CA
Entertainment Complex
Scope/Solutions
The entertainment complex includes a three-story hotel building, a four-story hotel tower, and a conference center. SGH evaluated code requirements for existing fire and life safety systems and identified numerous deficiencies, including inadequate thickness of spray-applied fireproofing, as well as smoke detection, sprinkler system, and occupant egress issues. Using performance-based structural fire engineering, we developed a remedial plan providing an alternate method to achieve compliance while avoiding costly repairs.
SGH reviewed original design documents and reports by others regarding the fire protection systems and supplemented that review with visual observations of the existing systems. We identified fire protection and life safety modifications needed to make the complex code compliant.
Since remediating the existing spray-applied fireproofing would necessitate extensive interior renovation and cause significant business interruption, SGH used structural fire engineering to evaluate the structural system’s response to a fire with respect to specific performance objectives.
We identified the worst credible fire scenario as a fire involving a cluster of chairs stacked during maintenance operations. We oversaw fire testing of chair samples and used the results to validate our fuel load model.
By evaluating the response of the existing structure to calculated fire load demands, SGH demonstrated the building could meet life safety performance objectives with some limited upgrades, such as additional fire protection on key structural members.
Project Summary
2012
Key team members
