Assessing the fire performance of existing reinforced concrete flooring systems IP 9 12

BRE (Building Research Establishment) is an independent, research-based consultancy, testing and training organisation, operating in the built environment and associated industries.

Assessing the fire performance of existing reinforced concrete flooring systems (IP 9/12) was written by Tom Lennon and published by BRE on 27 March 2012.

During their lifetimes, buildings may be refurbished or renovated, often to provide functions not envisaged when they were originally designed. As a result, their structure may no longer achieve the required fire resistance, and defects or material degradation may mean it no longer achieves the performance assumed when it was built.

This 12-page information paper provides guidance on assessing the fire performance of reinforced concrete flooring systems, which were often used in large buildings built in the post-war period. It provides information about carrying out assessments using tabulated values from national standards and the Eurocode for the design of concrete structures, as well as experience and research by the Fire Research Station (now part of BRE Group).

It will help clients, contractors and building control bodies estimate the levels of performance provided by different forms of construction, many of which are no longer in widespread use.

The contents of the information paper are:

• Introduction.
• Concrete in fire.
• Tabulated data for reinforced concrete floors.
• Alternative forms of construction.
• Methods to enhance the fire resistance of existing floor systems.
• Conclusions.
• References.

--BRE Group

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