Building safety codes in Dubai

The Dubai Municipality has been issuing circulars prohibiting engineering, contracting, manufacturing and real estate development firms from using combustible materials for buildings and facade cladding for some time.

The buildings department of the municipality last year conducted engineering supervision of 25,124 buildings under construction in various areas of Dubai. The engineering supervision process includes inspection and control of all construction works.

Khalid Mohammed Saleh, Director of the buildings department of the municipality, last year said in a Press statement: “The materials used in building construction should prevent walls from catching fire, and that facade cladding systems should conform with the standards specified in the codes set out.

“The flame extension rates and smoke production for external cladding materials and paint products should be below 25 and below 450, according to flame spreading and smoke-evolution standards and the criteria adopted in civil defence codes.

The municipality advises that buildings should be divided into sections to prevent the spread of fire, as per the civil defence codes, and that sections that are resistant to and prevent the spread of fire (floors, residential units, office units, trade or industrial units) shall also be separated.

“Moreover, fire resistant barriers should prevent the spread of fire and smoke and should be continuous; they should cover all penetration and contact points between fire resistant sections at their vertical and horizontal directions,” he said.