Australian Data Centres’ Fire Safety: What is in FRV’s 2026 Concept?

As Australia’s demand for digital services and cloud infrastructure grows, data centres surpass most commercial building types. Data centres are more fire prone than normal offices or warehouses because of their dense wiring, large electrical loads, UPS systems, and lithium-ion batteries. To bridge the gap, Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) scheduled an industry engagement beginning with the draft guideline in July 2026.

The FRV’26 Data Centre Design Guidance draft is not a new national rule. Rather, it is FRV’s perspective on what it considers to be a suitable way to assess the fire risk of data centres in its fire district. It is a broader industry consultation that would continue till the end of August and would identify where fire protection expectations are required. 

Data Centre Fire Safety is Getting More Complex

Modern data centres have several interrelated fire dangers that cannot be evaluated independently. Lithium-ion batteries are housed with UPS systems and are increasingly being deployed in on-site BESS installations, alongside diesel generators, subgrade fuel storage, high volume transformers, and switchgear.

Cooling infrastructure is then used to control heat loads, which is rare in ordinary buildings.

These are not standalone systems that can be assessed. Compared to normal commercial architecture, data centre fire safety is quite a different application.

The risk of a fire in a battery room is influenced by its proximity to electrical infrastructure, compartmentation, and how a defect in one system can spread to others.

Lithium-Ion Batteries Spark a Fire Safety Conversation

The current focus is on battery energy storage, which has garnered the greatest interest. Thermal runaway is a self-accelerating breakdown mode of lithium-ion battery cells that can cause the release of flammable gases.

Early identification and appropriate ventilation are crucial because thermal runaway can release hazardous, combustible gases before visible flames appear.

According to FRV’s industry battery safety recommendations, there is a substantial lithium-ion battery fire risk associated with UPS and BESS installations, where batteries can remain hazardous even after they appear to be discharged.

Additionally, for developers, it also has practical implications in terms of how the room must be separated. 

Ventilated, protected, battery chemistry, configuration and capacity all have an impact on how the room’s protection requirements are met, so general assumptions are rarely valid from project to project.

Fire Safety Should Be Considered Early

Fire safety is a clear message within the FRV draft.

So site layout, battery position, and generator locations are determined during the design phase.

Changes to compartmentation and/or access after construction begins are significantly more complicated than planning changes earlier.

This is in addition to the overall emphasis of the National Construction Code (NCC), as well as the ABCB‘s advice on code input, which promotes a risk-based and project-specific approach to fire safety rather than a one-size-fits-all assumption.

It prioritises input to the NCC throughout the idea and design phase rather than as a final step before commissioning.

Identifying Fires in Data Centres

Early fire detection is especially crucial in data centres, where fires threaten both lives and infrastructure. Aspirating smoke detection devices, such as VESDA (Very Early Smoke Detection Apparatus), are frequently used because they detect smoke particles before noticeable smoke appears.

This gives operators time to respond before equipment breakdown worsens. Alongside these technologies, off-gas detection in battery areas is considered more and more, mainly because early warning alters the amount of time responders have before a crisis intensifies.

Emergency Access and Fire 

Fire safety in a data centre extends beyond the building boundaries. Emergency vehicle access, hydrant position, and staging areas all have an impact on how quickly firefighters can respond; therefore, site planning must take these issues into account from the start.

Firewater containment is a related subject that is often disregarded. Firewater runoff from firefighting activities can be hazardous if it comes into contact with batteries, fuel storage tanks, or dangerous chemicals. So a site drainage design should include appropriate containment measures. 

What Does 2026 Guidance Mean for Developers and Operators?

No matter what path the FRV’s consultation takes, the core concept is unlikely to shift. Fire safety works best when disciplines are integrated early on, rather than when individual specialist inputs are collected later.

Early collaboration decreases redesign risk and ensures documentation consistency across electrical, mechanical, and fire-safety disciplines. This provides operators with a facility in which emergency response planning reflects what is actually built.

There is also an endless dimension. Facilities change as capacity is added or battery systems are changed, and fire-safety paperwork should be reviewed with those changes rather than being treated as a one-time delivery.

To Conclude

Data centre fire safety in Australia is becoming more integrated. It will include a scenario in which battery chemistry, compartmentation, detection, suppression, and site access are examined concurrently rather than separately.

The FRV’s 2026 consultation draft is an early but crucial indicator of that trend, which is likely to endure beyond the consultation period.

For engineering teams supporting these projects, this implies that fire equipment layouts, sprinkler system design, fire alarm and monitoring coordination, evacuation route planning, and fire-safety documentation must all work together as a cohesive package rather than as distinct deliverables.

Finulent Solutions assists developers, consultants, and operators in these areas as part of its fire and safety design work and is accessible to discuss how a project’s specific hazards may influence its approach.