High rise apartment buildings

Not withstanding the quality of design of these buildings that can be addressed and debated separately- what is alarming is the issue of 'Fire and life safety'. Through the recently beamed interview on ntv , I came to know that the government intends to incorporate the International Building Codes very soon. Sadly- the layout of these buildings only confirms that there is no scrutiny of these designs and the basics of Fire and Life Safety codes are not understood. I would like to believe that Bangladeshi Architects and Engineers are smarter than that!

Here are the most flagrant violations that I saw in the plans:

Typically, for any multi-storied building- all codes that are worth emulating -require two exit stairs/ ways. The purpose is simple. You want an alternate path of exit in case of emergency.

Secondly - the two required exits are normally totally enclosed- so that in case of emergency- fire and smoke cannot get into these stairway shafts- that may otherwise work as chimneys in case of a fire and is sure to spread it rapidly throughout the building resulting in huge casualties. I would think that one would consider what happened on 9-11 when the Twin Towers came down. The largest number of casualties resulted in the compromise of one stair totally and the other one had a few floors in between taken out. The occupants had no option but jump to their deaths. The exit stairs are therefore "sanctuaries." For that reason, the doors to these exit stairs are required to be self-closing- which ensures that they cannot be kept open even by accident- and always incorporate automatic closers that should be available in Bangladesh.

Thirdly- the exit stairs are required to be spaced from each other at a distance greater than half the largest diagonal distance of the floor plate. This provision allows people from a corner of a building to take advantage of the closest exit stair to escape.

The stair shaft and the Elevator shaft too are required to be separated from each other by a rated assembly. A 5" brick wall can provide around 1-1/2 hour rating. Again, if they are in the same location, the elevators hoistways are required to have an additional door (in addition to the elevator door itself) that segregate it from the rest of the exit corridor. Realistically you cannot keep opening two sets of doors - and therefore, the elevator hoistway doors in the US are normally "held-open" with magnetic door holders that are released when triggered by a fire alarm system. Since it may not be possible to have a State of the Art fire alarm system in Bangladesh- the least responsible thing to do is to ensure that these shafts are secured from each other and allows the occupants to escape without getting "fried" like the garment workers trapped with the exit doors chained we have been witnessing of late.

My intention is not to pontificate on how architects ought to design buildings in Bangladesh although I could possibly talk about the "practical" issues and contribute to such a discussion separately if such an occasion arose. I enjoy the various articles on architecture that are published in your paper- which often include contributions by expatriate professionals and academics. But I believe that it would be prudent to emphasize the practical aspects of architecture and focus on Fire and Life Safety of buildings once in a while- rather than concentrate on theoretical aspects of architecture that the lay person can neither understand nor partake from. Twenty five years in this profession has also made me realise that there are sub-cultures within this profession who are acutely tunnel visioned. Ironically, in this State of California, one is not considered an architect until he or she passes the exams and understands the rudimentary requirements of ensuring safety to the building occupants. Consider that the State Licensing Board does not even talk about "Design" (you cannot legislate taste") but says the following:

The California Architects Board (CAB) was created in 1901 by the California Legislature to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public through the regulation of the practice of architecture in California.