www.heatingandventilating.net


highlight issues that increase fire risk in buildings. Clients will have to demonstrate how they acted on the information in these reports and, in the case of dampers, that proper testing and maintenance work has been carried out by competent contractors to ensure they will work as intended in the event of a fire. However, the industry will have to ensure it has a large enough competent workforce to cope with the likely influx of work and that will require considerable investment in training and recruitment, according to BESA. The Association is already spearheading an


urgent exercise to develop occupational standards that will underpin technical qualifications needed to increase the number of workers able to install, maintain and repair dampers. The current skills shortage in this area is a real source of concern. BESA is part of Building Services Engineering (BSE) Skills – the not-for-profit body charged with managing and developing qualifications and apprenticeships for the sector, and which is working on new National Occupational Standards (NOS) for dampers to ensure contractors can satisfy growing demand for their services. BSE Skills, which represents 43,000 businesses and almost 342,000 operatives, has produced a provisional suite of technical NOS to help employers deliver fire damper and smoke control damper installation, commissioning, testing and repair.


Warning


BESA is also updating its industry guidance for the ‘Installation of Fire Dampers and Smoke Dampers’ (DW145), which is due for publication shortly. This follows the warning it issued last year that annual maintenance inspections were uncovering a significant number of incorrectly installed dampers that did not comply with manufacturers’ instructions. It called for remedial action “without delay”. The guidance covers statutory requirements for the installation, testing and maintenance of fire dampers and smoke control dampers including clients’ legal obligations to ensure their fire safety systems comply with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 for England and Wales and the Fire Safety (Scotland) Regulations 2006. It also explains the crucial role played by the


penetration seal in ensuring the overall fire stopping integrity of an installation, the importance of maintenance teams being able to find and access dampers for testing and repair, and the need for designers and installers to seek expert advice from damper manufacturers. BESA also issued an interim technical bulletin (VH001) ahead of the full update of DW145, to highlight several specific concerns around damper installations. For example, the use of self-drilling ‘tek’ screws which do not melt when temperatures rise during a building fire was a particular worry, it said. “This is a dangerous practice as they sometimes


prevent spring-loaded dampers being released to contain the spread of fire within the zone and ensure the integrity of the fire stopping measure,” said Fox. “Dampers must also be secured by fusible links that


Ductwork & ductwork cleaning


created and that every manually resettable damper must be individually released to ensure the spring- loaded shutter remains operational. Fusible links must be regularly checked for


deformity and damage; and other problems such as corrosion reported to the client.


Action


allow the duct to break away otherwise the collapsing duct could pull the damper out of place and break the seal between the fire zones.” The technical bulletin, which is freely available on the Association’s website, gives contractors the information and appropriate terminology to alert clients to this potentially life-threatening problem. It builds on BESA’s sheet metal ductwork


specification DW144 and the ventilation hygiene standard TR/19 as well as DW145. It also provides a methodology to help contractors


comply with the British Standard (BS9999) for fire safety in the design, management, and use of buildings along with the healthcare sector’s technical documents HTM 03-01 for heating and ventilation and HTM 05-02 for fire safety in healthcare premises. BS9999 requires all installed dampers to be tested


by a competent person and at regular intervals “not exceeding one year”. It also states that spring- operated dampers should be tested annually with those installed in dust-laden atmospheres checked even more regularly. BESA’s guidance explains how dampers should


be located – in line with the responsibilities of the system designer and as part of a building’s fire strategy – and accessed for testing along with the levels of competence required to carry out this work. It states that an inventory of all dampers should be


The BESA document also sets out a comprehensive plan for providing reports to clients and any findings that need action including damaged and missing dampers. It also highlights key elements needed to put a planned maintenance regime in place for dampers linked to the Association’s digital maintenance standard SFG20. BESA explains that one of the most important aspects of fire and smoke damper testing is pinpointing those dampers that cannot be tested – often because they cannot be found or easily reached. It makes clear that the testing company should provide the client with a proposal for how this can be rectified so that 100% of dampers are checked. “The bad news is that there are a lot of wrongly


installed and poorly maintained dampers out there,” said Fox. “However, the better news is that this problem is being brought to our attention by the increasing frequency of fire damper inspections and tests as awareness grows of this extremely important issue. “Contractors should alert their clients immediately so all the necessary checks and repairs can be carried out – and they can take the opportunity to point out that the whole building safety regime is changing thanks to the new Act,” he added. “Dampers are in the front line of fire safety and


too many have been ignored for far too long.” www.theBESA.com


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