The safety of sports facilities is not an empty phrase. Residents of Great Britain can tell about this, where on May 11, 1985 at the stadium in Bradford there was a fire that killed 56 people. Another 200 spectators received severe burns. The cause of the emergency was the ignition of a heap of rubbish under a wooden stand. The entire structure was engulfed in flames within five minutes after the appearance of the first hearth. The escape routes were closed, and the spectators tried to escape by running out onto the field. People with limited mobility and elderly people could not evacuate on their own. [1] Modern technologies and materials that meet international building standards and strict requirements of world sports organizations help to prevent such situations today. Many of them were used in our country in preparation for major competitions.
Theoretical foundations of fire safety
Requirements for the fire safety of sports facilities are established by the relevant technical regulations (Federal Law No. 123-FZ) and sets of rules governing certain aspects of fire protection. Also, when designing facilities, special technical conditions (STU) are developed. They are coordinated with the relevant authorities in the manner prescribed by the Ministry of Regional Development of Russia, and are an additional guarantor of reducing risks and minimizing sources of danger. [2]
The norms regulate the presence of two protections: active and passive. The first includes fire alarm and fire detection systems, sirens, smoke detectors, installations for water and foam fire extinguishing and other equipment. "Active" equipment is always in sight, it is easy for those responsible for construction to control its quality and performance: appropriate tests can be carried out directly on site at any time. With passive defense, everything is somewhat more complicated. It implies space-planning solutions and the use of certain materials inside and outside building structures. The latter are often hidden under the finish, and design and selection errors are invisible to the naked eye, therefore, careful control is required from both the general construction contractor and supervisory authorities.
The main measures to ensure fire safety of sports facilities include the division into separate compartments with an area of no more than 2500 m² and a height of no more than 50 m (16 floors). It is carried out through the construction of so-called firewalls, that is, fire walls. An important role is played by the organization of evacuation routes for people: exits should lead to smoke-free stairs that lead to a safe place. The spans are additionally protected from fire and smoke, and the exits are equipped with fire doors. Evacuation lighting on the floor and stair steps is mandatory.
But the most critical is the choice of building materials, including insulation for walls, facades and roofs, since the rate of fire propagation, the toxicity of smoke, the overall stability of the structure and the provision of the required degree of fire resistance will largely depend on them. Not all thermal insulation materials have the required properties. So, some types of expanded polystyrene are classified as combustible, therefore, in accordance with current regulations, when using it, it is recommended to perform fire-prevention cuts from non-combustible insulation at the framing of windows and doors. Some manufacturers of PIR boards add low-quality modified polyurethane foam, which indicates a high toxicity class of such a building material, reaching the T3 group (highly toxic).
Obviously, the initial choice of thermal insulation from a non-combustible material, such as stone wool, looks more reliable and logical. Its fibers, without melting, can withstand temperatures of more than 10,000 C. In structural fire protection systems, it is a reliable barrier to the spread of fire and provides a fire resistance limit of structures up to four hours. The latter is extremely important, given that during a fire, the temperature of the bearing elements rises significantly, which negatively affects the strength of the building frame. To ensure the limits of fire resistance laid down by regulatory documents (up to 240 minutes), the concrete from which the bearing elements are made is treated with special fire retardants, such as plaster coatings based on expanded liquid glass, lime and gypsum. However, they can be used in rooms with a relative humidity of no more than 60% and have a fire resistance limit of up to 120 minutes, which is not enough. An alternative solution is the use of fire-retardant coatings made of stone wool slabs, for example, two-density FT BARRIER D. They provide a fire resistance limit of up to 240 minutes and have no restrictions on installation: the insulation can be installed at any temperature and humidity, it is fixed with metal anchors, and from above it can decorative coating is applied. This solution combines the properties of fire protection and thermal insulation.
From the theoretical part of the issue of fire safety of sports facilities, we will move on to practice, namely, we will get acquainted with the solutions that were used in the construction of sites in Russia.
Pioneers from Kazan: Protecting Universiade Objects from Fire
The first international sporting event in the history of Russia in the XXI century was the XXVII World Summer Universiade, held in 2013 in the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan. For the competition, 64 facilities were involved, of which 36 were built specifically for the youth games. The construction of all complexes was supervised by members of the International Olympic Committee.
Kazan Arena stadium became one of the brightest objects of the Universiade. The building with variable number of storeys (from five to eight levels) is located on a 32 hectare site. The height of the stadium is 50 m, the area is 113,000 m², the size of the field is 105 x 68 m. The complex can accommodate 45,379 people at a time. Several years ago, the Kazan Arena stadium hosted the opening and closing ceremonies of the Universiade, in 2017 it will host the Confederations Cup games, and in 2018 - the FIFA World Cup matches.
The Kazan Arena project is recognized as typical for all new football arenas. For active fire safety, sprinkler fire extinguishing pumping units are responsible here. Fireproof seats, as well as a comprehensive solution for thermal insulation and fire protection made of stone wool, became the elements of passive protection. Similar materials were used in the Martial Arts Palace. Moreover, the developer managed to significantly speed up the installation due to the use of double density slabs with a softer lower and harder upper layer VENTI BATTS D. The combined structure also allows to reduce the weight of the structure and reduce the consumption of fasteners in comparison with two-layer insulation. In addition, due to the absence of a lower layer, the use of such products facilitates the procedure of visual control of the quality of the performance of thermal insulation up to the closure of the cladding.
All leading design institutes and construction organizations of Tatarstan were involved in the construction of sports grounds in Kazan. These experienced companies had high demands on the technologies used. Sergei Spiridonov, chief architecture specialist at GiproVTI, says: “In recent years, according to the projects of our institute, objects of importance in terms of architectural and urban planning solutions have been built, highly appreciated by the Government of the Republic of Tatarstan: a gymnastics center, a field hockey center and others. Many of them used ROCKWOOL stone wool slabs, as they have good thermal insulation and fire protection properties, as well as high strength characteristics. " [four]
Olympics experience and technology for world championships
The baton after Kazan was taken over by Sochi, which in 2014 became the capital of the XXII Winter Olympic Games. In total, 352 facilities were commissioned in preparation for the Olympics. When choosing materials for their construction, the high-mountain coastal climate introduced significant restrictions - it was necessary to choose solutions that are resistant to moisture. In many respects, this is why stone wool, characterized by moisture resistance, was used as thermal insulation for the Main Media Center, the Iceberg winter sports palace, the Gorki Gorod ski resort and the Laura and Alpika-Service complexes in Krasnaya Polyana. Even in conditions of high humidity, the structures will be reliably protected from heat loss during the entire service life.
Another major world event for Russia was the 2016 Ice Hockey World Championship. On the eve of it, a multifunctional sports complex “VTB Ice Palace” appeared in the capital, which became part of the city quarter “Park of Legends”. There are three arenas under one roof: the main one for 12,000 people, the small one for 3,500 spectators and the training arena for 500 fans.
The total area of the complex is over 70,000 m². To insulate the roof of the facility, ROCKWOOL stone wool slabs of the RUF series were installed, and a ROCKmembrane membrane was used as a single-layer waterproofing coating. By the way, this experience was also useful for the construction of sports facilities, facilities located next to the "VTB Ice Palace" complex, in particular, the complex of the water sports center. “Much attention at large sports facilities is paid to the fire hazard and the bearing capacity of the roof, which is subject to increased requirements from the State Construction Supervision Agency, city authorities and the Ministry of Emergency Situations,” says Andrey Rodin, General Director of Promgrazhdanproekt-1 LLC, which was the contractor for the construction of the water entertainment center. - To ensure that the objects comply with strict standards, when creating a fire-safe “pie”, our company's specialists use exclusively stone wool. To enhance the fire resistance of the structure, when installing the roof, they additionally pour a concrete slab 70 mm thick along the profiled sheet."
The next significant event for Russia will be the XXI FIFA World Cup. It will be held in 2018 in 11 cities at 12 stadiums. The facilities have already been built in Sochi and Kazan, and two more venues have appeared in Moscow - the new Otkrytie Arena stadium and the reconstructed Luzhniki complex. The first, the home ground of the Spartak team, is recognized as one of the best in the world (according to the authoritative portal StadiumDB.com). The arena seats up to 45,000 spectators. As the contractors admit, in the process of its construction it was required to ensure a high level of safety, up to the device of fire protection of communications. This solution is necessary, since in the event of a fire, pipes can burn out, and then in the places where they pass through walls and other partitions, a path will open for the spread of fire. So, for example, air ducts of ventilation and air conditioning systems made of thin-walled steel sheet in the event of a fire can withstand no more than 15 minutes. To protect the engineering systems, ROCKWOOL 100 stone wool wound cylinders and WIRED MAT 80 material were used. They will allow the pipes to remain intact even when exposed to critically high temperatures.
In addition to the Otkritie Arena stadium, the builders paid close attention to the Luzhniki Grand Sports Arena, where the opening ceremony and the final of the upcoming world championship will take place. In order to meet the stringent requirements of the FIFA organizing committee, a large-scale renovation began at the stadium in 2013. The work is planned to be completed in the second quarter of 2017. [6] The total area of the renovated arena, taking into account the stands, will be 221,000 m², and the number of seats - 81,000. In April 2016, fire safety systems were installed in Luzhniki. According to Andrey Bochkarev, head of the Moscow Construction Department, a complex multi-component system has been developed for the stadium, which assumes the possibility of water, gas and powder fire extinguishing. Also, new geometry of the under-stands premises, cascading stairs located along the perimeter, an increased number of main exits are provided. This will ensure the fastest possible movement of the audience in case of emergency situations. According to safety requirements, the maximum evacuation time from the stadium in Luzhniki is 20 minutes. [7] The facades of the arena are partially made of special fire-resistant glass. The rest of the stadium's façade areas are protected by FACADE BATTS stone wool slabs, which not only perform the function of thermal insulation, but also serve as the basis for applying a thin plaster layer. It should be noted that the modernized site meets international requirements in terms of fire safety and ecology. Thus, the stadium received a BREEAM certificate at the intertim "design stage".
The experience of building and renovating construction sites that meet strict fire safety regulations must be broadcast around the world. This will help developers select proven and proven solutions
¹ "Technical regulations on fire safety requirements".
² For example, produced in accordance with GOST 15588-2014 “Interstate Standard. Foam polystyrene heat-insulating plates. Technical conditions.
³ SNIP 21-01-97 and MGSN 4.19-05.
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