Fire safety
Help! Fire! Two words you hope never to hear. Yet more than 10,000 building fires happen in Belgium every year. The consequences? Material damage, human tragedy and businesses forced to close.
To ensure fire safety, there are more than 600 laws, regulations and standards. How do you translate these standards into a fire safety policy that prevents fire and ensures you can act quickly and effectively in the event of an incident? NBN is here to help.
The 4 phases of a fire safety policy
An effective fire safety policy consists of four phases: fire prevention, fire detection, firefighting and incident management.
Prevention is better than firefighting! Fire safety starts when a building is designed or renovated. Think of the right building materials, fire-resistant walls and doors, safe emergency exits and correct performance certificates. Organisational measures such as evacuation drills and training are important factors too.
Popular standards
NBN EN ISO 7010 Health and safety signage
NBN EN 13501 European classification of fire reaction and fire resistance
Specific buildings, specific standards
The appropriate standard depends on the building type. For example, different agreements apply to schools, hospitals and residential care centres than to private homes. NBN S 21-204 was developed specifically for fire safety in schools. It was made even more effective for new school buildings in 2020.
Detect, locate and report the onset of a fire as quickly and reliably as possible. The best technology for this depends on the type of building and room. Think smoke detectors, video detection or voice alarm systems.
Popular standards
NBN EN 54 European standard series for fire detection and fire alarm systems
NBN S 21-100-1 & NBN S 21-100-2 Fire detection and fire alarm systems
Important standards changes
Fire detection
NBN S 21-100-1: New version is online
NBN S 21-100-2: Qualifications & competence (to be scheduled)
Fire alarm systems
NBN S 21-112-1 to -4 is in draft. It will incorporate the current standard series NBN S 21-111.
In the event of fire, an automatic extinguishing system is necessary to protect human life and buildings. The most popular are sprinkler systems using water or foam, water mist systems, and gas or powder extinguishing systems.
Popular standards
NBN EN 12845 European series of standards for design, installation and maintenance of sprinklers
NBN EN 12416-1 & -2 Design, installation, testing and maintenance of powder extinguishing systems
These systems are often imposed by fire insurance or as part of risk management for specific sectors or activities. Automatic extinguishing systems are also increasingly appearing in Belgian regulations.
SHEV systems
Smoke and heat exhaust ventilation (SHEV) systems help ensure safe evacuation and intervention by firefighters and reduce the harmful effects of fire. They are mandatory for most industrial buildings and car parks. The design and technical development of these systems is done according to the standard series NBN S 21-208.
When fire breaks out, it triggers your business continuity plan. This plan provides guidance during and after an incident, defines what efforts are needed to safeguard your business from damage and identifies the key people involved.
The international standard NBN EN ISO 22301 - Security and Resilience: Business Continuity Management Systems - Requirements helps organisations deal with crisis situations in a structured and resilient manner.
Questions about fire standards?
For substantive questions about standards relating to fire safety, contact the experts from the sector operators for fire safety (Sirris-Agoria) and construction (Buildwise).
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