ISO 16732-1, Fire safety engineering – Fire risk assessment – Part 1 : General, is for use by fire safety practitioners, such as fire safety engineers, public authorities, fire service personnel, code developers and enforcers, insurers, fire safety managers, and risk managers.
Fire risk assessment can be used to:
- Support any decisions about fire prevention or fire protection of new or existing built environments
- Establish safety conformity to a code
- Assess the balance between the cost and the risk reduction benefit of a proposal
- Examine acceptable risk specifically for severe events
- Provide general guidance or support choices in the selection of scenarios and other elements.
The principles and concepts in ISO 16732-1:2012 can be applied to any fire safety objectives, including:
- Safety of life
- Conservation of property
- Continuity of business and safety operations
- Protection of the environment
- Preservation of heritage.
Fires are the source of severe or fatal injuries, costly physical damage, and even building collapse. ISO 16732-1 provides an overview of fire risk management, the steps involved in fire risk estimation – the estimation of the frequency and consequences of a risk, and the steps involved in fire risk evaluation against regulations, costs, or alternative approaches.