We report that Dr Amer Magrabi, our Director – Fire & Risk Engineering, recently participated as a panellist at the Achieving, Demonstrating, and Accepting Appropriate Fire Safety in Australian Tunnels workshop held in Brisbane on October 11, 2024. This workshop, hosted by the Australian Tunnelling Society (ATS), brought together industry experts and leaders to discuss the revision of the Australia Standard AS 4825: 2011 Tunnel Fire Safety. Dr Magrabi was part of the Standards Australia committee that drafted the Original AS 4825 in 2011.
Representing the Engineers Australia Society of Fire Safety (SFS), Dr Magrabi shared his extensive experience and insights as part of a distinguished panel of industry leaders, focusing on best practices for achieving appropriate fire safety in tunnel environments. His presentation primarily focussed on three areas (i) Original intent, objectives and framework for fire safety in AS 4825:2011 and areas for improvement after 13 years of operation, (ii) Fire engineering governance for tunnel infrastructure which is unique to Australia due its Performance based fire safety framework that has been legislated since the Year 1996, and (iii) the risk management and risk assessment process to meet fire safety objectives under ISO 31000.
Dr Magrabi emphasised the importance of adopting a holistic approach to fire safety in tunnel infrastructure. The relevance of the Australian Fire Engineering Guidelines 2021 and its link to current regulatory processes was highlighted. His expertise contributed significantly to the workshop's goal of reaching a consensus on best practices for fire safety in Australian tunnels, which will inform the drafting of the updated standard. The half-day workshop explored the revision of Australia's tunnel fire safety standard, AS4825, covering rail, road and busways. The governance around how an appropriate level of fire safety is demonstrated and accepted was extensively debated and discussed.
The event provided a forum for working group members, industry stakeholders, and fire engineering practitioners to engage on critical issues, exchange views, and learn from each other’s experiences with AS 4825 and areas of improvement.
The workshop was ably chaired and curated by Nigel Casey. Panellists included leading figures in tunnel fire safety, such as Bernhard Kohl, Michael Beecroft, Craig Hiscock, David Radcliffe, Ingo Riess, Dr Conrad Stacey, and Arnold Dix.