FOCUS
Significant details Iain McIlwee explores some of the seemingly
small details to consider when it comes to fire door glazing, and why they make such a big difference in the event of a fire
door – which was taken from the building and was supposed to resist fi re for 30 minutes – was in fact only able to withstand fi re for 15 minutes in tests, is sadly not a surprise. Professionals who work in fire and risk management will understand that fire doors play a critical role in protecting occupants, buildings and firefighters. However, despite the shocking headlines,
W
too many people do not give fire doors a second thought – they forget that the real job of a fi re door is to provide a barrier to fi re, prevent it from spreading throughout a building, and keep escape and access routes clear. The fi re door is about more than just the door – it’s a system of components that must all work together to ensure that the door will perform when needed. Think of fire doorsets and assemblies as
complete product systems – the door leaf, the frame, the ironmongery, the seals and any glazing system or component must work hand
48 MAY 2018
www.frmjournal.com
HILE CONCERNING, the announcement in March from detectives investigating the Grenfell Tower tragedy that a fi re
in hand to ensure that a fi re door will perform when needed. A glazed aperture in a fi re door, and fire resistant glazed screens that may surround it, all play an integral role in providing safety and light in everyday use. In the event of a fi re, these elements will need to resist it for the specifi ed amount of time, as well as give crucial visibility of escape routes and to the extent of the fi re that is being withheld.
Build basics
Firstly, ensure that your existing or new fire doors are manufactured by a company that holds third party certification for the specific product in question (including any glazing system). The reassurance that this provides is that the manufacturer is audited by an independent third party, which not only checks that a product is tested appropriately, but also that the product is retested on a regular basis. It also checks that the factory production control system (the manufacturing operation) is externally audited, to ensure that the product is
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