This project aims to compile available knowledge about fire safety in our cultural heritage so that it will be used, and to identify which areas that lack the necessary knowledge. The goal is an overview intended for professionals with knowledge in either fire safety or cultural heritage, and to map which areas need more development of knowledge. The work fits well into Agenda 2030, Milestone 11.4 Strengthening efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage.
In Sweden we have many buildings that are valuable from a cultural-historical perspective and in many of them there are also culturally valuable objects. These buildings are often built at a time when there was less knowledge and technical solutions to create fire safety through technical measures that reduces the risk of injury to people and property in the event of a fire. Experience from fires has shown that the damage to property has become serious. Personal safety issues often face challenges, although fortunately the injury history is not as serious. Not infrequently, these questions are pitted against each other in the absence of working collaborative solutions. For the future proofing of these buildings, including a person-safe use of them, the subject needs attention and development.
Since the constructions and buildings themselves are valuable to preserve it is usually not possible to implement regular fire safety measures, so there is often a need for customized solutions to improve the existing fire safety. Over the years, knowledge has accumulated about this, but there is a lack of an updated compilation of the existing knowledge. Such an overview is important for the ongoing work with fire safety in buildings with cultural values, as well as for the mapping of areas where knowledge is lacking so that research and development can focus on that.