ABSTRACT
The simplest and most effective tactic available to the architect to ensure fire safety is to prevent fires starting, namely fire prevention. If this tactic is successful, then there is no need even to attempt any other fire safety measure. There are two ways of preventing fires and they are related to the fundamental ‘triangle of fire’, outlined in Chapter 1. The three elements of the triangle are an ignition source, a fuel and a supply of oxygen, and as it is almost impossible (and most undesirable) to exclude the oxygen from a habitable building, fire prevention has to concentrate on the other two elements. Prevention of ignition and the limitation of the fuel available are the twin methods of fire prevention. There is also a minor role for the architect in ensuring that the plans for the fire safety management of the building are properly prepared, and this will be considered at the end of this chapter.
