Symposium: “Safety Requirements in Buildings”

On December 16th, 2023, CUE’s Architecture department organized a symposium titled “Safety Requirements in Buildings”. The symposium consisted of two main sessions, each session dedicated to specific topics. The first session consisted of the following topics: “Reductions of Fire Effect on Buildings” delivered by Dr. Siba Taha; “International Fire and Live Safety Codes” delivered by Dr. Hamid Turki; and “Instructions, Law, and Civil Defense Systems Applied in the Kurdistan Region to Reduce Disasters” conducted by the representative of Civil Defense. Moreover, session two also consisted of: “Approved specifications for Fire-Resistant Building Designs” which was conducted by the representative of the municipality of Ankawa; “Preserving the Past: A Comprehensive Approach to Ensuring Safety in Heritage Buildings” delivered by Mr. Bisam Ehssan Alhafiz and Mr. Ashraff Ibrahim Mahmood, from the University of Mosul; and “Impact of Earthquakes on Buildings” conducted by Dr. Maher Alsamaani.

Furthermore, each session was concluded with a discussion; recommendations and conclusions were identified. Some of these include: Increasing Public awareness about reducing fire risks in buildings should be everyone’s priority; Department of Civil Defense should increase instructions during disasters; Municipality departments should increase restrictions on building plans for providing safety compliance, following approved international standards and codes, and more