildings are made safer. The adjustments comply with Phase One of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s recommendations and will improve the information accessible to fire and rescue services.

It forms part of a wider update to tighten building regulations and provide clearer fire safety rules for the design or construction of residential developments. The government has also introduced tougher standards for external wall materials on new medium-rise blocks of flats.

New residential developments over 18m will also have to incorporate an Evacuation Alert System to help fire and rescue services inform residents of a change in evacuation strategy, during an incident. This will give fire and rescue services an additional tool to use on the ground, alongside existing methods of evacuation.

In England, the government already established a prohibition on flammable materials in and on the external walls of new blocks of apartments exceeding 18m, as well as hospitals, student housing, and boarding school dormitories. This prohibition will now be extended to new hotels, hostels, and boarding

houses of this height, thanks to fresh regulation amendments announced today.

Metal Composite Material panels with an unaltered polyethylene core, popularly known as MCM PE, will be prohibited on all new structures of any height as a result of these modifications. This comes after a government study and testimony at the Grenfell Tower Inquiry on the substantial fire safety dangers linked with this material.

In addition, new regulatory recommendations will be established to limit the combustibility of materials used in and around the home.

Melbourne Office Tower will be Powered by a Solar Skin MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA: With architects and construction businesses across the world becoming more interested in building-integrated PV, one Australian company has proposed cladding an eight-story skyscraper in West Melbourne with a “solar skin” that will provide virtually all of the structure’s base electricity.

revealed, Melbourne architecture firm Kennon said when complete, the array will supply almost enough power to cover all of the building’s energy needs. With extra solar panels set to be deployed on the roof, the building is expected to have almost no ongoing power costs and will be carbon-neutral after a few years.

The AUD 40 million (USD 28.7 million) office tower, which is being built on a 1,043 square metre site at 550-558 Spencer Street in Melbourne, Victoria, will have a building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) skin made up of nearly 2,000 thin-film solar panels that are the same thickness as a traditional glass façade.

Architect Pete Kennon said the BIPV installation will be capable of producing 50 times the energy of the average residential rooftop solar PV system and will eliminate 70 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year.

While the generation capacity of the BIPV system has not been

The Spencer Street building will be fitted with a solar skin comprising 1,182 Skala thinfilm solar modules supplied by

German manufacturer Avancis, a subsidiary of Chinese state-owned company China National Building Materials (CNBM).

Designed for use in ventilated curtain wall systems, the Skala panel measures 1,587 mm x 664 mm but Avancis said each module can be adjusted in length and mounted in either portrait or landscape mode.

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Global News Abu Dhabi’s First Traditional Hindu Temple Taking Shape with the Project Gathering Pace plans to ensure that columns and sculptures transported from India are placed in the correct location on the temple grounds.

ABU DHABI, UAE: A pink sandstone temple is emerging on a peaceful stretch of desert in Abu Dhabi, retelling ancient legends from Indian texts. The ground level of the Hindu temple being built in the capital’s Abu Mureikha area is surrounded by hand-carved archways with beautiful carvings.

When it opens in 2024, the house of worship will be 32 metres tall, with seven spires representing each of the UAE’s emirates. The tranquilly is broken by the staccato pace of artists applying finishing touches to masonry with hammers and chisels. Architects and engineers study massive floor

Flower and leaf designs adorn the sculptures, which are complemented by vines and creepers that curl up and across towering entrance frames. The façade on the bottom floor is nearly finished. On the first level, work will begin shortly on engravings depicting the life of Hindu gods, as well as friezes featuring musicians, dancers, peacocks, camels, horses, and elephants.

More than 1,000 deity sculptures will be put to the temple’s outside brackets, with at least 30 of the elephant-headed god Ganesha planned.

RMJM Dubai’s Meydan Office Park Will Have Its Own Seasonal Concept Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: The Meydan project - a linked business park located in an emerging district of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - has hired RMJM Dubai as the principal architect.

RMJM focused on developing a facility that would attract top talent and become a popular business centre, following the client’s directives and ambitious goals. A location that changes with the seasons, shifting from day to night and season to season.

Many aspects influenced the master plan, including the workplace atmosphere, flexibility, accessibility, and sustainability. Based on their understanding of the site

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environment and solar research, the firm created three various densities of façades for each office building. The concept was to “take out” one side of the façade so that each model could throw a shadow on its own face. The rounded margins of each building’s corners represent the continuous and seamless character of the building’s key business operations.

Following the landscape idea, each structure will have a particular attribute relating to the four seasons.

The roofs respond to the project’s programming. They provide the team the opportunity to have office spaces that are directly related to the landscape, therefore they designed it with a green border

all around and room in between for seating outdoors. To mirror the finest examples of towns with tremendous vitality on short streets, the gaps between certain buildings have been purposefully maintained narrow. The studio team viewed this as an opportunity to introduce F&B that could express itself with such personality, with the covered nature of these places allowing for almost year-round outdoor eating.

Winter buildings have a covered entrance; summer buildings face the south sun; spring buildings are located around the manicured courtyard, and autumn buildings have a combination of sun and shade.

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F and F Middle East FZ-LLC kapil@wfmmedia.com