Keegans have over 15 years of experience delivering Fire Safety services and providing Fire Risk Assessments
Keegans are BAFE 205 accredited and affiliated members of The Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) and The Institute of Fire Safety Managers (IFSM).
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Keegans have in excess of 15 years of experience delivering fire safety works and providing fire risk assessments, predominantly in the public sector. All of our operations are completed in accordance with PAS 79:2020.
Keegans are BAFE 205 accredited and affiliated members of The Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) and The Institute of Fire Safety Managers (IFSM). We have considerable proficiency in delivering Fire Risk Assessments at Levels 1 to 4 to a wide range of property types, including Housing, Corporate Properties, Schools, Colleges and Universities. We have excellent experience on Level 2 and 4 assessments, including compartmentation and have a good understanding of the specific issues associated with this type of work in an operational environment.
Our RICS Chartered professional surveyors have completed the requisite Level 6 External Wall Systems Assessment Training Programme - External Wall Systems and are listed as 'course completers' on the RICS Fire Safety website.
We can assist you with the investigation and risk assessment and appraisal of external wall systems as defined in the recently published PAS9980:2022 standard, reporting on our findings leading to the publication of a completed and signed Report and EWS1 form. We will also provide advice on how to make their buildings safe if the required safety standards are not achieved. Our Chartered surveyors are qualified to complete Option A and Option B forms for buildings under 18m high and Option A for buildings over eighteen high. For buildings over 18m high which record an Option B outcome we will refer these to our Fire Engineer partners for completion.
We have developed our own internal proformas for collecting the required BSC information that can be used at the outset to identify the shortfalls in information and highlight and recommend where further investigations are required to meet the statutory requirements of the Building Safety Act 2022.
Keegans experienced Fire Engineers are providing our clients with fire safety advice on new developments providing fire strategies and inputting into design solutions to ensure that completed designs are code complaint. Our team can also provide advice and guidance in relation to fire safety on existing buildings including completing technical assessments, risk assessments and provide solutions in relation to maintenance and repairs to both passive and active fire safety systems.
We can provide retrospective fire strategy documents to existing buildings where these were not provided at the point of development or following extensive refurbishment and maintenance. We have developed easy to follow templates than can be used to assist in the completion of building safety cases and we work with our clients to identify gaps in information and documentation. We can also provide fire strategy documents for new developments. Working in conjunction with the appointed design team we are proactively involved ensuring the design proposals are code compliant and where this cannot be achieved, we provide fire engineering advice and solutions.
What is the latest FRAEW Process
Following an RICS led cross-industry working group investigation into best practice when reporting and valuing tall buildings within the secured lending arena, a revised standard process has been published together with a revised EWS1 form which was updated to reflect the Government Building Safety announcement, notably the immediate withdrawal of the Consolidated Advice Note (CAN) and the publication of BSI PAS9980:2022 – Assessing the external wall fire risk in multi-occupied residential buildings.
There is a requirement for a fire safety risk assessment of the external wall system to be conducted by a suitably qualified, and competent professional for buildings with a residential floor height above 18 metres (six storeys) and some 4/5 story buildings that have a significant element of external cladding. The requirements are as set out in the RICS guidance note 'Cladding for Surveyors' https://www.rics.org/globalassets/rics-website/media/news/news--opinion/fire-safety/cladding-for-surveyors-supplementary-info-paper-1.pdf
How do I determine if my building is a high fire risk?
There is no definitive answer to whether your building is a high fire risk, as different factors may affect the level of risk. However, you can use a fire risk assessment to evaluate the potential hazards and risks in your building and determine the appropriate measures to reduce them. A fire risk assessment is a legal requirement for all premises that the public has access to, as well as for businesses and blocks of flats.
What steps are involved in a fire risk assessment?
A fire risk assessment involves five steps:
What classifies a building as a high fire risk?
A high fire risk building in the UK is a building that is subject to more stringent regulations and oversight due to the potential consequences of a fire. The definition of a high fire risk building depends on whether the building is in the design and construction phase or the occupation phase.
According to the Building Safety Act 2022 and the Higher-Risk Buildings (Descriptions and Supplementary Provisions) Regulations 2023.
A high fire risk building during the design and construction phase is a building that is at least 18 metres in height or has at least seven storeys and contains at least two residential units, a care home, or a hospital. However, some buildings are excluded from this definition, such as secure residential institutions, hotels, and military barracks.
A high fire risk building during the occupation phase is a building that is at least 18 metres in height or has at least seven storeys and contains at least two residential units. This definition excludes buildings that are regulated as workplaces under the Fire Safety Order, such as care homes, hospitals, secure residential institutions, hotels, and military barracks.
Services you may be interested in
All buildings require surveys, refurbishments, alterations and maintenance during their life
We deliver flexible, tailored, results driven project management from experienced, dedicated professionals.
Effective cost management is a vital component in all building projects, from feasibility studies and cost estimates to budget control and final cost assessments.
Our Elmhurst qualified, TrustMark registered Retrofit Coordinators, Assessors, Designers and Evaluators have the skills and experience necessary to enable our clients to achieve full compliance under PAS 2035.
Our qualified team of Principal Designers and CDM Advisors are experienced Health and Safety professionals with varied construction backgrounds
We protect our Clients interests by ensuring building compliance via independent checking of works on site
Key contact for this service
Sectors we work in
This is a core sector for us, working for numerous local authorities, housing associations, private managing agents and developers, ensuring residents are at the heart of every project.
Our experience in this sector ranges from nurseries, primary & senior schools through to higher education establishments.
We survey, initiate, procure and manage the refurbishment, planned improvement schemes, cyclical and responsive maintenance community & leisure facilities that are often at the heart of a community.
Delivering projects that comprise highly serviced laboratories, university teaching and research spaces in urban areas in the healthcare sector.
Our team have considerable experience of construction and refurbishment projects for office and commercial use in a variety of settings and for varying uses.
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