Increased fire loads are from an uncontrolled and largely unregulated growth in the use of lithium-ion batteries powering electronic devices
How high-risk are the buildings we work and live in? One thing is certain. Buildings today are more hazardous than they were 10 or 15 years ago. Why? It has nothing to do with the buildings themselves. It has to do with what we’re putting in and around them, dangerously increasing the fuel loads we are now living with daily. In my last several blogs, we’ve looked at how fire-rated glass is used to compartmentalize buildings to give occupants the time needed to safely exit buildings. Now we need to find out what is making fire loads so much higher and, in some cases, more dangerous than in the past and how an increased use of fire-rated glazing to compartmentalize buildings can help keep us safe. The increased fire load is from an explosive, uncontrolled and largely unregulated growth in the use of lithium-ion batteries powering electronic devices. You can easily test this proliferation yourself. Just count the number of lithium-ion battery-powered devices within arm’s reach right now.
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