The main objective of this paper is to identify different analytical methods which permit the calculation of the stress level in wooden simply supported beams, due to mechanical and thermal loading conditions. Two different wood species, with different cross-sections, will be presented. The fi re resistance, the charring depth layer and the charring rate will be determined using the fi nite element method with Ansys® program. To characterize the stress state in wooden beams, all elements are subjected to mechanical load considering the reduction of the cross-section, infl uenced by thermal action. Another purpose of this work is to identify the ultimate safe load-bearing capacity in wooden beams, subjected to uniform load simultaneously with the thermal effect. All numerical results permit the specifi cation of simple design calculation methods, simplifying the verifi cation of the fi re safety of wooden beams. Keywords: charring depth, fi re, load-bearing capacity, uniform load, wooden beam. Fonseca et al., Int. J. of Safety and Security Eng., Vol. 0, No. 0 (2012) ABSTRACTThe main objective of this paper is to identify different analytical methods which permit the calculation of the stress level in wooden simply supported beams, due to mechanical and thermal loading conditions. Two different wood species, with different cross-sections, will be presented. The fi re resistance, the charring depth layer and the charring rate will be determined using the fi nite element method with Ansys® program. To characterize the stress state in wooden beams, all elements are subjected to mechanical load considering the reduction of the cross-section, infl uenced by thermal action. Another purpose of this work is to identify the ultimate safe load-bearing capacity in wooden beams, subjected to uniform load simultaneously with the thermal effect. All numerical results permit the specifi cation of simple design calculation methods, simplifying the verifi cation of the fi re safety of wooden beams.