The 12th Fire Systems Design Conference will be held from 23–24 April 2026 in Cape Town, South Africa. Building on the success of the 2025 event, this edition will focus on advancing fire safety engineering across industrial, commercial and community sectors. The conference will gather engineers, designers, regulators, academics, and solution providers to explore how Africa can adopt resilient, performance-based design standards and utilise emerging technologies to enhance fire safety outcomes.
Reflecting lessons from previous editions, the 2026 programme expands its focus beyond energy storage systems to include evacuation modelling, investigative practices, competency frameworks, and community resilience. Delegates will engage with leading experts on SANS 10287 (the new South African sprinkler code), computational fire modelling, wildland fire risk, and inclusive fire design for vulnerable populations. The event will combine technical depth with real-world application, ensuring that participants leave with actionable knowledge, practical insights, and strengthened professional networks.
The conference is designed for multidisciplinary professionals and organisations involved in the design, regulation, and management of fire safety systems, including:
Participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of the latest developments in fire safety design and engineering. They will:
We promote and create opportunities for professionalism in the
development and management of sustainable energy. We create a total
continuous learning experience for delegates. We serve!
Jocelyn Evans
Managing Director |
Hofman & Evans (Pty) Ltd
Head of Fire Engineering Stellenbosch University
Director | Fire Brand Group
Deputy MD | Brigit Fire
Lead Industrial Fire Engineer | Bauwen
Laboratory Engineer | Ignis Testing
Owner | Ignis Testing
Owner of MCD Consult
Head of Fire | Ivorian Engineering
Firestop Specialist | Hilti South Africa
Director Projects | ProRisk
Laboratory Engineer | Ignis Testing
Director | CFS Engineering Consultants
Director | SHEVS (Pty) Ltd
Director | The Fire Engineer (Pty) Ltd
Technical Director | Bauwen
General Manager | Brigit Fire
Sales Director | ZYTEQ Fire
Risk Engineer (Prive) | Santam Insurance
Owner | Juexin Fire Engineering
Lead Fire Engineer | Atana
Division Commander (DC) | eThekwini Municipality Fire and Emergency Services
Marketing manager South Africa & Sub-Saharan | Securiton AG
0730 Registration and networking
0815 Opening remarks from the chairperson – Jocelyn Evans | Managing Director | Hofman & Evans (Pty) Ltd
0830 Prof Richard Walls | Head of Fire Engineering | Stellenbosch University
Topic: Assessment and Repair of Fire Damaged Buildings
0900 Renay Sewpersad | Deputy MD | Brigit Fire (A Hudaco Group of Companies (PTY) LTD)
Topic: Legal, insurance, and regulatory frameworks in fire engineering
0930 Dirk Streicher | Owner | Ignis Testing
Topic: Fundamentals of Fire Testing (Starting fire testing laboratory in South Africa)
1000 Networking tea break
1030 Carlo Kuhn | Laboratory Engineer | Ignis Testing
Topic: Fundamentals of Fire Testing (Fire resistance testing) / (Reaction-to-fire testing)
1100 Dr. Antonio Cicione (PrEng, PhD, BEng, FPSRD) | Director | CFS Engineering Consultants
Topic: Applications and limitations of CFD fire modelling
1130 Richard Goodland | Director | SHEVS (Pty) Ltd
Topic: Designing smoke ventilation for safety through simplicity and cost
1200 Kobus vd Merwe | Technical Director | Bauwen
Topic: A holistic blaze-quencher for mining’s fiery foes.
1230 Dineo Matlou | Head of Fire | Ivorian Engineering
Topic: The Blind Spots in Industrial Fire Detection and Protection of Electrical Equipment
1300 Networking Lunch
1400 Adriaan van Wyk | Director Projects | ProRisk
Topic: Industrial and process fire safety management
1430 Riaan Furstenburg | Owner | Juexin Fire Engineering
Topic: Who is evacuating the building… humans or robots?
1500 Webber Marais | Firestop Specialist | Hilti South Africa
Topic: Passive Fire Protection – Are we paying attention to the detail
1530 Panel Session
1630 Closing Remarks from Chairperson
1645 Networking Tea Break: End of Conference
0700 Registration and networking
0815 Opening remarks from the chairperson
0830 Karel Roodt | Director | The Fire Engineer
Topic: Designing Smoke Ventilation Systems – Integrating Fire Dynamics, ASET vs RSET, and the EN 12101 Framework
0900 Ferdi Jansen | General Manager| Brigit Fire (A Hudaco Group of Companies (PTY) LTD)
Topic: SANS 246 and system approvals
0930 Bertrand Gertzen | Lead Industrial Fire Engineer | Bauwen
Topic: The trojan horse within risk matrices
1000 Networking tea break
1030 Terence Ewers | Sales Director | ZYTEQ Fire
Topic: The Challenges and Opportunities of Designing and Manufacturing Fire Detection Equipment in Africa
1100 Clyde Becker | Director | Fire Brand Group
Topic: “The Evolving Role of Fire Protection System Practitioners (FPSPs): Bridging Engineering, Compliance, and Innovation.”
1130 Innocent Masekoa | Risk Engineer (Prive) | Santam Insurance
Topic: Bridging Risk and Regulation: The Role of Insurance in Driving Compliance with SANS Fire Safety Standards
1200 Dr. Marika du Plessis, PrEng, PhD | Owner of MCD Consult
Topic: International developments in battery energy storage.
1230 David Szöke | Lead Fire Engineer | Atana
Topic: Fire safety for Africa: progress, challenges, and future direction
1300 Networking Lunch
1400 Sifiso Zola Mtshali | Division Commander (DC) | eThekwini Municipality Fire and Emergency Services
Topic: Fire resilience in informal and low-income settlements
1430 Steven Freudiger | Marketing manager South Africa & Sub-Saharan| Securiton AG
Topic: Early warning smoke detection for Risk based applications: what technologies to use in complex applications ie: High Bay racking, Ducts, return grills, cold rooms.
1500 Panel Session
1600 Closing Remarks from Chairperson
1615 Networking Tea Break: End of Conference
Cost per person
NB: Price is in South African Rand. Price displayed excludes VAT.
