Burghgraef van Tiel has broad expertise in determining risk factors for educational buildings. Our experts know what they are talking about and know the procedures and principles of the local government and other stakeholders.
Security level
There are legal articles and guidelines for the design and security of educational buildings to achieve an acceptable level of burglary and fire safety. For example, there are various parties that (want to) have their say when it comes to the aforementioned security measures.
The most common parties are:
- The municipality (competent authority)
- The insurer
The essential difference between the two parties is that the competent authority wants a building to be as safe as possible from the point of view of personal safety, while insurers focus on damage limitation in the field of buildings and inventories in order to guarantee the continuity of a company. The assessment framework of these parties is based on legal documents, including the nationally applicable ‘Building Decree’ and ‘Usage Decree’.
In order to limit the risk of burglary and fire, it is especially important for new construction or renovation that both parties make their ‘wishes’ known in good time or are involved in the design. It still happens with some regularity that expensive adjustments have to be made after the construction has been completed. These adjustments can be both architectural and installation technical.
Statistics
According to the fire brigade statistics, the probable causes of a fire in school buildings are:
- Arson 26%
- Defective/incorrect use of the device 17%
- Fire-hazardous work 4%
- Other causes 23%
- Unknown 30%
The high percentage for arson is striking, which is about twice as high as for homes. Many fires in schools are lit, usually outside school hours.
Our services
As mentioned above, arson, vandalism and burglary are the most common damage to educational buildings. We can map out these possible risks for your existing educational building(s) and then provide tailor-made prevention advice.
You can also make use of our construction supervision if you are not involved in a new construction or renovation process on a daily basis. We will guide you throughout the entire building process.
