Layout of living areas in Class D factories
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For convenience, it is planned to set up a production office, changing rooms for shift workers, and male and female bathrooms in the newly built Class D chemical plant. Is this acceptable? Where is the source? Thank you?
This post was last edited by Watcher Star on 2015-10-30 at 10:31. An office is fine, but a dressing room probably won’t work! For specifications, could we take a look at the standards for the overall layout of enterprises?
Production offices, shift-change rooms, male and female bathrooms, etc., can be installed in Class D factories
May I ask, what is the basis or source?
Explanatory text for Article 3.4.1 of the Building Code: Auxiliary living spaces designed specifically to serve the production activities in the factory building are sometimes constructed together with the factory building within the same structure; in other cases, to meet the requirements for ventilation and natural light, the living spaces are arranged separately from the factory building. To facilitate communication during production and save land, the fire separation distance between Class C, D, and E factories and their associated auxiliary living facilities can be reduced to 6 meters. Living quarters refer to workshops and offices, workers’ changing and resting rooms, bathrooms (excluding boiler rooms), dining rooms (excluding kitchens), etc. Code for Building Design 3.3.5: When offices and rest rooms are located within Class C factories, they shall be separated from other areas by fire-resistant partition walls with a fire resistance rating of not less than 2.50 hours and floors with a fire resistance rating of not less than 1.00 hour; in addition, at least one separate safety exit shall be provided. If doors that connect to each other need to be installed in partition walls, Class B fire doors should be used. The following are purely personal opinions. Since building codes allow auxiliary living spaces to be located in Class C factories, it is certainly possible to place them in Class D factories as well. Following Article 3.3.5 of the building codes will surely ensure compliance with safety requirements. If the auxiliary living facilities are located adjacent to Class D factories, Notes 1, 2, and 3 of Article 3.4.1 of the Building Code shall be applied. Part of Table 3.4.1 of the Building Code: Living quarters designed specifically to serve factories of Class C, D, and E shall be classified as civil buildings, and the fire separation distance from the factory they serve shall not be less than 6 meters. When adjacent placement is required, the provisions in Notes 2 and 3 of this table shall be followed. 2 When the higher outer wall of two adjacent factories is a fire wall, there is no limit on the fire separation distance; however, it should be no less than 4 meters between factories of Class A. For two factories of Classes C, D, and E whose adjacent exterior walls are both non-combustible, when there are no exposed combustible eaves, and the total area of doors, windows, and openings on each exterior wall does not exceed 5% of the area of that wall, with the doors, windows, and openings not being aligned directly with one another, the fire separation distance can be reduced by 25% in accordance with the provisions of this table. Class A and Class B factories (warehouses) shall not be adjacent to other buildings other than those specified in Article 3.3.5 of these codes. 3 For factories with fire resistance ratings of Class I or II, the fire separation distance between factories of Class A and Class B shall not be less than 6 m, provided that the adjacent lower exterior wall is a fire wall, the roof of the lower factory has no skylights and its fire resistance rating is not less than 1.00 hour, or openings such as doors and windows in the adjacent higher exterior wall are equipped with Class A fire doors and windows, fire-resistant partition water curtains, or fire shutters as specified in Article 6.5.3 of these codes ； The fire separation distance between Class C, D, and E factories should not be less than 4 m.
Thank you! This aspect was not taken into account in the original planning and design documents, and the factory building has already been completed. It is now planned to install living facilities inside the factory building; consultations will be carried out prior to submitting the application, and formal design submissions will be made only after obtaining definite results.
In fact, the fire risk associated with Class D factories is relatively low; there are no specific regulations in the building codes regarding this. Thus, auxiliary living spaces can be located within the factory, without the need to comply with the fire protection requirements specified in Article 3.3.5 for Class C factories.