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Our research provided the evidence to persuade companies to develop fire retardant formulations based on naturally occurring mixtures of hydromagnesite and huntite (HMH) that were more effective, cheaper, and greener than the market leader, aluminium hydroxide (ATH). Before the research started, in 2005, annual global sales of HMH as a fire retardant were less than [TEXT REMOVED FOR PUBLICATION] 000 tonnes. By 2012, sales had already doubled to [TEXT REMOVED FOR PUBLICATION] 000 tonnes (£[TEXT REMOVED FOR PUBLICATION] M) and continue to grow. LKAB minerals supply over 90% of the global market in HMH, and as a result of UCLan's fire retardant research, expect HMH to replace at least 25% of fine grade ATH within 5 years (increasing HMH sales to £[TEXT REMOVED FOR PUBLICATION] M). Not only is HMH a more effective fire retardant, it does not have the environmental problems associated with ATH.
Enhanced public safety and transformation of structural design for fire has resulted from improved building design through ERPE researchers' development of new and unique design methodologies, frameworks and tools for analysing fire spread. Fire safety engineering research within ERPE has created an improved scientific understanding of the effect of fire on structures and materials. Structural and fire safety engineers across UK, EU, USA, Canada as well as those who are members of international fire safety bodies have subsequently implemented significant advances for the design of safer, more economical, sustainable, and architecturally innovative buildings.
ERPE research has thus assisted the design and construction of increasingly optimised, sustainable, and economical buildings globally with significant changes in building design and regulation, particularly during 2009-2013.
The use of fire retardants is a requirement to reduce fire severity and deaths but is also controversial due to environmental (leaching) and health consequences of commonly used halogenated fire retardants. A novel methodology has been developed and validated in the Fire Safety Engineering Research and Technology centre (FireSERT), Built Environment Research Institute, for the prediction of large-scale burning behaviour of fire retarded polymers by combining small-scale (mg size) experiments with computer simulations of fire growth and toxicity. The research has been instrumental for companies in redesigning their products (fire doors and intumescent coatings) and is informing the development of EU regulations regarding the use and replacement of halogenated fire retardants. The research output has been published in leading journals, cited widely internationally and referenced by key organisations.
The Fire Safety Engineering Groups (FSEG's) research related to fire dynamics, fire modelling, human behaviour and evacuation modelling is saving lives because it is used to design safer aircraft, ships and buildings. Its Economic impact stems from licensing the SMARTFIRE and EXODUS software to over 300 organisations in 32 countries and commercial applications of the software which enable the realisation of cutting-edge designs and enabling the continual safe use of heritage structures such as the Statue of Liberty. Impact on Practitioners is a result of changes to international maritime guidelines based in FSEG research and the wide scale use of the SMARTFIRE and EXODUS software by engineers around the world. Society impact results from its research featuring in a number of popular documentary programmes attracting audiences measured in the millions.
Wildfire was barely recognised as a significant hazard in the UK prior to University of Manchester (UoM) research, that significantly changed stakeholders' and national policy-makers' awareness. This work on mapping and forecasting moorland wildfire risk has informed the Cabinet Office, and has demonstrated clear impact on fire preparedness planning in the Peak District National Park (where it is estimated that a large fire is potentially avoided each year). Following an ESRC-NERC seminar series (FIRES), the England and Wales Wildfire Forum (EWWF) was established, with EWWF persuading Government to further amend national policy on wildfire. This impact is ongoing, with DEFRA including wildfire in its `National Adaptation Programme', and the Cabinet Office recently including wildfire within the `National Risk Assessment' framework.
The development of standards and design guides at a European level for composite concrete floors with cellular steel beams has been informed by research undertaken in the Fire Safety Engineering Research and Technology centre (FireSERT), Built Environment Research Institute. Central to the impact is the establishment of technical rules for the fire safe design of buildings constructed with the use of cellular beams. Research at the University of Ulster has demonstrated that the use of unprotected cellular beams can reduce the cost of fire protection. This research was corroborated by a major fire test conducted at an international scientific conference hosted by FireSERT in February 2010. Design guidance for innovative safe structures in fire scenarios have been published in leading journals with high impact factors.
We have developed the Bailey-Method, design software FIRESOFT and a web-based information source for designers to use to produce safe and economical buildings. In buildings that have used the Bailey-Method, approximately 40% of the fire protection cost has been saved. The overall saving is about £20m in the UK over the REF period. The Bailey-Method has been presented in 2500 design guides (books), distributed to companies across Europe by ArcelorMittal, and translated into 17 languages. FIRESOFT and the associated quality assurance document enable using unprotected concrete filled tubular columns and have the British Standard status of Non Contradictory Complementary Information.
Research by the The Fire Safety Engineering Group (FSEG) has encompassed fire dynamics, fire modelling, human behaviour and evacuation modelling, and this has been applied through software engineering research and development in the creation of state-of-the-art software packages in SMARTFIRE and EXODUS. This research is saving lives worldwide because it is used to design safer aircraft, ships and buildings, and this results in social, commercial, industrial and health impacts. Economic impact stems from licensing the SMARTFIRE and EXODUS software to over 300 organisations in 32 countries and commercial applications of the software which enable the realisation of cutting-edge designs and enabling the continual safe use of heritage structures such as the Statue of Liberty. Impact on Practitioners is a result of changes to international maritime guidelines arising from FSEG research, used to inform the development of the software tools, and the wide scale use of the SMARTFIRE and EXODUS software by engineers around the world. Society impact, over and above the design of safer environments, results from FSEG research featuring in a number of popular documentary programmes attracting audiences measured in the millions.
This case study concerns research in the fields of fire prevention and community safety. A novel causal factor model of accidental dwelling fire risk was developed and incorporated into a geographical information system for fire prevention management, which has been used by Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service (MF&RS) to support delivery of fire prevention activities within the region since 2010.
In addition, a novel customer segmentation approach was developed to provide an enhanced understanding of at-risk social groups in terms of combined fire risk, health risk, social care risk, and crime risk. This formed the basis for further analysis of causal factors within the same geographical area, enabling the deployment of yet more accurate targeting of fire prevention resources.
The impact of the research has been the adoption of the approach as a form of best practice to improve targeting of fire prevention activities, which is a contributing factor to the observed reduction in fire incidence. This was associated with a reduction in accidental dwelling fires by approximately 12% (163 incidents) observed across Merseyside between 2009/10 and 2012/13.
Wildfires can reduce the wettability of soil (i.e. increase their water repellency), accelerating runoff and erosion that in turn can cause flooding, landslides and aquifer contamination. Our research has revealed a link between fire severity and soil wettability that has led to substantial changes in the policy for mandatory post-fire assessments by the United States Forest Service (USFS). Implemented in 2011, these changes have resulted in improved land-rehabilitation practice in the USA. Moreover, this practice is being increasingly applied elsewhere, including Canada, Australia and parts of Europe, all of which now include specific consideration of soil wettability following severe fires and are underpinned by the methodology we developed. Based on these assessments, landscape-rehabilitation is applied at high-risk areas following wildfires, to limit the threats to life, property, infrastructure and ecosystem quality arising from excessive runoff and erosion. In the USA, for example, ~1.3 million hectares of burned land have been assessed in 2012 using the new post-fire assessment guidelines.