Lyledunn

Thank you Tom. Very interesting and useful reference.

Actually, marquees are only exempt buildings in Northern Ireland. Not so in England, Scotland or Wales. Another example of a very disjointed so called United Kingdom

Thank you Tom. My question was poorly worded and written in a rush. The kernel of the matter is that we have a marquee located only 2m from a building. The former is an exempt building under building regulations whilst the latter is an existing building of some age. If the marquee was to be determined as a building to which the building regulations did apply then it’s wall facing the existing structure would need to offer 60min fire resistance with a minimum SOF. I can find nothing prescriptive in relation to how far a marquee should be from an existing building or a relevant boundary. Six metres tends to be an advisory between tents and caravans.

I have a marquee situated about 2m from an emergency exit from a hotel. The marquee has an occupancy of around 300 so that gives some idea of size. Marquees are exempted from building regulations so it would appear that any perceived risk is assessed using standard methods. Anyone have comments or had issues?

I would argue that most professionals don’t need courses. That is not to say that they don’t have value where, for example, a specific qualification is being pursued. Courses also let you bump into like-minded people. However, if it is information that you seek then there is no shortage out there in google and you-tube land and it is mostly free. Many manufacturers have fantastic libraries of information all available after sign-up. Oh, and let’s not forget the forums! I did a five day intensive course recently, nothing to do with fire safety but I might as well been on a knitting course, the amount of information that was dumped on us could not be disseminated by any normal human. The presentation was ten thousand power-point slides! At over £1K, I was glad I wasn’t paying!. I have also found it useful to pick something specific that you have an interest in and build knowledge around that. My background is electrical engineering services including associated fire safety systems and I have used that as the foundation of further learning on fire safety in buildings. That particular course has been going on for over 30 years! I hope this doesn’t sound patronising, it certainly isn’t meant to. Best of luck.

Bet you it ain’t a hotel! It is just student accommodation being let to the general public and I would say that is likely that the general public will have a much more responsible attitude than the erstwhile occupants. A hotel would require tourist board approval, planning and building control consent for change of use.

My view would be that the meter cubicles should be fitted with 30min fire resistant door with CSS. The hole through which the miains cables travel in to the flat should be sealed with an intumescent material compatible with thermoplastic.

I know Tom, I am danger of becoming a forum crawler. Whilst I have a favourite pub, the landlord doesn't really mind when I have a sup in the hostelrie across the road. I often find that the company there is every bit as urbane and erudite as my usual haunt! We often have the same topics of conversation and opinions are mostly the same but at least I have comfort in the fact that if my wee place were to close, I have, at least, made myself known in an alternative haunt.

We have a proposed function room on the third floor in an existing hotel. We have two storey exits. Discounting one gives an exit capacity of around 250 which is more than we need for the intended purpose.However, when floor space factors are applied, the room occupancy could be calculated as more than double that figure. That being the case Building Control will not permit the development unless the room size is reduced to reflect the occupancy calculated from the floor space factor. Doing that would not work as the room is intended as a wedding venue. They argue that the tables could be removed and the occupancy would need to be based on that of a bar. I have sympathy with their stance as management systems in such places can be hit and miss but guidance does imply that even in a room without fixed seating, basing occupancy on exit capacity is a feasible option. I would appreciate your opinions.

I am looking for a sprinkler system to retrofit to a medium size hotel of around 60 bedrooms. Being steered by one party towards standard sprinkler system and to a water mist system by another. The ceilings of the corridors are all down at the moment. Would appreciate comments.

I would agree with Mr Sutton. However, the inward swinging doors to the lab would generally mean that occupancy should be restricted ro 60