4th International Conference of the Hellenic Institute for the Fire Protection of Structures (ELIPYKA), March 2026

Conference took place on 19–20 March 2026 at the Athens Conservatory with great success.

The Conference, under the title “Fire Engineering and Contemporary Challenges in Fire Protection”, attracted strong interest from the scientific and technical community:
• total participation amounted to 750 participants (550 in person and 200 remotely),
• 50 distinguished speakers and coordinators,
• 29 sponsors, and
• 26 media sponsors
The event was endorsed by 6 major universities and institutional bodies.
This broad participation confirms its role as the leading conference for the exchange of knowledge, expertise and experience in the field of fire protection.
The topics covered Fire Engineering and fire protection, forest fires and the built environment, fires on facades and their spread, the relationship of fire protection with sustainability, fires in tall and complex buildings, legislation and education, innovative materials and research in fire protection. The legal environment and practices of fire protection of several countries was examined with presentations from Greece / US / Germany / Romania and efforts on developing tools on EU level. Latest issues were also examined, like passive, active measures and extinction of fires in lithium batteries, in photovoltaic panels, in electric vehicles, in wind generation. Strategies for the Wildland–Urban Interface (WUI) were also discussed.
Throughout the two days, a dynamic environment of interactivity was developed, within which the exchange of views between speakers and participants was continuous and fruitful. The discussions that followed the presentations, the interventions of the audience and the open dialogue through Q&As, as well as the round table, contributed to the in-depth understanding of contemporary challenges
and the transfer of specialized knowledge and experience.

The success of the conference reinforces ELIPYKA’s commitment to the continuous update and promotion of knowledge about fire protection in construction and in the building environment.