The Régie du batiment du Québec’s regulations
The tents and marquees in accordance with the RBQ
Were you aware that the tents and marquees used as commercial purposes or meetings of 150m squared and more, or occupants load exceeding 60 persons are subject to building law?
Indeed, only qualified entrepreneurs as LES TENTES GRANDCHAMP INC.or builder-owners can install tents and marquees mentioned above. The entrepreneur, who wishes to offer you service of tents and marquees’ rental also installation, necessarily has to detain a valid licence from the Régie du Bâtiment du Québec.
Instructions and security
Several mesure of security are compulsory when installing marquees and especially with tents. Some minimal rules are presented below as a rough guide only to facilitate the understanding and the application of the state control of codes over the building. These rules concern the most standard fitting-outs of tents and marquees. For more complex equipments as : inside partitioning of tents, raised floors, the presence of a stage, a step row of seats etc., it’s necessary to begin an analysis of fire safety to take into account the fitting-out features.
RULES
Fire safety standards
The tents and marquees canvas, the canvas covers and the materials used for tents’ decorations have to possess a certain fire resistance. To do so, tents and marquees’ rental entrepreneurs are obliged to watch over their equipments’ rules and proceed to the fire-proof of tents and/or marquees’ canvas, drapes, veils, tablecloths, curtains etc. The fire-proof of tents, marquees, canvas-covers and decorative materials are necessarily submitted to CAN/U;C-S109-M standards which means : test of fire performance on fabrics and films. This treatment will be repeated if necessary and a certificate of approval is handed to the tent and marquees rental entrepreneur who will necessarily supply at the customer’s or fire service department’s request.
Spacing
In order to avoid risk of spreading fire between tents and marquees as well as surrounding elements (equipment, building, vegetations etc) it is essential to respect a certain setting-up distance. The tents and marquees thus have to :
• Be set up at least 3 meters from other structures situated on the same property and
be enough away from the others such to give a clear space enable to evacuate the tent in case of emergency.
• Settle down on a ground, free from all inflammable materials or vegetations likely to spread fire on a 3m periphery. Hay, straw, chips or other similar combustible material except those being used for food and animal care are forbidden in a tent set up as meeting establishment; however, sawdust and chips may be authorized if they are kept in a humid state.
Reliability of the structure
A qualified professionnal should proceed to a periodic checking of the structural element of the tent and the tent (poles, rope, anchoring, etc). This professionnal should be able to testify that the aimed equipments are in accordance with the applicable standards.
Means of evacuation
It’s the maximal number of peoples that determines the size of the tent and the necessary number of emergency exits. The exits should always be clear and identified. An exit might simply be an identified curtain enable to safely leave the tent or the marquee. A simple push should release all mechanism serving for locking the surrounding wall of the tent on its periphery.
Inside setup
The means of evacuation of the marquees and tents consist of an inside passageway to the exit. The passage consist of a minimum 6 feet wide and directly leads to the exits of the tent provided for that purpose.
Electrical Installations
The electrical installations are not to be open to the public and have to be checked regularly according to the electricity regulation. Furthermore, all spinning and/or non overhead cable will be buried in a trench or covered with protective shields to avoid them from any damages.
What security steps to look up at the time of the occupancy of the tent or marquee? Forbidden use
It is strickly forbidden to smoke or use device with bare flame or gas appliances when the tent is occupied by the public. It’s the same under a marquee.
Supervision
When a tent welcome more than 1000 occupants, a suffisant number of persons in charge of the security will keep a watchful eye so all safety orders will be respected. They patrol the inside of the tent to make sure that all the exits remain clear.
Number of persons
The number of guests to be allowed under the tent and the marquee is established according to the capacity of evacuation. This one is mainly connected to two cretarions : the exit capacity upon their width and the number of persons per square meter (to be calculating upon the set-up, open area, presence of equipment, furniture etc.)
References
• Chapitre Bâtiment, code la construction du Québec, sous section 3.16
• Code national de prévention des incendies, édition 1995
• NFPA 701 96, Fire test for flame-Resistant Textiles and Films
• Can/ULC-S109-M, Essaie de comportment au feu des tissus et pellicules ininflammables
• Guide de l’utilisateur CNB 1995 Protection contre l’incendie, sécurité des occupants et accessibilité
For more informations contact with one of the regional offices of the « Régie du Bâtiment Du Québec »
