Overview
ISO/TR 20413:2021 - Fire safety engineering - Survey of performance-based fire safety design practices in different countries - is a technical report that summarizes the results of an international questionnaire on the current use and regulatory environment of performance-based fire safety design (P-B FSD). Prepared by ISO/TC 92/SC 4, the report captures how P-B FSD is being applied across a range of built environments, what fire safety systems are analyzed, and what documents and guidance countries need to adopt or expand performance-based approaches.
- Survey distributed to ISO/TC 92/SC 4 members (October 2016)
- Responses from 16 countries (14 reported active P-B FSD use; Slovakia and Turkey reported none)
- Questionnaire: 17 questions across four sections (subjects, regulatory systems, design methods, barriers)
Key topics
The report focuses on practical and regulatory aspects of performance-based fire safety design and includes:
- Scope and methodology: survey design, responders, and definitions (terms like AHJ, certifier, peer review)
- Subjects of P-B FSD: building types most frequently using P-B FSD (high-rise, mixed-use, airports, stadiums, shopping malls, industrial and heritage buildings)
- Fire safety systems covered: detection, fire suppression, smoke control and propagation, compartmentation/stability, evacuation, and fire-service intervention
- Regulatory and societal environment: acceptance by authorities having jurisdiction (AHJs), use of private certifiers, peer review and regulatory review practices
- Design fires, scenarios, criteria and calculation methods: practices for defining design fires, performance criteria and analytical tools (including computational methods)
- Barriers and drivers: why P-B FSD is adopted (out-of-scope prescriptive codes, cost optimization) and reasons for limited uptake (regulatory uncertainty, lack of guidance or capacity)
- Annex A: full questionnaire for reference
Applications
Who uses ISO/TR 20413:2021 and how it helps:
- Fire safety engineers and consultants - understand international practices and common analytical approaches for P-B FSD
- Regulators and AHJs - assess how other jurisdictions accept and review performance-based solutions
- Standards developers (ISO/TC 92/SC 4 and national bodies) - identify gaps and priorities for new guidance or normative documents
- Building owners and project teams - evaluate where P-B FSD may provide design flexibility or cost savings
- Researchers and educators - reference international survey data and the questionnaire for comparative studies
Related standards and next steps
ISO/TR 20413:2021 is informative and points to needs for further normative guidance from ISO/TC 92/SC 4. Users should consult related ISO and national fire safety engineering standards and the Annex A questionnaire when developing or reviewing P-B FSD procedures, peer review frameworks, and acceptance criteria.
Keywords: ISO/TR 20413:2021, performance-based fire safety design, P-B FSD, fire safety engineering, regulatory acceptance, design fires, AHJ, peer review.