The specific smoke hazard management provisions for Class 6 buildings containing shops and an enclosed common walkway or mall are similar. Where such a building has a fire compartment with a floor area of more than 2 000 m2, an automatic smoke exhaust system or an automatic smoke-and-heat vent system to control smoke during a fire is required.
However, where a single storey shop does not open onto the mall and its main public entrance opens to a road or open space, it does not need to have any smoke exhaust or smoke venting, if its floor area does not exceed 2 000 m2. This is similar to the concession for a shop in a building which does not contain a mall.
Another concession applies to shops that open onto the mall. They do not need to have any smoke exhaust or smoke venting system if their individual floor areas are less than 1 000m2.
A concession is also available for another part of the building with a different classification (i.e. other than Class 6) which is smoke separated, including openings, junctions and joints of building elements, etc., from the Class 6 part.
In a Class 6 building containing a mall, a sprinkler system can also be used in lieu of a required automatic smoke exhaust system or an automatic smoke-and-heat vent system, if the floor area of the whole fire compartment is not more than 3 500 m2.
Example 2
This example looks at a single storey shopping complex containing a mall, as shown in Figure E2D15. The fire compartment is 15 900 m2, therefore smoke exhaust/venting is required (if the floor area of the fire compartment had been less than 3 500 m2, a sprinkler system could have been used instead of a smoke exhaust/venting system). Smoke exhaust or venting is not required to shop B, which opens onto the mall, because the floor area is less than 1 000 m2. It is also not required to shop D, because the floor area is less than 2 000 m2, it does not open onto the mall, and the main entrance is to a road or open space.
Table E2D15: Single storey shopping complex containing a mall—example
Shop | Area (m2) | Entry | Smoke exhaust OR smoke- and-heat vents |
A | 900 | From open space | None required as it is single storey, the floor area is less than 2 000 m2 and the main entrance opens to a road or open space |
B | 900 | From mall | None required as the floor area is less than 1 000 m2 |
C | 900 | From mall and open space | None required as the floor area is less than 1 000 m2 |
D | 1 900 | From open space | None required as it is single storey, the floor area is less than 2 000 m2 and the main entrance opens to a road or open space |
E | 1 900 | From mall | Required as the floor area is over 1 000 m2 and opens onto mall |
F | 1 900 | From mall and open space | Required as the floor area is over 1 000 m2 and opens onto mall |
G | 2 500 | From open space | Required as the floor area is more than 2 000 m2 |
H | 2 500 | From mall | Required as the floor area is over 1 000 m2 and opens onto mall |
I | 2 500 | From mall and open space | Required as the floor area is over 1 000 m2 and opens onto mall |
Mall | - | - | Required as the fire compartment has a floor area over 2 000 m2 |
Figure E2D15: Plan of shopping centre for Example 2
