Review on fire safety objectives and application for airport terminals

Prior to proceeding with any design, fire safety strategies must be developed based on clearly defined goals. They should be defined and stated clearly in order to provide a safe, cost-effective, and sustainable building. This is particularly important while implementing engineering-performance-based fire codes. Detailed design can then be worked out for adequate, not more nor less, fire safety provisions, both passive building design and active fire protection systems. In this forum, the main fire safety objectives and the methods applied to achieve these in different countries are surveyed and reported. Fire safety strategies are divided into four parts: passive building construction strategy, fire services installation strategy, fire safety management strategy, and strategy on controlling the risk factor. An example is provided that discusses the special features of an airport terminal, the specific fire safety strategies employed, the utilization of the cabin design, and its defects. The use of a water-mist fire suppression system and a drencher system are recommended to the airport authority for improving the fire safety provisions.