Ministry of Construction urgently requests to amend fire prevention and fighting standards

According to the decision, the Minister assigned the Institute of Construction Science and Technology to coordinate with the Fire Prevention and Fighting and Rescue Police Department (PCCC&CNCH) of the Ministry of Public Security and relevant units to immediately organize an emergency task to review all fire safety problems in construction activities.

At the same time, review the content of national technical regulations on fire safety for houses and buildings to clearly identify problems and causes.

From there, propose the contents that need to be revised in QCVN 06:2022. Propose to complete the system of standards and technical regulations on fire prevention and fighting (PCCC) for houses and buildings.

Along with that, the compilation and revision of QCVN 06:2022 ensures scientific basis, is suitable for practical conditions in Vietnam, and complies with relevant legal regulations.

The above decision was made at the request of the Director of the Department of Science, Technology and Environment ( Ministry of Construction ).

Speaking to VietNamNet reporter , Mr. Le Minh Long - Deputy Director of the Department of Science, Technology and Environment said that the above task is carried out under the authority and responsibility of the Ministry of Construction. Accordingly, the specialized agencies of the Ministry only base on the written comments/approval on fire prevention and fighting to conduct project appraisal, design appraisal and base on the acceptance document on fire prevention and fighting to inspect and accept construction works from 2013 to present.

Painters working at a construction site in Hai Phong Industrial Park (Photo: Hoai Anh)

According to Mr. Long, in the past, the Department's leaders also joined the working group of the Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department to directly visit production sites. The problems here mainly existed in the projects during the period from 2001.

Citing a paper factory in Long Bien (Hanoi), Mr. Long said that the project was built in 1961. Over time, the factories were expanded. This is an old project while the standards are applied to newly built projects.

"For projects of this type, there are still misunderstandings that new standards must be applied to the entire project, or a part of the project related to the renovation and repair items. However, according to QCVN 06:2022, it is clearly stated that standards can only be applied within the scope of that renovation and repair, and only in cases where this renovation and repair increases the fire risk of the project. Standards cannot be applied outside the scope of renovation and repair.

That means the design did not follow the standard. According to the Fire Prevention and Fighting Law, the penalty is to suspend operations for correction. However, in these cases, the two Ministries will report to the Government on a solution with temporary solutions in a supplementary direction for greater safety. The solution must be confirmed by the Fire Prevention and Fighting Agency. After that, the investor must have a commitment to operate the project in the safest way possible," said Mr. Long.

Regarding the regulations on the use of fireproof construction materials, including fireproof paint, the leader of the Department of Science, Technology and Environment said that there are still opinions that QCVN 06:2022 requires types of fireproof paint that are not yet circulated in Vietnam.

“I would like to reaffirm that the standard 06:2022/BXD or previous versions only provide fire safety requirements for construction materials without requiring the use of specific materials. Depending on the economic and technical rationality, choose a suitable design solution. If the structure or component does not meet the requirements for fire resistance limits corresponding to the fire resistance level of the house or building, it is necessary to have an enhanced fire protection solution. Fire protection solutions can be: using paint, brick cladding, concrete..., using normal mortar, including cement mortar, or fireproof mortar, or covering with concrete to form a composite structure, or replacing it with other materials such as steel instead of concrete..." - Mr. Long said.

It is known that the Ministry of Construction will coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security and other ministries and branches to review difficulties and problems related to fire prevention and fighting in construction works to propose solutions before June 30.

Ministry of Construction explains 3 consecutive fire prevention and fighting standards, how to resolve them According to the Ministry of Construction, in reality, when collecting opinions from the Ministry of Public Security and localities, when implementing QCVN 06:2022, there are some problems such as disagreement on understanding and transitional conditions. The Ministry is researching to agree on solutions for handling and supplementing.

Major General Dinh Van Noi requested the fire police to be receptive and not cause trouble for businesses . In a dialogue with the business community to resolve difficulties and obstacles in fire prevention and fighting, Major General Dinh Van Noi requested the fire police to coordinate closely with businesses in the spirit of being close to the people, close to businesses, and receptive.

Deputy Prime Minister: Using foreign fire prevention and fighting standards but must consider whether they are suitable for Vietnam? Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha said that experts in the field of fire prevention and fighting read Regulation 06:2022/BXD but still have different thoughts, it is clear that the document is difficult in terms of simplicity and ease of application.

Source