Intro
This new urban space offers a multitude of functions, from meeting place to concert hall. The public space complex includes rehearsal and meeting rooms, as well as a multipurpose hall for parties and concerts. VK was responsible for the M&E engineering, but also provided a solid study of fire safety engineering. Dynamic evacuation simulations showed that an evacuation scenario that deviated from the VLAREM regulations yielded the fastest time.
- Client(s)
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- Town of Roeselare
- Architects
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- Studio Plus
Story
The fire safety engineering study took into account two geometric variations and three evacuation scenarios.

For the new multipurpose hall Trax in Roeselare, VK carried out the studies M&E engineering and fire safety engineering, including a study that simulated the evacuation time of the stand on the basis of various dynamic evacuation simulations.
The study took into account two geometric variations and three evacuation scenarios. The first geometric variation is in accordance with the VLAREM regulations (Flanders Environment Agency), the second contains deviations. The three scenarios are :
- the audience is evacuated with a stage in the hall, which blocks several doors;
- the audience is evacuated behind the scene;
- the audience evacuates via the entrance, a reflex that often occurs in stress situations.
The VK study showed that scenarios 1 and 3 show about the same evacuation time. However, scenario 2 showed a significant difference in favour of the variation not in conformity with the VLAREM regulations. The geometry of this second variation allows the public to leave the room via a direct line. The variation in accordance with the VLAREM regulations, on the other hand, requires the public to take a turn, which means that the evacuation takes more time.
- VK Architects & Engineers
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