Automatic Fire Suppression System installations - traditional building conversion to hotels: cost benefit analysis

1. Introduction

1.1 Introduction

1.1.1 The threat posed by fire in residential buildings such as hotels and boarding houses in which occupants may be asleep, is much greater than that in buildings where the occupants are normally awake and alert. Guests may not be aware that their lives are at risk and are also likely to be unfamiliar with their accommodation or escape routes.

1.1.2 Automatic Fire Suppression Systems (AFSS) help to control the intensity and size of a fire, suppress it and in some cases may even extinguish it. It can provide occupants, including vulnerable occupants, with additional time to escape following the outbreak of fire. The primary role of the AFSS is for life safety but AFSS can also reduce the damage and disruption caused by fire.

1.1.3 Building Standard 2.15 (AFSS) is a prescriptive standard which states that “Every building must be designed and constructed in such a way that, in the event of an outbreak of fire within the building, fire growth will be inhibited by the operation of an automatic fire suppression system.” At present, the requirement for suppression is limited to certain types of buildings and does not include hotels.

1.1.4 Following The Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI) into the deaths of two people following a fire at Cameron House Hotel in 2017, recommendation four stated:

“The Scottish Government should consider introducing for future conversions of historic buildings to be used as hotel accommodation a requirement to have active fire suppression systems installed.”

1.2 Aims and Objectives

1.2.1 The aim of this report is to provide evidence to assist the Building and Fire Safety Expert Group to arrive at a consensus view on whether to mandate a requirement to install AFSS when traditional buildings are being converted to hotels.

1.2.2 The specific objective of the research is to undertake a cost-benefit analysis for the provision of AFSS to be installed when a traditional building is being converted to a hotel.

1.3 Cost Benefit Framework

1.3.1 The purpose of the cost benefit analysis is to quantify in monetary terms as many of the costs and benefits associated with each option as is feasible. Where a cost or benefit cannot be monetised it should be quantified or described in qualitative terms. The costs and benefits are prepared over 60^[1] years and the present value of the net benefits calculated.

1.3.2 The analysis will be undertaken for two options:

• Option 1: the existing situation.
• Option 2: the provision of AFSS when converting traditional buildings to hotels.

1.3.3 The costs and benefits will be analysed for Scotland. The costs to be considered include:

• Installation costs.
• Water supply costs.
• Annual maintenance costs/ongoing costs.

1.3.4 The benefits to be considered, which are essentially avoided costs, include:

• Fatality and injury costs.
• Property damage costs.
• Fire response costs.
• Environmental costs.
• Other costs e.g. insurance costs.

1.3.5 The costs associated with installation and maintenance of an AFSS will fall on the owner/developer of the hotel while the benefits will be felt by both the owner/developer (reduced property damage) and society as a whole (reduced fatalities and injuries, reduced fire response costs).

1.4 Report Structure

1.4.1 The report is organised as follows:

• Section 2 considers the definition of a traditional building and its application in this research.
• Section 3 provides an overview of the trends and characteristics of hotel fires in Scotland since 2013/14. This includes an analysis of fires in traditional buildings and those of a non-traditional construction.
• Section 4 presents the results of previous cost benefit studies and other research relating to the economic and social costs of fire. The framework for the cost benefit analysis is also set out.
• Section 5 sets out the estimates of benefits for inclusion in the cost benefit assessment.
• Section 6 sets out the estimates of costs for inclusion in the cost benefit assessment.
• Section 7 presents the results of the cost benefit analysis.