When a fire occurs in a building, controlling smoke can mean the difference between life and death. A newly revised reference book addresses smoke management in the 2006 International Building Code (IBC). This book seeks to create a bridge between the subject of smoke management and the IBC’s requirements.
Developed jointly by the International Code Council and the Society of Fire Protection Engineers, “A Guide to Smoke Control in the 2006 IBC” aims to help experienced and new practitioners.
The 2006 IBC smoke-control requirements are more performance-based than previous editions and allow engineers the flexibility to address particular fire hazards in building design. The 2006 edition also includes a new reference for exhaust-method design and facilitates the use of different types of models, such as network, zone, and computational-fluid-dynamics models. The guide explains these and other new requirements and provides engineers, designers and code officials with practical examples.
Of particular interest in the guide is the section dealing with the commissioning and testing of smoke-control systems. As an added tool, the appendix includes a plan review checklist.
