Have you ever heard a fire protection engineer say the term “Performance-Based Design” before, but not know what it is? If so, you are not alone.
What is Performance-Based Design?
Performance-Based Design is an approach utilized to focus on what is needed to optimize safety and performance and different methods of design. In other words, it is essentially saying “this is what the codes and standards say to do, but that would not work with what we are trying to accomplish”. This is because of limitations presented by the prescriptive code. Performance-Based Design requires architects and designers to set performance goals early in the design phase, so they understand the elements that are impacting the design’s performance. Once goals are set, an analysis is performed at the beginning of the design process to assess the impact that various design decisions will have on performance goals. To summarize, Performance-Based Design focuses on how a building needs to be designed and constructed to meet a determined minimum level of fire and life safety when the prescriptive code may not apply to that scenario.
When is it used?
Performance-Based Design is commonly used when there is a unique situation that is not covered by prescriptive code. Prescriptive-based codes provide requirements for broad classifications of buildings. When employing the alternative methods and materials on equivalency clause, it is important to identify the prescriptive-based code provisions being addressed in the scope, to provide an interpretation of the intent of the goals and objectives, to provide an alternate approach to the trial design, and to provide engineering support for the suggested alternative in which to evaluate the trial design. In contrast, Performance-based codes establish acceptable or tolerable levels of hazard or even risk for a variety of health, safety, and public welfare issues in buildings. On the contrary, prescriptive-based codes, however, the levels of acceptable or tolerable risk are often expressed as follows: “safeguard people from injury due to fire” and “give people adequate time to reach a safe place”, rather than being expressed as specific construction requirements. Additionally, Performance-Based Design utilizes the establishment of ultimate goals and objectives, in order to identify performance criteria needed to achieve the fire and life safety goals. In most cases, since Performance-Based design takes a step away from the code book because of limitations, variances are needed. The variances are approvals for the alternative designs because they deviate from the prescriptive code word for word.
Why performance-based design is important
When creating fire specifications for a building project that includes Performance-Based Design, a uniformed engineer of record can fundamentally change the level of safety achieved. While the engineer for the Performance-Based Design will attempt to include all stakeholders, it is the responsibility of all parties to communicate the design requirements of the Performance-Based Design, and the specification language associated with the design requirements to ensure that safety is maintained.
What are the advantages?
One of the primary advantages of Performance-Based Design is its ability to create custom solutions for different buildings. Instead of using a one-size-fits-all approach, architects and engineers can develop fire protection strategies that are specifically designed to address the unique characteristics and needs of a particular structure. By tailoring fire protection measures to the specific risk profile of a building, it is possible to optimize the allocation of resources. This can lead to cost savings, as you would avoid overinvesting in unnecessary fire protection measures or materials. While compliance with prescriptive codes is essential, Performance-Based Design goes further by focusing on real-world safety outcomes. This approach often results in superior fire protection measures that prioritize life safety.
Since performance-based design alleviates some of the restrictions of code, this approach encourages innovation by allowing designers to evaluate alternative building systems that are not covered by building codes. Performance-based design can be applied to either specific projects or as an overall design approach, which can help define a firm’s capabilities. This is because architects and designers can make more accurate projections in each phase, make better decisions about which materials to use, and how best to maximize the use of the materials. In addition, another important aspect of the performance-based design approach is that the process helps designers avoid having to re-work parts of the design. By focusing on a well-informed design early in the process, designers can better meet performance standards and the Fire Codes that are continuously changing.
Be on the lookout for part two of our blog, where we will be digging deeper into the steps of the process of performance-based design.
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