The sixth edition of the SFPE Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering, the most thorough and reputable resource ever created for the field of fire protection engineering, has been released, according to the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE). 

The SFPE Handbook has had a significant impact on the field since its ground-breaking first edition in 1988. It is now the preferred worldwide resource for fire safety engineers, researchers, code officials, and students. With substantial revisions, more content, and essential new chapters that represent the most recent advancements in fire safety engineering, science and technology, the sixth edition carries on that tradition.

Key Enhancements in the 6th Edition

• New Section 4: Fire Test Data for Engineering Methods (4 new chapters)
• New Section 11: Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) Fires and Environmental Impacts (7 new chapters)

New and Updated Chapters

• Chapter 1-1: Introduction to Fire Protection Engineering
• Chapter 1-6: Fire Walls
• Chapter 1-9: Fire and Life Safety During Modifications, Additions, and Demolition
• Chapter 1-10: Fire Investigations
• Chapter 6-7: Flame Extinction by Active Suppression
• Chapter 7-8: Structural Fire Engineering
• Chapter 9-9: Lithium-Ion Batteries and Energy Storage
• Chapter 9-10: Refrigerants
• Chapter 9-11: Warehouse Storage Challenges 

SFPE Members can receive a 40 percent discount on the Handbook by accessing their exclusive member code here.

“The 6th Edition of the SFPE Handbook reflects the evolution of fire protection engineering and addresses the critical challenges facing our industry today,” said Chris Jelenewicz, PE, FSFPE, CEO of SFPE. “We are proud to deliver the most comprehensive resource available to fire safety professionals worldwide, and we are grateful to the hundreds of contributors whose expertise and passion made this edition possible.” 

The 6th Edition addresses emerging fire protection challenges, including:

• Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) fire dynamics and evacuation
• Fire risk from lithium-ion battery storage
• New engineering methods using fire test data
• Sustainable and resilient fire protection strategies
• Risk analysis in healthcare, nuclear, and mass transportation sectors 

For individuals getting ready for the US Fire Protection Professional Engineer (PE) exam, the SFPE Handbook is an essential academic and professional resource. The 6th Edition will be the main source of information for SFPE's PE Exam Review Course starting this year. It will also be integrated into SFPE's upcoming Introduction to Principles of Fire Protection Engineering eLearning course, giving students a reliable and consistent foundation in the theory and practice of fire protection engineering.

Section Editors and Leads

• Section 1 – Fire Protection Engineering Practice
  • Jeff Tubbs (Arup)
  • Joe Vaughn (Jensen Hughes)
• Section 2 – Fire Chemistry and Combustion
  • Margaret McNamee (Lund University)
  • Stanislav Stoliaro (University of Maryland) 
• Section 3 – Fundamentals of Heat Transfer, Ignition, and Surface Flame Spread
  • Charley Fleischmann (University of Canterbury)
  • Dorota Brzezinska (Technical University of Lodz) 
• Section 4 – Fire Test Methods for Engineering Data
  • Eric Guillaume (Effectis)
  • Marc Jannsens (Southwest Research Institute)
• Section 5 – Fire Dynamics
  • Dan Gottuk (Jensen Hughes)
  • Jennifer Wiley (Jensen Hughes)
• Section 6 – Fire Protection Systems
  • Milosh Puchovsky (Worcester Polytechnic Institute)
  • Victoria Hutchison (NFPA) 
• Section 7 – Structural Fire Resistance
  • Susan Lamont (Arup) 
• Section 8 – Human Behavior in Fire
  • Erica Kuligowski (NIST)
  • Daniel Nilsson (University of Canterbury) 
• Section 9 – Industrial Fire Hazards
  • Chris Wieczorek (FM Global) 
• Section 10 – Risk and Reliability
  • Francisco Joglar (Jensen Hughes)
  • Vladimír Mózer (University of Žilina) 
• Section 11 – Wildland-Urban Interface Fires and Environmental Impacts
  • Samuel L. Manzello (Institute of Fluid Science, Tohoku University)
  • Sayaka Suzuki (Institute of Science Tokyo)