Atrium Smoke Evacuation System

The earlier that the atrium smoke control system design can be performed the easier it is to accommodate makeup air.

Atrium smoke evacuation system.

Referenced by both the international code council and nfpa codes and standards it s the starting point for any smoke control system design. Atrium smoke management system design by ray sinclair principal consulting engineers scientists in large volume spaces such as atria and covered malls smoke management systems are often an important aspect of fire protection with their primary goal being to ensure that the impact of smoke and heat on occupants is not life threatening nfpa. An atrium smoke evacuation system is generally intended for use by fire service personnel to clear smoke from a building after a fire has been controlled. It is therefore not usually linked to an automatic detection system.

The construction of these systems is fraught with issues that take discipline to overcome. As you can see in this video the m4000 curtain is essentially invisible being retracted up into the ceiling itself complete with matching trim for a seamless look. Rooftop units may be configured to run in reverse mode in which case the curtains deploy to channel the smoke vertically and direct smoke to the atrium for evacuation. The atrium is separated from the hospital by a one hour fire resistive partition with glazed openings as allowed per the building code and from the medical office building by a 2 hour fire resistant rated occupancy.

Specifically the ibc requires an atrium smoke control system when an atrium is connecting more than two floors. The atrium has a fully mechanical smoke evacuation system per the building and life safety code the building is fully sprinklered. However sometimes nfpa 92 is used as a panacea to solve any number of problems for which the standard may not be the correct. Standard for smoke control systems is the gold standard for the design of smoke control systems in the united states.

The atrium of the facebook office as well as the general open floor plan can make smoke control seemingly impossible without an effective smoke control curtain system. The two most common systems that are required by the ibc are atrium smoke control ibc section 402 and smokeproof enclosures ibc section 403 required for stairwells in high rise buildings. Design fires which can be deemed steady or unsteady have a major impact on an atrium smoke control system. Construction reality the design of the smoke control system is merely the first phase of providing a properly operating system.

Typically ranging from 1 800 to 8 000 btu per second design fires should be evaluated as part of a smoke control system s engineering analysis.