F.A.Q.

Q : What are the basic engineering data in Turkey, in terms of fire protection ?
Measures System : Metric and ISO
Electricity : 220/380VAC, 50 Hertz
Valid Standards : NFPA, BS, LPC, DIN, VdS
Service Proficiency : No submittal of proficiency is required to design, sell, install, commission, operate and make the maintenance of fire protection systems/materials,
Approval Requirements : No approval is required to design, sell, install, commission, operate and make the maintenance of fire protection related jobs,
Insurance : There is no obligation of insurance against fire for houses, offices, factories, etc.

Q : Are there any standards on fire protection in Turkey ?
Yes, there are published standards on fire protection. The standards are released by TSE (Turkish Standards Institute) however these standards are very poor and inapplicable in terms of completeness, scope and content. As a Design and Consultancy company we find all of these standards unsatisfactory to follow in our designs, specifications and decisions. Even partially, only a very few of them is referred by our company.

Q : Which standard is respected and followed ?
Due to the lack of appreciable local standards in our country, quite a number of foreign standards are followed. In result, we are capable of dealing with different standards in equal power. It is either the job specifications or the investor or the insurance company or the material supplier who dictates which standard to follow. Within this mass, unfortunately in lots of jobs there is no concern at all, to be comformable to a standard. In overall practice, the most widely used standards are NFPA of USA, then BS and LPC of UK, VdS and DIN of Germany. Interestingly enough, although they are not followed in local jobs, SNIP of Russia is quite well known, due to the huge amount of contracting activities of Turkish Contractors in Russia and in Ex-USSR republics.

Since most of the time the investor, the designer and even the insurance company is unable to chose which standard to follow, the problem of choosing a standard is mostly governed by the system/material supplier. Because if the standard which their system/material comforms is chosen, then they eliminate some competitors. In this way the standards are abused for competition purposes. Since every system/material supplier (which are importers) is promoting his system's/material's country of origin's standards and the North American manufacturer's have a domination in Turkish Fire Protection market, it is not difficult to understand why NFPA is the leading standard. Of course one should not undermine that the language, availability, completeness as major advantages of NFPA increases the wide use of NFPA.

In the jobs where we handle the design or consultancy, if there is a confusion in deciding which standard to use, then we bring the alternatives and our proposal together with their consequences (cost, maintenance, supply dependency...) in front of the decision makers and let them make a choice, under our consultancy.

Q : Are there any regulations on fire protection in Turkey ?
Yes, there are regulations on fire protection. These can be grouped in two parts : regulations for a specific organization, public regulations. Public regulations are for the obedience of all the people within the control of regulation releasing authority. These are basically the regulations released by the municipalities. Whereas the regulations for specific organizations ask for the obedience of that particular organization only. Regulations on the fire protection and fire safety of government buildings and the regulations on the fire protection and fire safety of Turkish Drink and Alcohol Monopoly buildings are of this kind. Please refer to http://www.tuyak.org.tr/standartveyonetmelikler.html for the complete list of Turkish Fire Protection and Fire Safety Regulations

Q : What is the common practice in Turkey, for fire water supply ?
We can not speak about a standard or regulation for fire water supply. Therefore almost all the water supplies are acceptable and taken valid. If we look at the common practice :

elevated tank : very limited to airports, military bases or some industrial facilities.

municipality fire water mains : used very limitedly in very few towns or in some districts of towns. Mostly used for street hydrants not for private system supply.

electric motor driven pumps : almost the most common application together with hidrofos. However these pumps are most of the time classical multi-stage centrifugal pumps, not fire pumps. Only quality hotels, industrial facilities use fire pumps.

diesel engine driven pumps : used in apparent risks and facilities which are insured by foreign insurers. These are mostly industrial facilities.

hidrofors : almost the most common application together with electrical motor driven pumps. Most of the time serving both the domestic water system and fire system. However, most of the time they lack of a reliable electricity and water supply.

Q : Are there any fire safety regulations in Turkey ?
Although limited in number and coverage, incomplete in technical terms, there are some regulations in Turkey. Here are the complete list of regulations :

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Fire Safety Regulation (1991)
Turkish Monoploy Fire Safety Regulation (1991)
Fire Safety Regulation for Government Buildings (1996)

Important Note :
FAQ is managed by KARINA and all the answers belong to KARINA's experience and to a certain extent subjective evaluations, hence open to objection. If you have any objection, confirmation or contributions which you want them to be released, please write to info@karina.gen.tr.