Approved documents accompanying the Building Regulations in England
and Wales make specific reference to the use of sprinklers (Regulations
for Scotland and Northern Ireland differ slightly).
For life safety, multi-storey buildings over 30m high must be fitted
with sprinklers to meet Approved Document B standards. Similarly an
unpartitioned area in a shop or in commercial premises over 2000m2
requires sprinkler protection. There are corresponding regulations
applying for industrial or
storage use.
The installation of sprinklers can allow buildings to be built closer
(half the spacing is required) to adjoining premises. This is a major
benefit where site space is limited.
In shops sprinklers can be taken into account when calculating fire
growth and smoke volume. This in turn allows the approval of longer
distances of travel to exits.
Regulations now recognises the use of sprinklers for life safety and
it is clear that future legislation will call for the increased use
of sprinklers.
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