183 - Innovation and fire safety with Vincent Brannigan

Fire Science Show

History repeats itself. A new thing is invented. We learn about it, understand it, and apply measures to capture its behaviour and regulate it. And then another new thing is invented. The measures we used start failing us, and the cycle repeats all over again.
It is not a story of fire safety; it is a story of humanity. Similar cycles can be observed in all aspects of technology. One could call them Innovation Blind Spots after Prof. Rein; in science, you could call them paradigm shifts after Prof. Kuhn. Regardless, these cycles are the frame we work in, and we need to learn to handle them.
In fire safety, they are often a cause of major disasters. In this podcast episode, I once again interview prof. Vincent Brannigan. Vincent has spent a large part of his career studying the limiting factors of innovation in fire science and its regulation.
This podcast is framed after a lecture Vincent delivered 15 years ago, which can be accessed here: https://www.fireseat.eng.ed.ac.uk/sites/fireseat.eng.ed.ac.uk/files/images/02-Brannigan.pdf
It is an engaging read, I recommend going through it after the podcast episode!

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The Fire Science Show is produced by the Fire Science Media in collaboration with OFR Consultants. Thank you to the podcast sponsor for their continuous support towards our mission.

Chapters

1. Innovation in Fire Science Tribute (00:00:00)

2. The Flaws of Fire Testing (00:10:51)

3. Fire Safety Innovations and Regulation (00:19:44)

4. Regulatory Challenges in Fire Safety (00:26:05)

5. Technological Frames in Fire Safety (00:34:36)

6. Testing and Reification in Fire Safety (00:47:24)

7. Understanding Fire Science Through Conversation (00:58:28)