The Ministry of Interior, represented by the General Directorate of Civil Defense (GDCD), has launched the Civil Defense Technical Requirements Guide 2022. It was launched in a ceremony organized in the presence of a number of officials in the ministry.
The guide offers all the requirements of engineering that are related to the construction of the buildings in the country as some of the buildings have been recently updated.
It also provides other new requirements imposed with the aim of urban development while maintaining the existing requirements.
The guide also details other valuable life safety concerns in the protection of lives and properties while adopting the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) codes and standards as the principal reference for provisions or requirements, which are not specifically addressed in the document.
In the event of any conflict with respect to the requirements mentioned in the guide and requirements under NFPA, the adoption of requirements from other fire and engineering codes and standards should have the priority of GDCD before its application.
In a speech during the ceremony, the Director-General of the General Directorate of Civil Defense Brigadier Hamad Othman Al Dhaimi stated the importance of this guide, which includes the developments in the construction sector in the country, and enhanced coordination and consultation with the relevant authorities.
He said that “the committee that prepared the guide had worked diligently for more than two years, and consulted and linked channels of communication with several authorities in the country concerned with this field so that the guide would include the required updates.”
He affirmed that the technical requirements guide aims to develop and facilitate the services provided by the General Directorate of Civil Defense. He added that the work on the guide will start on 9 March 2022.
The member of the technical team, Captain Abdulrahman Sultan Al Ghanim gave a presentation on the first update of the Civil Defense Technical Requirements Guide. It included the efforts of the committee concerned with its development and objectives of protecting lives and property and keeping pace with the update in fire safety requirements that the international community issues on an ongoing basis.
Also, efforts were taken to update the requirements with respect to the observations of the private sector and in coordination with the various relevant government agencies.
Captain Al Ghanim stated that “the first version of the requirements was prepared, approved, and implemented in 2015, noting that the updates included in the guide are in line with the requirements of a number of authorities, such as Qatar Electricity and Water Corporation (KAHRAMAA), educational facilities, nurseries and mosques, as well as what is related to people with disabilities in hotels, and the requirements for storing hazardous materials in laboratories, with the addition of a special chapter for workers accommodation buildings and the updating of ventilation requirements for warehouses and industrial facilities.”
The guide has an annexe that explains the minimum fire and life safety requirements for buildings and structures of various capacities prescribed by the GDCD. The annexe deals with the requirements for refuge floors, smoke stop, firefighting lobbies, external access to the site and building, fire lifts and fire access elevators, fire (emergency) command centres, fire pumps, and electrical rooms.
The annexe also includes fire alarm system notes and guidelines and air conditioning ventilation and smoke control.
