Expressnews
Chennai, January 30, 2026:
As India’s urban skylines grow taller and denser in its journey towards Viksit Bharat, fire safety in high-rise buildings has emerged as a critical national concern. With conventional firefighting mechanisms often constrained in accessing fires at elevated levels before they spread internally, experts increasingly emphasise the need for fire-resistant structural design and effective fire compartmentalisation at the building stage itself.
Addressing this pressing challenge, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Tirupati has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Aadit Fire Testing Laboratory, state-of-the-art fire testing laboratory, to undertake advanced research on the effects of fire on building structures and materials.
Under the collaboration, Aadit Fire Testing Laboratory will serve as IIT Tirupati’s partner laboratory for fire testing, providing access to its world-class infrastructure and facilities. IIT Tirupati will contribute academic and technical expertise to analyse, interpret, and advance research outcomes related to the fire performance of structural systems, including steel and reinforced concrete.
The partnership aims to generate actionable research insights that can be shared with India’s construction, infrastructure, and real estate sectors, helping improve building codes, material performance standards, and fire-resilient design practices.
“In today’s high-rise urban environments, fires can escalate internally long before external firefighting intervention becomes effective,” said P. Jothi Ramalingam Ponnusamy, Director, Aadit Fire Testing Laboratory. “This collaboration focuses on strengthening the fire resistance of buildings themselves, ensuring greater safety for occupants and assets.”
The MoU reflects a shared commitment to strengthening India’s fire safety standards, indigenous research capabilities, and knowledge dissemination, aligned with the country’s long-term urbanisation and infrastructure development goals.
