Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN) is going to augment its efforts in Fire Safety Engineering by establishing a new fire testing lab and undertaking multiple scholarly activities to boost research and development in the area of fire safety in the country.
Shri Mukesh Shah, Managing Partner in the Ahmedabad-based Shah Bhogilal Jethalal & Bros (AAAG India), one of India’s leading fire fighting equipment manufacturers, has provided generous support for this cause.
In appreciation of his gesture, the Institute will name its new fire-testing research lab as the ‘Shah Bhogilal Jethalal Laboratory for Passive Fire System Testing’, in memory of Shri Mukesh Shah’s grandfather and founder of the Shah Bhogilal Jethalal & Bros.
IITGN pursues high-impact research and quality education in the field of safety with its Centre for Safety Engineering (CSE), which is committed to promoting a culture of safety and is mainly focused on fire safety. The first facade fire test facility in South Asia was also established at IITGN in collaboration with Underwriters Laboratory, USA. The new lab will help enhance fire safety in high-rise buildings, airports, metro rail, and other infrastructure projects through critical testing of building elements.
With this, the Institute is also going to multiply various activities of the Centre for Safety Engineering with a special emphasis on Fire Safety Engineering. These will include laboratory development and augmentation, teaching of courses, inviting eminent scholars as visiting professors or scholars-in-residence, and organising seminars, conferences, or other scholarly endeavours in this area.
Speaking on the new collaboration for advancing Fire Safety Engineering, Prof Amit Prashant, Officiating Director, IITGN, said, “With rapidly evolving usage of different kinds of materials in residential and industrial projects, advanced research and education in fire safety engineering is the need of the hour to understand and be prepared for the future challenges in different fire hazard scenarios. With more than nine decades of experience in firefighting equipment manufacturing, we are very glad that Shah Bhogilal Jethalal & Bros and Shri Mukesh Shah chose IITGN to provide impetus to the cause of research and education in Fire Safety Engineering in India. Such contributions from Industry help advance public safety for society.”
Sharing his thoughts, Shri Mukesh Shah, Managing Partner, Shah Bhogilal Jethalal & Bros (AAAG India), said, “We, at AAAG India, have always supported the cause of Fire Safety. Emerging technologies and interdisciplinary research have the capacity to provide effective solutions to mitigate various scenarios of fire hazards. Since IITGN has also been doing substantial work in this field with its Centre for Safety Engineering, we are excited to partner with this premier institute in an area of critical importance.”
About Shri Mukesh Shah:
Shri Mukesh Shah has more than three and a half decades of experience in the firefighting equipment manufacturing industry, with domestic as well as overseas clients from different sectors such as oil & gas, petrochemicals, construction, and so on.
He is mainly involved with development and evaluation of products and marketing. Under his leadership, the firm has grown to a remarkable level, to become one of the largest firefighting equipment manufacturing companies in India.
He has also been a member of a Sub-Committee on Fire Fighting Equipment by the Bureau of Indian Standards for almost two decades and a National Committee Member of Fire Protection Association of India and served as a Chapter Head of Gujarat. He is also an active member of professional fire & safety associations, taking a leadership role in promoting the cause of fire safety.
The Centre for Safety Engineering is a preeminent centre in the country working in the public safety space. The objective of the IIT Gandhinagar Centre for Safety Engineering is to promote a safe built environment in both the public and private sphere.
As India continues to experience rapid growth, built environment and infrastructure safety are paramount and the need of the hour. New building technologies and struggling public safety infrastructure present new challenges; the centre is pursuing advanced research and conducting performance-based tests for safer buildings.
It also organises various outreach events and provides support as a consultant in the research project, implementation and development of projects in the safety area.