FIREX to welcome world leading thinkers on high rise safety at Tall Building Fire Safety Conference 2022 – Agenda announced!

IFSEC Global brings you the latest news and updates on what the seventh International Tall Building Fire Safety Conference has to offer as it prepares to join FIREX International 2022 at the ExCeL exhibition centre, London from 17-19 May 2022. At the event, speakers from around the world will provide valuable insights into current best practice and Tall Building Fire Safety innovation. 

Delivered over three days, the conference will focus on engineering, fire risk management and firefighting in the Tall Building environment.

Brent Brooks, leading expert on high rise firefighting from Canada, will be speaking at this year’s Conference

Each day will also feature topical and relevant debates:

Day 1 – Fire Engineering

• Chairpersons will be Gary Strong (RICS) in the morning, and Karl Wallasch (Trigon Fire Safety & SFPE UK Chapter) in the afternoon
• A keynote from Brian Meacham: Decade of Fire Safety
• A presentation from Maria Peacock on Fire dynamics in tall buildings, while Professor Guillermo Rein and Abhishek Chhabra will cover facades
• The ‘Single Stair Debate’ with Tom Gilbert and chaired by Andrea White
• A keynote from Fredrik Hiort on using BIM in fire engineering

Day 2 – Fire Risk Management

• Chairpersons will be Mary-Anne Bowring (The Ringley Group) and Andrew Bulmer (IRPM)
• Peter Baker, Chief Inspector of Buildings at the HSE, will open the conference
• Keynotes covering UCLAN research, the Building Safety Alliance and a tenants’ perspective on tower blocks in the UK
• The ‘Stay Put’ Debate with Tom Gilbert
• Presentations on the golden thread development, fire detection, smoke control in buildings, waste management and building safety

Day 3 – Firefighting in Tall Buildings

• Diane Slennett (Safety Director CBRE) to chair the afternoon sessions
• Keynote from Brent Brooks, a leading expert on high rise firefighting from Canada, explaining cutting edge high rise firefighting techniques
• Presentations on PEEPS by Elspeth Grant, as well as sessions smoke hoods, electric cars, high rise firefighter safety, and wind driven fires
• A keynote from Dr Michael Reick on Smoke Control in High Rise Fires

Conference Director, Russ Timpson of the Tall Building Fire Safety Network, commented: “There has been another spate of tall building facade fires recently (Italy, China) and people are questioning the status quo regarding long standing aspects of Tall Building Fire Safety. The seventh International Tall Building Conference seeks to address these questions and find solutions for all those who reside in high rise buildings.”

Several international fire safety membership organisations are sending delegates to the conference, which should provide a good basis for analysing contrasting approaches and policies.

High profile VIP speakers will be delivering keynote addresses and providing insights into work underway around the world on issues such as façade testing, tall timber, evacuation of people with mobility impairment, fire risk assessment and firefighting.

Previous conferences attracted delegates from architecture, insurance, building control, construction, fire product manufacturers and firefighters. The 6th International conference in 2019 was attended by delegates from 18 countries. We hope this will be exceeded in 2022.

The full programme will be available shortly, but tickets are strictly limited and you are encouraged to book and commit early.

Read the latest IFSEC Global interviews with some of the chairpersons and conference speakers at this year’s Tall Buildings Fire Safety Conference below:

• Gary Strong, Global Director of Building Standards at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), “Grenfell was a wake up call for fire safety”
• Peter Baker, Chief Inspector of Buildings, Health & Safety Executive, why collaboration will be key in cultural change towards building safety

More details on FIREX 2022 can be found here.