RICS has joined more
than 30 organisations from around the world to develop landmark industry
standards to address fire safety in buildings.
The group, known as
the International Fire Safety Standards (IFSS) Coalition, was launched at the
United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland this week.
The coalition
consists of local and international professional bodies and standard-setting
organisations committed to developing and supporting a shared set of standards
for fire safety in buildings.
The standards aim to
set and reinforce the minimum requirements professionals should adhere to
ensure building safety in the event of a fire.
As the property
market has become increasingly international with investments flowing across
national borders, the sector still lacks a consistent set of high level global
standards that will inform the design, construction, and management of
buildings to address the risks associated with fire safety.
Differences in
materials testing and certification, national building regulations or codes,
and standards on how to manage buildings in use, particularly higher risk
buildings, means there is confusion, uncertainty and risk to the public.
Gary Strong, the
RICS Global Building Standards Director cites the Grenfell Tower fire in June
2017 as a recent example which demonstrates the need for a coherent global
approach to fire safety.
As the RICS
representative to, and Chair of, the IFSS Coalition, he says that the Grenfell
fire – the worst in the UK for almost a century that claimed 72 lives - not
only focused attention on building and fire safety in the United Kingdom but
also exposed global inadequacies in how fire safety standards are set.
Once the high-level
standards are developed, the IFSS Coalition will work with professionals around
the world to deliver the standards locally. The standards will be owned by the
IFSS Coalition and not by any one organisation.
As its first order
of business, the IFSS Coalition will set up a Standards Setting Committee that
will draw on a group of international technical fire experts to develop and
write the high-level standards to ensure they are fit for purpose across global
markets.
"The Grenfell
Tower fire focused the world’s attention on how many buildings are threatened
with the prospect of failing fire safety standards," said Gary Strong
FRICS, RICS Director of Practice Standards & Technical Guidance.
"All over the
world we see the need for more high-rise structures, some residential, some
commercial and some mixed-use buildings, particularly in cities.
"Our concern is not with the height of these buildings but with the risks
they pose in the absence of a coherent and harmonised approach to setting
global standards in fire safety. The effort by the IFSS Coalition aims to
address this concern and bring together the design, construction and management
aspects of ensuring fire safety of building assets."
