Episodes
Jan. 15, 2025
184 - Cost-benefit analysis in structural fire safety with Thomas Gernay and Chenzi Ma
This episode delves into the financial aspects of fire safety in building design, highlighting the balance between cost and effectiveness. My guests - prof. Thomas Gernay and Chenzi Ma from Johns Hopkins University share ins…
Jan. 8, 2025
183 - Innovation and fire safety with Vincent Brannigan
History repeats itself. A new thing is invented. We learn about it, understand it, and apply measures to capture its behaviour and regulate it. And then another new thing is invented. The measures we used start failing us, a…
Dec. 18, 2024
182 - Bias in fire research
Fire is a highly contextualized problem; therefore, there is no such thing as an unbiased or "objective" fire experiment. It is a thing that many researchers would understand but is very rarely pointed out. Where it is not a…
Dec. 11, 2024
181 - Regulatory regimes with Vincent Brannigan
I just drove 500 km to have a conversation with Professor Vincent Brannigan from the University of Maryland, a very unique expert who combines law with fire engineering. In this discussion, we go into the complexities of bui…
Dec. 4, 2024
180 - Fire Fundamentals pt. 12 - Pressurization systems
In this episode of fire science fundamentals, we cover the pressurisation systems. These are smoke control solutions used to prevent smoke from accessing protected spaces, by creating an overpressure in those spaces. Althoug…
Nov. 27, 2024
179 - Assurance in fire safety with Abhishek Chhabra
Discover the hidden backbone of fire safety with assurance industry expert Abhishek Chhabra as we unravel the essential frameworks that keep our buildings safe and sound. We explore the vital role of standards, accreditation…
Nov. 20, 2024
178 - Origin stories of fire prevention and firefighting with Michał Stachowicz
Happy 200th birthday, Scottish Fire and Rescue Services!!! I'm a bit late to the party. Still, I've done my best to celebrate your anniversary in the best way I can - by giving homage to the amazing fire safety engineering a…
Nov. 13, 2024
177 - Physics-Based Modelling of Fire Spread with Francesco Restuccia
Wildfire modelling is quite complicated when you wish to integrate different fuel packages with different properties in 'real' environmental conditions while managing the transition to/from smouldering. We have a model for e…
Nov. 6, 2024
176 - The Myth of Panic with Daniel Nilsson
You are not supposed to use the word 'panic' in the context of human behaviour in fires, yet this episode contains 196 instances of it. Why? because we try to get to the bottom of the thing! Can panic be both a myth and a re…
Oct. 30, 2024
175 - Changes in the UK fire regulations with Dame Judith Hackitt
The Grenfell Tower tragedy has triggered a Public Inquiry (which just published their final report ), and concurrently - a review of the UK Building Regulations and Fire Safety. The latter task was given to Dame Judith Hacki…
Oct. 23, 2024
174 - My predictions for AI in fire
AI is changing the world. But can artificial intelligence truly revolutionize fire safety engineering? In this episode I took out my crystal ball, and tried to find answers in what aspects of fire engineering we could truly …
Oct. 16, 2024
173 - Pathway to scalable fire CFD
CFD is the most talked-over subject in the Fire Science Show. There are two reasons for that: one, it is interesting and relevant for so many of the Audience, and two, it's something I do for a living. There is also another …
Oct. 9, 2024
172 - Lessons from mass timber experiments with Danny Hopkin
One could argue full-scale experiments on fire phenomena are the most enriching for our knowledge as the fire community. The costs associated with them and logistical nightmares of organizing them make them an uncommon sight…
Oct. 2, 2024
171 - Exploring Water Mist Systems with Max Lakkonen
I approach modelling water mist with caution. Not that I don't understand it, but because I lack clarity in the goals and objectives, as well I'm usually aware I may not deliver the expectations of my clients in terms of the…
Sept. 25, 2024
170 - Integrating Fire Safety and Security Objectives with Stewe Gwynne and Aoife Hunt
What happens to controlled doors when a fire is detected in the building? They unlock. Elevators? They go down. People are guided somewhere, and the fire strategy is executed. As it should. But what if the real threat is not…
Sept. 18, 2024
169 - Engineering car parks for EV's with Ali Ashrafi and Pawel Woelke
EVs are becoming more of a 'normal' part of fire safety engineering rather than an 'exotic problem'. I've invited two colleagues from Thornton Tomasetti - Ali Ashrafi and Pawel Woelke, to discuss what this engineering looks …
Sept. 11, 2024
168 - Fires in Waste Industry with Ragni Fjellgaard Mikalsen
Fires in the waste industry are not discussed much unless one sees a giant smoke plume in the media, followed by advice to close your windows. In these (rare?) cases, we remind ourselves of the massive industry related to st…
Sept. 4, 2024
167 - CFD for consequences and fire growth with Jonathan Hodges
In this episode we talk with Jonathan Hodges of the Jensen Hughes on his experience with using advanced modelling in the realm of fire safety engineering. Jonathan sheds light on how the modelling is used at various Jensen H…
Aug. 28, 2024
166 - Bio-based insulation with Patrick Sudhoff
In the everchanging world every now and then we get a new driver, that dictates most of our choices. In the current built environment and building industry, carbon dioxide feels like such a driver. We don't like it, we want …
Aug. 21, 2024
165 - Best Practice vs. Appropriate Practice with Arnold Dix
Is the "best practice" always the best approach to solving an engineering problem? Can we consider "best" and "appropriate" practices synonymous, and if not - how big is the gap between them? Join us as we welcome Professor …
Aug. 14, 2024
164 - Experiences with AI with Xinyan Huang
The l ast time I had Xinyan on the show was in 2021, and we were all excited about the possibilities that AI could bring to Fire Safety Engineering and Smart Firefighting. Three years have passed, and while we are still exci…
Aug. 7, 2024
163 - Fire Fundamentals pt 11 - Soot in Fire Safety Engineering
Soot is perhaps the most complex product of combustion, and at the same time one of the most profound for our everyday fire safety engineering. The topic of soot is not getting much love in the world of fire science, so I’ve…
July 31, 2024
162 - Experiments that changed fire science pt. 9 - Jin's experiment on visibility in smoke
In this episode of Experiments that Changed Fire Science we cover T. Jin’s experiments on the visibility in smoke – two experiments carried out in 1970 and 1971 in Japan that truly changed the way how we model fires and how …
July 24, 2024
161 - Community evacuation with Enrico Ronchi and Max Kinateder
Is evacuation of a community during a wildfire largely different from evacuation of a building? How much of the knowledge from the building fires is directly useful in planning and managing such an event, and what stuff is c…