Risk Assessment and Management for Lightweight Steel Structure Construction for Industrial and Residential

Lightweight steel structure buildings are a special type of illegal building in Taiwan. There are many different types of these illegal structures in Taiwan used for various purposes. The number of factories operating in one of these illegal lightweight steel buildings alone is as high as 130,000 according to the 2017 statistics. The construction of such structures is easy, fast, and the cost is low, which is why they are widely accepted by the people.[1] The materials of a lightweight steel structure are mostly steel or C-shaped steel. When this type of steel structure is exposed to temperatures above 600 °C, the structure will begin to break and bend, causing deformation and eventually collapse. Additionally, the rapid growth of the fire, the lack of establishment on fire zones, and a fierce fire, etc., all present more challenges for onsite employees to extinguish the initial fires as well as the later fire rescue attempt by firefighters. In recent years, fatal fire incidents have been rampant, causing deaths and injury to foreign workers, highlighting fire safety issues. Therefore, “whether worker accommodation should be separated from the factory” is the subject of this paper. This study is aimed at the statistical survey of lightweight steel structures for industrial and residential use (current status): using data from project investigations to present the site overview and hazard risk factors. Risk assessment for buildings with accommodation inside the factory (validation): through the statistical survey data (34 of the 188 surveyed have accommodations inside the factory, a ratio of 18.1%), the hazard risk is assessed, and the potential risks are analyzed. Fire simulation on buildings with accommodation inside the factory (hazard): use fire simulation to analyze the effective evacuation time with residential fire alarms. To develop a disaster reduction strategy based on the results of the parametric analysis of this study for buildings with accommodation inside the factory (improvement): utilizing factory fire prevention analysis, factory symposium, fire prevention announcement, fire equipment inspection and maintenance, etc., to achieve disaster reduction. Based on the results of the parametric analysis of this study, we will develop an accommodation and disaster reduction strategy (improvement): use plant fire prevention diagnosis, factory symposium, fire prevention announcement, fire equipment inspection and maintenance, etc., to achieve disaster reduction.