We are thrilled to announce the appointment of Granville Harris as the new Director of Consultancy. With an impressive background having completed 30 years’ service with the London Fire Brigade, which included 8 years with the Fire Engineering Group and head of the London Olympics 2012 Fire Safety Team. Granville joined the commercial fire engineering world in 2013, before joining FDS Consult in 2016, now bringing a wealth of knowledge and a visionary approach to this pivotal role. As Director of Consultancy, Granville will lead our dynamic fire engineering team in delivering exceptional cons ..read more

The initial three-year strategic blueprint has been revealed by the Building Safety Regulator. The strategic plan outlines the BSR’s dedication to transforming building safety between April 2023 and March 2026. It stresses the importance of accountability, transparency, and fostering a culture that upholds higher standards. This three-year roadmap signifies a crucial step for the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) within the fire safety domain. Over 27 pages, endorsed by Housing Minister Michael Gove, it delineates the BSR’s mission to implement the Building Safety Act’s mandated building safety ..read more

The current administration is dedicated to ensuring public confidence in the safety of our buildings. The introduction of the Building Safety Act has established a robust regulatory framework, with a central focus on the new Building Safety Regulator. Recent changes to statutory fire safety guidelines include the following measures: • Prohibition of combustible materials in residential buildings, hotels, hospitals, and student accommodations over 18m, with additional directives for residential buildings between 11m and 18m. • Lowering the threshold for the installation of sprinkler systems in ..read more

The Wellington Hospital is the largest independent hospital in the UK and has an international reputation in a wide range of medical specialisms including cardiac services, neurosurgery, gynaecology and orthopaedics. The hospital acquired a nearby office building and Balfour Beatty was commissioned to develop a Design & Build scheme to refurbish the building as a centre for minor operations (not requiring an overnight stay) and outpatient care. The fire consultant originally brought on board to advise on the scheme had insisted that the fire strategy for the entire seven-storey building sh ..read more

A 32-storey, five-star hotel located in the heart of London’s Canary Wharf, the London Marriott Hotel West India Quay is a striking high rise tower that offers truly world class accommodation to both guests and conference delegates. Sitting at the heart of London’s banking sector and only a stone’s throw from City Airport, the hotel mirrors the aesthetic of its commercial tower neighbours. Whilst its original fire design was code compliant, it was not physically suited to the hotel’s structure. As a result, FDS Consult was brought in to provide systems advice and for rationalising design of th ..read more

Offering world-class standards and poised to become Uganda’s finest 5-star business hotel, the 22-storey Kampala Hilton Hotel is located on a 14-acre site. The hotel has been designed to offer facilities that enhance work, communication and relaxation and incorporates 272 rooms, a range of meeting suites, high specification indoor and outdoor restaurants and bars, a nightclub spread across the top three storeys and health & spa facilities including a pool and fitness studios. The architectural design also includes a feature lobby: a 15m curved glass structure set under a futuristic shell ..read more

With more than 70 premises across England, Big Yellow Self Storage is one of the UK’s leading providers of self storage, student storage and business storage solutions. The company’s storage facilities vary in complexity and size and Big Yellow has enlisted the expertise of FDS Consult to provide a full fire strategy for the more intricate buildings, along with a complete fire risk assessment of all its storage facilities. A good example of the ways in which FDS Consult’s knowledge and experience has helped Big Yellow Self Storage to reduce costs and improve safety is the work undertaken at th ..read more

Home to the Government’s War Office in the 19th Century, 80 Pall Mall has undergone varied incarnations since first being constructed for the 3rd Duke of Schomberg in the 1690s. Its original façade was re-built when, along with neighbouring properties, it was converted into offices in the 1950s. It has now been completely refurbished again, with a total strip out and re-build of the accommodation and retention of the Grade II listed façade. FDS Consult was appointed to advise on a sympathetic approach to fire designing the scheme, using the team’s innovative thinking and experience to justify ..read more

A mixed use scheme combining three floors of retail space and four floors of high specification office space, 175 Oxford Street had to be completely re-built as the result of a fire. None of the previous structure was viable and the architect on the re-build scheme had created a striking concept for the new 1,580m2 store. The architect’s vision was to make a feature of natural light, increase retail floor space and add the ‘wow factor’, with a central atrium rising up the building’s full height and as few staircases as possible. It was a vision that had already been enthusiastically accepted b ..read more

Al Asima is a truly landmark development that is remarkable not simply because of its considerable size and scope but also because it is the iconic central scheme in the regeneration of Kuwait City. The development has seen the creation of two buildings on top of a large podium, known as Al Asima, and it comprises a 75-storey office tower, a mixed-use podium up to six levels which includes public spaces, retail units, leisure outlets and underground parking with six levels of managed executive apartments above the retail/leisure floors, and a mid-rise building with a shopping mall (including l ..read more