Hello there!
This is Obi-Wan, and this is my first blog. So here goes nothing.
Before starting my IMFSE journey, I was a typical “Sarkari Babu”—this is a colloquial term used to describe officials working for the government. I was basically responsible for managing the safety of a sour gas process complex located in the middle of the Arabian Sea, and it was quite a transition for me, who was familiar with the process industry, into the built environment. I carried a lot of apprehension as I started my semester in Edinburgh and it is often true that we fear the unknown
“Dr. Angus I don’t have a structural engineering background. How hard is this course going to be for me?”
This was the first question that I asked Dr. Angus Law after he introduced his course “Structural Design for Fire”, having worked the last 5 years in operational safety and fire protection, plus my undergraduate degree in safety and fire engineering had no major structural subjects in the curriculum. My apprehension grew even more when I realised IMFSE was sharing this course with SAFE (structural and fire safety engineering) and third-semester IMFSE students. At this point, I started to freak out, realising that most of these students have structural engineering backgrounds and some even have advanced structural engineering degrees.
Dr. Law basically told me that it wouldn’t be a cakewalk for me, but at the same time, he stressed that the course is designed not to test our structural engineering skills, and he was absolutely right because right after the exam results were declared and we received the exam statistics, I realised that I was in the extreme right corner of the bell curve, so this is for the Semester 1 guys- don’t be alarmed or tensed if a particular subject is not something that is familiar to you; you are all in good hands because, just remember what Dumbledore said: “Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it,” and its often true that
“There are more things to alarm us than to harm us, and we suffer more often in apprehension than reality.“
The subjects at Edinburgh instigated a newfound interest in me, appreciating those “weird buildings”. For a larger period of my life, I was ignorant about architecture and often wondered about the troubles that designers have gone through to produce something that looks beautiful but serves no practical purpose (no disrespect). A special friend of mine helped me change my perspective by teaching me to value even the most abstract of designs, and as my time in IMFSE went on, I grew fascinated by the unique engineering challenges that these designs pose as well as the fact that fire protection challenges in the build environment can be exciting as architects become more creative, whereas this was typically not the case in the process industry. Now my brain is slowly wired to think stuff like, “Oh, how would the fire behave travelling along this structure?” or “Making guestimates on evacuation time?” and, of course, looking for affordances and emergency exits every time I enter a building.
Weirdly beautiful
The first time I heard about this building was during the introductory lectures on structural design for fire (pardon my ignorance because I was used to the process industry). This building was also highlighted in the SDF course module “Keeping it Cool.”, At that moment, I was not able to appreciate the issue with this building since I was not very familiar with it or, in general, the built environment. As the course progressed, the fire dynamics lectures by Dr. Ricky Carvel introduced us to the legend Dr. Margaret Law, her research, and her contributions in designing this structure.
The mobility of the IMFSE programme enabled me to roam around Europe for a bit (of course the programme comes first before the excursions 🙃). So while backpacking through Italy during the Easter break, Farith Hinojosa Coca (my brother from another mother and fellow IMFSE enjoyer :v ) and I ended up in Paris on our way back to Lund. Hence, we decided to take a look at this structure; seeing her in all its glory really shifts the perspective, especially going back to the 1970s, when the engineers worked with a fraction of the resources that we have at our disposal now.
We were amazed by the facade of this building, and this is something that every fire engineer needs to see. This structure is none other than the Pompidou Building in Paris, which is considered to be an architectural masterpiece, and its innovative design and incorporation of advanced fire protection systems have helped to set a new standard for building safety and fire protection engineering. I am not going to spoil everything for you, but by the end of the semester, you guys will appreciate this structure and understand the challenges of having a facade as a load-bearing member. All hail, Margaret Law!
Not to be a killjoy, I am dropping a link here. Keep reading and appreciate the seminal works of one of the most prominent pioneers in our field
The IMFSE programme is truly remarkable because it accounts for people from different backgrounds; we all started with different perceptions, different skill sets, and different outlooks. After year 1, I can confidently say that we are all on the same page when it comes to fire.
I am grateful to be part of this journey.
Regards,
General Kenobi
IMFSE 