Comments on IPENZ Practice

New Zealand Coldstore Engineering

CCANZ
The Cement and Concrete Association of New Zealand (CCANZ) represents in
excess of 300 corporate and individual members at the forefront of the construction
industry in New Zealand. Association members collectively account for a significant
proportion of the building and construction sector in New Zealand.

The cement and concrete industry annually produces and uses 1.5 million tonnes of
cement in New Zealand, which equates to around 3.75 million cubic metres of
concrete for new residential, non-residential and commercial construction. In total,
the direct, indirect and induced economic impact of the cement and concrete industry
resulted in close to $7.5 billion of output across the economy in the year to March
2006. This activity supported more than 24,000 jobs and created a value add of
about $2.8 billion 2 percent of New Zealands GDP in 2006.

In line with our mandate as representative of the cement and concrete industry,
CCANZ has preparation this submission in response to the document IPENZ Practice
Note New Zealand Coldstore Engineering.

Comments

Sections 2. Design Considerations and 4. Appropriate Structures

CCANZ does not believe that sufficient recognition has been afforded to the
significant advantages that are inherent in concrete systems for the construction and
use of coldstores, such as:

The enhanced durability, low maintenance and whole-of-life cost savings

associated with concrete.

Speed of erection of precast concrete (sandwich) panels and the fact that
these panels can be manufactured off the critical path.

Energy savings associated with reduced temperature fluctuations due to

concretes thermal mass.

The insulation properties of concrete sandwich panels.

Fire resistance and the structural stability of concrete in fires see comments
in section 6. Fire Engineering, below.

Lower risk/ insurance premiums.

Comments on IPENZ Practice
New Zealand Coldstore Engineering 1/5 27 April 2009
Subsection 4.1.3 Concrete floors

The issues identified with concrete floors can be addressed by appropriate design
and selection of optimum mix proportions and materials. Special Concrete, in
accordance with NZS 3104:2003i, should be specified by the designer or purchaser,
who will stipulate the parameters and methods of demonstrating compliance. The
concrete producer is responsible for the mix design. Relevant CCANZ publications
include TR 10 Specifying concrete for performanceii and TM 08 The Abrasion
resistance of industrial concrete floor slabsiii.

Concrete floor tolerances for forklift stacking operations are comprehensively dealt
with in the UK Concrete Societys Supplement to TR 34 Concrete industrial ground
floors: A guide to design and construction - specification and control of surface
regularity of free movement areasiv, which should be included in the bibliography of
the Practice Note.

See also CCANZ publications TM 26 Concrete ground floors & pavements for
commercial & industrial use: Part 1v and TM 38 Concrete ground floors & pavements
for commercial & industrial use. Part 2 - specific designvi, and the New Zealand
Concrete Societys Seminar notes, changes to NZ standards specifying concrete
for performancevii.

The International Association of Cold Storage Contractors publishes Guidelines for

the specification, design and construction of cold store floorsviii, which should be in
the bibliography of the Practice Note.

To prevent damage to concrete floors during commissioning an appropriate

temperature reduction regime such as the one specified by the Institute of
Refrigeration should be stipulatedix.

Section 6. Fire Engineering

CCANZ feels that Section 6. Fire Engineering of the Practice Note does not
sufficiently emphasise the excellent fire resistance of concrete.

Concrete has the highest possible classification for fire resistancex. Its inherent fire
resistance is one of its major benefits as a construction material. It is non-
combustible and has a slow rate of heat transfer, which makes it a highly effective
barrier to the spread of fires.

Other benefits of concrete include:

It does not produce smoke, toxic gasses or emissions.

It does not contribute to the fire load of a building.

It retains strength in fire, reducing the danger of structural collapse a very

important consideration for fire fighters.

Polypropylene fibres can be incorporated to prevent spalling.

Comments on IPENZ Practice

New Zealand Coldstore Engineering 2/5 27 April 2009
 It does not drip molten particles that can spread fires.

Appropriate mix proportioning (design) can enhance concretes inherent

performance, and Special Concrete mixes cater for extreme fire loads, such as
hydrocarbon fires associated with volatile refrigerants used in cold stores.

Additional (costly) fireproofing measures are generally not required.

Concrete structures are relatively quick and easy to repair after a fire, so the
building and business will have less down time.

NZS 3101 Concrete structures standardxi which should be included in the

bibliography of the Practice Note contains a comprehensive section on Design for
Fire Resistance (Section 4).

The choice of reinforced concrete for the structure, floor and refrigeration panelling/
partitioning of coldstores has a number of advantages:

Structure:

Fire resistance is primarily of importance in the load-bearing elements of the

structure, but it is important that the fire is not contained, as it will increase the
damagexii.

An insulated reinforced concrete sandwich panel cladding, in addition to being

non-combustible, will act as an effective barrier to the spreading of fire, but
provision should be made for fire ventilation and access of fire fighters and
fire-fighting equipment. This can be accomplished by either providing a roof
that will be rapidly destroyed by the fire, to provide natural fire ventilation, and/
or sufficiently large and automatically opened areas (escape doors) that
provide immediate ventilation of heat and fumesxii.

Compared to structural steel, which will typically just remain stable at

temperatures of 550 degrees C under a static load of 55% of its yield strength
a typical design scenario the reinforced steel in a concrete element will
retain considerably more strength as it is protected by its concrete coverxiii.

According to Hemmings in his paper, Basic factors in cold store designxiv,

concrete columns are worth considering from a fire and maintenance point of
view.

Fire losses are minimised by designing the load bearing structure of a building
to minimise the risk of collapse by making it adequately fire resistantxii.

Floor

From a fire resistance and maintenance point of view, insulated reinforced

concrete floors are generally used for coldstores see Comments under 4.1.3
Concrete Floors, above.

Comments on IPENZ Practice

New Zealand Coldstore Engineering 3/5 27 April 2009
 Refrigeration panelling/partition walls

The prevention of fire spread is a major factor when considering what can
increase fire damage. Persson et alxii state, inter alia, that the store should be
partitioned into smaller blocks using incombustible material. Traditionally this
has been done using panelling made from a sandwich insulation layer
sandwiched between thin mild steel sheets. However, from a fire engineering
and structural perspective, there are compelling advantages in using insulated
reinforced concrete sandwich panels, which are much more effective in
preventing fire spread, as well as being structurally robust.

Risk and insurance should also be considered at the design stage. The value
of the goods in a coldstore can be 5-10 times more than the value of the
buildingxii, and this is the most important consideration after the safety of the
general public and fire-fighting crews. The importance of effective fire spread
prevention measures is emphasised by Persson et alxii, who state that the
store should be divided into smaller blocks; large openings for fire ventilation
should be available; incombustible material should be used as far as possible;
and a quick fire-fighting operation should be made possible.

Moreover, it should be kept in mind when considering risk and insurance

issues at the design stage, that the fire service would place an emphasis on
restricting the spread of, rather than extinguishing, coldstore fires. This has
implication in as much as fish, meat and dairy products are very susceptible to
tainting, and that smoke and water contamination should be avoidedxv.

Subsection 6.5 ACTIVE FIRE PROTECTION Sprinklers

CCANZ wrote to the Department of Building and Housing on 20 December 2005 to

make known our thoughts and concerns about the revision of NZS 4541xvi Automatic
Fire Sprinkler Systems. We believe this submission is relevant to the design of
coldstores, and have enclosed/ attached a copy of it in its entirety.

Alan Kirby
PROJECT MANAGER

Comments on IPENZ Practice

New Zealand Coldstore Engineering 4/5 27 April 2009
i
NZS 3104: 2003, Specification for Concrete production. Standards New Zealand, Wellington.
ii
CCANZ, Technical Report TR 10: Specifying concrete for performance, Cement and Concrete
Association of New Zealand, Wellington.
iii
CCANZ, Technical Manual TM 08: The abrasion resistance of industrial concrete floor slabs, Cement
and Concrete Association of New Zealand, Wellington.
iv
The Concrete Society, Supplement to Technical Report No. 34 Concrete industrial ground floors: A
guide to design and construction - specification and control of surface regularity of free movement
areas, The Concrete Society, Camberley, Surrey, UK.
v
CCANZ, Technical Manual TM 26 Concrete ground floors & pavements for commercial & industrial
use: Part 1, Cement and Concrete Association of New Zealand, Wellington.
vi
CCANZ, Technical Manual TM 38 Concrete ground floors & pavements for commercial & industrial
use. Part 2 - specific design, Cement and Concrete Association of New Zealand, Wellington.
vii
NZCS, Seminar Notes: Changes to NZ standards specifying concrete for performance, New
Zealand Concrete Society, Auckland.
viii
IACSC, Guidelines for the specification, design and construction of cold store floors, The
International Association of Cold Storage Contractors, European Division, Buckinghamshire, UK.
ix
IoR, Code of practice for the design and construction of cold store envelopes, The Institute of
Refrigeration, Surrey, UK.
x
The Concrete Centre, Concrete and fire, The Concrete Centre, Surrey, UK.
xi
NZS 3101: Part 1: 2006 Concrete structures standard, Standards New Zealand, Wellington.
xii
Persson P, Arvidsson O and den K, Fire risks and fire prevention in cold stores, International
Journal of Refrigeration, International Institute of Refrigeration, IPC Business Press Ltd., Paris,
France.
xiii
Cather, B, Advanced concrete technology: concrete properties, edited by Newman J and Choo BS,
Elsevier, Oxford, UK.
xiv
Hemmings WK, Basic factors in cold store design, International Journal of Refrigeration,
International Institute of Refrigeration, IPC Business Press Ltd., Paris, France.
xv
Burton-Wood PK, Hunt JH and Sheppard MJA, A fire code for the New Zealand meat freezing
industry with particular reference to cold stores, International Institute of Refrigeration, IPC Business
Press Ltd., Paris, France.
xvi
NZS 4541 Automatic fire sprinkler systems, Standards New Zealand, Wellington.

Comments on IPENZ Practice

New Zealand Coldstore Engineering 5/5 27 April 2009