For many of us, the responsibility of protecting a former Queen of England’s stately home from being ravaged by fire would be enough to give us sleepless nights. But for fire expert Don Scott, it’s just a standard day on the job.
Four years ago, Don was called to Hever Castle, the 16th century home of Anne Boleyn, best known for being married to King Henry VIII until she was beheaded for treason in 1536. The Grade I listed building in Kent, UK, had started to spark unwarranted attention due to a spate of false fire alarms and the situation had become so bad that the fire brigade was told they didn’t have to respond to future alarms.
Enter Don, a fire engineer with more than 23 years of experience under his belt. He assessed the building before suggesting various techniques to prevent false alarms and protect against fire, including compartmentalization, which is a way to divide buildings into compartments to restrict the spread of a blaze.
The building is the battlefield
Don has reviewed the fire safety of hundreds, if not thousands, of buildings and although he admits the pressure of working on buildings of such historical significance can be immense, ultimately the job remains the same no matter when or how the structure was built.
“The job is the job, and whether it’s a new or an old building, they’re all susceptible to fire,” says Don. “Yes, working in historical buildings does make you question, ‘Have I got this right? Am I going to be responsible for the burning down of Hever Castle?’ but ultimately the fire is the enemy, that’s what I’m trying to defeat. The buildings are just the different battlefields. And on the battlefield, you have to choose different strategies and different ways in which to beat it.”
From castles to politicians
Don’s know-how has also protected senior politicians from the threat of blazes, and one surreal experience particularly stands out in his mind. In 2002, he was called to Portcullis House in London’s Westminster, a 20,000 m² office space built to house 213 members of parliament and their staff.
There was no immediate threat to the building, but its design meant the floor was divided into areas that were separately monitored by flame detectors. Home Office officials wanted assurance that the system would work, so Don and his team were asked to run some tests. They cordoned off sections within the vast building and lit pan fires to ensure various detectors throughout the building were working properly.
“Because we were setting fire to petrol in the middle of this nice new building, we had the London Fire Brigade on standby,” says Don, “and from a health and safety point of view, we had to tape off the area. As we were working away, a lady with a rather prominent status within the government strode in, lifted up the tape, walked straight past the burning petrol, and came out the other side. She was completely oblivious to the absolute horror of the London Fire Brigade officers as they observed this. It was a complete disregard of the signage, the kind of person that thinks, ‘This doesn’t apply to me’.”
Don has extensive training to handle situations like these, but unsurprisingly it was a day that he won’t forget in a hurry.
New day, new challenges
Don’s job is clearly fascinating; he’s collected more stories and anecdotes in his 23 years with Siemens than most of us accumulate in a lifetime. He’s based in Frimley, UK, but he is by no means bound to his desk — there’s regular travel, the opportunity to meet people from all walks of life, and the chance to share his knowledge with younger trainees as well as customers. “You get a lot of fulfillment from feeling you’ve done the job well,” says Don, “and by doing your job well, you’re actually making people safe in their jobs or in their homes.”
His job is full of variety, so it’s difficult for him to describe a ‘typical’ day as a fire engineer. “It really varies,” he says. “A lot of the time I support some of the other engineers or sales guys in their role by giving them advice. They come and speak to me and say, ‘Is this okay? Can we do this? What’s the best way to do it?’ Sometimes I’ll go and have a meeting with a customer and say, ‘No, you don’t quite have the right end of the stick’.” Strong communication and people-skills are essential in order to succeed.
And what else is within the remit of a fire engineer? “At the moment, I’m working on the design specifications for a power station up in north Wales, and also doing a fire strategy for another company in Wokingham,” he says. “I’m writing lots of courses, doing risk assessments, and I’m being asked to do a seminar for a group of architects. I’m trying to prepare our guys for doing the Fire Industry Association (FIA) training courses so I’m doing a bit of a mentoring scheme. I’ve also just been invited to go out to Malta on behalf of the FIA to do a presentation to the Maltese Chamber of Engineers.”
As well as the variety, Don enjoys the scientific aspect of his role. “I just find the whole aspect of fire and the way it works really fascinating — especially the chemical side, and how it grows,” he says. “The maths side of it as well, because it is quite a scientific subject. It just gripped me.”
Training the next generation
“I could have retired two years ago,” says Don, “but when I told management, ‘You realize I can retire in June?’ there was just this look of sheer horror on their faces. Nobody had given replacing me a thought.”
So why aren’t more people lining up to become fire engineers? Don believes a lack of awareness around fire engineering means young people don’t even know the career exists — let alone understand what it entails. “People just don’t see it as a career,” he says. “You speak to any youngster and say ‘fire engineer’ and they don’t know what it is. Colleges aren’t promoting it as a career. It’s usually something that people fall into almost by accident after going through their first career.”
Don’s a perfect example: it wasn’t until he’d served 23 years in the British Army as part of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers that he considered fire engineering as a potential career. Many people join the fire industry later in life, meaning it becomes more difficult for them to reach the very top of their game.
“The FIA is certainly looking at ways to try and recruit more fire engineers, and one of the ways they’re looking to do this is by looking at the forces,” he says. “But again, that’s people coming to the industry from a first career, meaning they have a limited time frame,” he says.
What skills do future fire engineers need? “Attention to detail,” says Don. ‘Conscientiousness. Just taking your time to make sure you get it right. Don’t rush, if you rush, you make mistakes.”
A career for life
Over the years, Don’s witnessed hundreds of situations where people and businesses don’t take fire risks seriously. “Most people don’t give any consideration to fire risks,” says Don. “Fire is something they only hear on the news, something that happens to other people. It’s not something they ever think about happening to them. As a fire engineer, you have the opportunity to change this mindset.”
Don is passionate about the vast opportunities open to people who choose to follow this route. “It’s an undermanned career, so you can go as far as you want to go,” he says. “You can get doctorates in it now and because of the shortage, you can make your career what you want. So, it’s down to you basically. If you’re after something where you can shape your own future, I’d absolutely recommend it as a career.”
At Siemens, Don Scott is a fire engineering consultant, and has been working with Siemens for 23 years. He has a first-class honors Fire Engineering Degree from London South Bank University. He is based in Frimley, UK. Find out more about working at Siemens.
Illustrations: Eve Warren
