Your fire safety checklist – how do you score?

Did you know:

• There are 20,000 commercial fires in the UK every year[1]
• One study found that larger fires in schools cost on average £2.8 million to repair, and in some cases as much as £20 million[2]
• When London Fire Brigade inspected 177 care homes in the capital in 2019, it found a third had inadequate or poorly maintained fire doors[3]
• Last year, a Freedom of Information request answered by 147 UK local authorities, discovered 63% of planned fire door maintenance and replacement did not progress as scheduled[4]

Fire safety is so important, saving both lives and property.

Fire doors act as an essential barrier against flames and smoke, and have a vital role to play – but so do all of us, throughout the supply chain. We have to take every step possible to make sure the products we’re supplying and installing perform as expected in the event of a fire.

And with builders’ merchants selling over 75 per cent of fire doors in the UK[5], and customers relying on architectural ironmongers and locksmiths to recommend hardware that hits the mark, we can all make a big difference to fire safety in the UK.

• [1] IFSEC Global, ‘Fire extinguishers: your legal obligations’, https://www.ifsecglobal.com/fire-news/fire-extinguishers-legal-obligations/#:~:text=Fire%20extinguishers%3A%20your%20legal%20obligations%20There%20are%20nearly%2020%2C000%20commercial,premises%20or%20run%20a%20business
• [2] Zurich Municipal, ‘Schools twice as likely as other buildings to be hit by a blaze’, https://www.zurich.co.uk/news-and-insight/schools-twice-as-likely-as-other-buildings-to-be-hit-by-a-blaze
• [3] Fire Door Safety Week, ‘Fire safety concerns in care homes’, https://www.firedoorsafetyweek.co.uk/toolkit/care-homes/
• [4] Fire Door Safety Week, ‘Fire door delays in local authority properties’, https://www.firedoorsafetyweek.co.uk/app/uploads/2020/09/FDSW_INFOGRAPHIC_2020.pdf

To help make sure you’re doing everything you can, we’ve created the following fire safety checklist. But how do you score?

Fire safety products are compatible

Fire doors must be installed with correct and compatible components, which will be on the door leaf’s fire certificate. These components should be be fire tested and include the door leaf, door frame or lining, intumescent seals, smoke seals, hinges, a latch or lock, and door closers. In some cases, components such as letterplates, air transfer grilles, threshold seals, door views, and intumescent pads for ironmongery will also need to be considered.

Fire safety products are tested

When selecting the appropriate ironmongery for a fire door, it’s crucial that products are certified and have undergone independent third-party testing. For example, a door closer installed on a fire door must be tested to the standard EN 1154, and fire-rated to the standard EN 1634. Fire doors should meet the standard EN 12519, and it’s also recommended that they are Certifire tested by the British Woodworking Federation (BWF).

Products are appropriately marked

Fire doors and hardware must satisfy the appropriate CE, UKCA or UKNI product marking. While it is the manufacturer’s responsibility to make sure the products meet these standards, it is down to the reseller to make sure the products being sold and stocked have the right product marking. Ultimately, don’t get caught out by supplying an unmarked product, as this could potentially come back to haunt you if there’s an incident.

Products meet the customer’s everyday demands

To avoid common problems such as propping fire doors open, which is neither safe or legal, it’s essential that the building and it’s day-to-day usage are properly considered. Say the customer’s building includes an area where people regularly pass through. In this case, an electromagnetic door closer, which can help legally hold a fire door open and then automatically release should a fire alarm sound, would be a good option. This kind of solution is much better suited to meeting this site’s day-to-day demands.

Products are installed properly

All fire doorsets must be installed in line with the manufacturer’s instructions and meet their testing needs. If not installed properly, a product may not perform as expected – and this can have a knock-on-effect. If the installed hinges, for example, do not perform as intended, then the fire door could drop, which may mean locks are not aligned, and additional stress is placed on the door closer that means it doesn’t work as it should, and so on.

How did you score? Can you stand the heat, or is there a possibility you might end up in hot water?

If you have any questions about the above points, then get in touch and we can help make sure you receive top marks on our fire safety checklist in future. Because, as a leading manufacturer of fire door hardware, we have a decisive role to play in fire door safety too. That’s why we pride ourselves on creating expertly designed, high-quality products that you can specify and install with confidence. Not only do they look good and perform brilliantly, but they also meet all the relevant fire safety standards that you need them to.

We’re all in this together. Let’s all play our part in creating buildings that protect against fires, helping to save lives and properties.