Fire Protection Engineering

Evaluate your fire protection, fire detection, and safety systems

Our multidisciplinary teams address fire dynamics and propagation, burning behavior of materials, and performance of fire protection equipment. We can help you evaluate fire suppression, detection, and alarm systems as well as understand, comply with, and go beyond standard codes and regulatory requirements.

How do we protect people and their environments from the destructive effects of fire?

Fires and explosions are devasting events and can have far-reaching impacts on human health and safety as well as the environment. Exponent has unique insight into the nature of fires, explosions, and thermal events, and we provide rapid response for fire investigations. Our fire prevention and protection consultants routinely perform investigations of residential, industrial, and wildland fires, as well as fire protection system failures.

We combine our thermal consulting expertise of fires with the latest tools and technology, including 3D surveying tools, to conduct efficient, scientific investigations that objectively determine causes and root failures for all types of events occurring across industries, including transportation, construction, energy, chemicals, and consumer products.

With our deep knowledge of fire safety and explosions, we can help clients mitigate the risk of future explosions, fires, and thermal events and provide comprehensive evaluations of fire safety alarms and systems as well as fire safety codes analysis.

Fire protection training and credentials

Exponent's fire protection engineering professionals include Certified Fire Investigators (CFIs), Certified Fire and Explosion Investigators (CFEIs), Certified Vehicle Fire Investigators (CFVIs), Fire Investigation Technicians (IAAI-FITs), and Certified Building Officials (CBOs). In addition, our professionals have undergone Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) training.

CAPABILITIES and services

Exponent has more than fifty years of experience conducting fire and explosion investigations and providing important insights to help organizations proactively mitigate fire risk.

Fire Protection Analysis

Restaurants

Sprinkler Systems

Alarm Systems

Code Analysis

Summary of Services

Building construction analysis and code consulting
Computational fluid dynamics modeling
Fire alarm and detection systems failure analysis
Fire and explosion origin and cause investigation
Fire spread analysis
Fire suppression and fire alarm system documentation and data gathering
Fire suppression system failure analysis and investigations
- Automatic fire sprinkler systems
- Standpipe systems
- Commercial kitchen suppression systems
- Clean agent/gaseous suppression systems
- Fire pump, water tank, domestic/municipal supply system
Fuel gas (natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas/propane) systems and component failure analysis 
Hot work accidents
Industrial process fire and explosion accident investigation
Inspection, Testing & Maintenance (ITM) investigation
Investigative bench-scale, intermediate-scale, and large-scale fire testing
Passive fire protection/spray-applied fire-resistant material failure analysis and investigations
Product reliability and flammability investigations

Experts

Our global and comprehensive expertise across industries gives us a deep understanding of current challenges, best industry practices, and the implications of emerging technologies.