B-RISK: Design fire tool
About this tool
B‑RISK is an advanced design fire simulation tool used to analyse how fires may develop inside buildings.
Unlike simple fire models, B‑RISK takes into account uncertainty and variability by presenting fire simulation results in a probabilistic way. This helps designers better understand the range of possible fire conditions rather than relying on a single scenario.
The tool is commonly used to support performance‑based fire engineering design, including work carried out to demonstrate compliance with the New Zealand Building Code, particularly C/VM2.
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How to use this tool
B‑RISK is provided as downloadable software for use on Windows systems.
To get started:
- Download the B‑RISK software and install it using the setup file
- Refer to the user guide and technical manual for instructions and modelling assumptions
- Create a building model and define fire scenarios using integrated design tools.
B‑RISK allows you to model and analyse:
- Fire growth and heat release from building contents
- Item‑to‑item fire spread and random placement of fuel within rooms
- Operation and effectiveness of sprinkler systems, including multiple sprinkler heads
- Door and vent behaviour, including hold‑open devices and triggered opening or closing
- Smoke movement and ventilation flows
- Reliability of fire safety systems such as detectors, mechanical systems and doors
- Balcony spill plumes for smoke management design.
The tool also supports:
- Monte Carlo simulations for risk‑based analysis
- Visualisation of fire and smoke behaviour using Smokeview software
- Benchmarking against experimental fire test data.
Background
B‑RISK was developed by BRANZ in collaboration with the University of Canterbury, building on the earlier BRANZFIRE deterministic fire model. Development was funded by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and the Building Research Levy, which continues to support updates and maintenance.
The tool is intended for analysing room fires and internal fire hazards and is most suitable for trained fire engineers and specialist practitioners. Supporting resources such as benchmarking reports and technical guidance documents are available to help users understand the model’s assumptions, limitations and appropriate areas of use.
B‑RISK plays an important role in modern fire safety design by enabling more realistic, risk‑informed decision‑making.