Doors serve a variety of needs and purposes in schools: (1) Exterior doors provide building security and protection from the elements; and (2) Interior doors control the movement of people among school spaces, help control noise and air flow, and act as flame and smoke barriers during a fire. In a lockdown, they serve as safety barriers. From a…

Fire safety as provided for by building codes is examined critically, and the characteristics of building fires are reviewed. A new design approach is suggested. (Author)

Discusses issues addressed by OCLC in the construction of its new headquarters. Original design criteria and a retrospective appraisal of solutions are presented in the following areas: (1) structural requirements; (2) environmental considerations; (3) utilities; (4) fire protection; (5) security; and (6) workspace design. Essential design issues…

Available technical literature pertaining to exit facility design and emergency escape provisions of the National Fire Protection Association's "Life Safety Code" (1976 Edition) are reviewed in order to determine the technical support for such provisions. The report focuses on the time-based capabilities of building occupants to effect…

In addition to the usual problems associated with school construction and safety standards experienced by most states, California has the additional one of coping with earthquakes. Older school buildings which may no longer provide a safe or adequate environment for education have become a matter of increasing concern to legislators and…

At the request of the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, the National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities (NCEF) has conducted "a literature search and review to identify best practices in [school] building design for accommodating the evacuation and sheltering needs of individuals with special needs or…

The goal of this book is to present in a graphical format the principles of design for building firesafety. The book's more than 270 illustrations represent the core of its coverage of factors affecting fire ignition and spread in buildings, building site planning for fire suppression and occupant rescue operations, protection by building…

This course manual details the Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code of New York State and how it affects child care services, particularly day care centers. The sections of the manual, each detailing a part of the code, are: (1) Introduction, Scope, Registration, and Definitions and Facilities Regulated by the New York Department of Social…

Guidelines on performance criteria for the State University of New York consider two main types of handicapped: the ambulant and semi-ambulant, including some physically handicapped, the visually and aurally handicapped, and persons with cardiac conditions; and persons confined to wheel chairs. The handicapped and planning for them are discussed.…

This study presents an overview of collected literature relevant to school buildings, or building in general, in disaster-prone areas, together with some discussion of the role that school buildings, as a universally present community asset, may play in situations of crisis. The natural disasters referred to in this study include cyclones and…