Abstract

For an architect, one of the aspects in designing a building is to comply it with fire regulations. Architectural design is a very complex process and requires many design aspects which need to be considered. By nature, architectural design is ‘vague’ and ‘ill-defined’ during the early stage of design process. The study shows that it is better for the architect to consider the fire regulations during the early design stage so that the design follows the rules. However, the study also shows that many architects will only consider fire regulations requirements after the design has been completed. This is due to the nature of the fire regulations and the design itself which are too complex. Many design problems arise from the non-conformance of the rules. Therefore, fire regulations need to be considered as early as possible. This paper will discuss on the difficulties of using fire regulations during the design process and how these can be solved. A design of a computer program is proposed to show how to integrate the use of fire regulations during the design process.