Part of a £160 million regeneration scheme, Dalston Lane South is one of two sites that form Dalston Square: one of the Mayor of London’s 100 Public Spaces programme. The development will provide around 250 new homes in buildings rising to 17 storeys and also incorporates a number of retail units, a public library and basement car parking. Developer, Barratt East London, was looking for innovative ways to maximise usable floor space and minimise costs whilst prioritising safety. As a result, FDS Consult was brought on board to apply the company’s creative approach to fire designing the project and, thanks to the team’s value engineering expertise, the company devised a strategy that provided cost savings in excess of £3.5 million whilst achieving all mandatory approvals. Using the team’s extensive understanding of fire engineering First Principles, wide-ranging residential sector experience and computer modelling expertise, FDS Consult was able to justify extended travel distances and reduce the fire systems specification. FDS Consult’s solutions-driven approach succeeded in achieving:

• A reduction in the number of stair cores from ten to five thanks to the extended travel distances justified by CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) modelling and specification of high efficiency fan-assisted smoke shafts

• A reduction by half of the number of smoke shafts required per core to just one, saving considerable cost and space.

• A reduction in the size of the smoke shafts required thanks to the fan-assisted shafts specified, maximising useable space

• Removal of the sprinkler system from the basement car park specification, thanks to the specification of an enhanced smoke control system, resulting in a considerable cost saving

• Removal of the sprinkler systems from the retail units specification due to the installation of manual smoke venting, a BT Red Care System and a compartmentation strategy

• A significant reduction in the number of cross-corridor doors thanks to the introduction of an FAS system

• Justification of an open staircase feature to the duplex apartments as a result of enhanced smoke detection systems

• A reduction in the fire rating protection in the basement cark park area from 4 hours to 2 hours, reducing costs and achieving time savings on the build

Thanks to FDS Consult’s innovative approach to devising the fire strategy on the project, the scheme successfully gained both building regulations and Section 20 approval, demonstrating proven high levels of safety whilst delivering significant cost savings to the client.