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| Proving fire door performance in the Gulf |
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Fire door manufacturers in Dubai must now be covered by third-party certification to comply with the Dubai Civil Defence (DCD) requirements. Barely five years ago, door manufacturers were just coming to terms with this relatively new requirement – and also with the fact that they had to test to British or American rather than local standards. The authorities had been quick to recognize that as Dubai was rapidly becoming a centre for international trade and tourism in the Middle East, they wanted to demonstrate that the myriad new buildings springing up were being constructed to high standards of performance – and above all, safety. A fire resisting doorset - the door leaf or leaves, the frame in which the door is hung, essential ironmongery, intumescent and smoke sealing devices - is required to perform one of three main functions:
Thus a fire door, together with its surrounding wall, must contain the fire in its compartment of origin for a specified time. Dubai manufacturers are now testing to standards such as BS 476: Part 22: 1987 'Methods for the determination of the fire resistance of non-load bearing elements of construction' . Testing involves exposing the doorset to high temperatures (in excess of 900O C) until failure, ie the door no longer resists fire. The time to failure for the tested specimen is expressed in a test report, proving that the door design meets 30, 60, 90 or 120-minute requirements. Third-party certification goes beyond testing. As well as providing test evidence, manufacturers must also demonstrate that they operate an approved quality management system (ie factory production control). In addition, they must carry out regular audit testing, which means ongoing checks on performance, production and operating procedures in the factory. This gives buyers and specifiers the reassurance that not only did the test specimen successfully pass, but that any specimen chosen at random from the production line will meet the same high requirements. Chiltern International Fire has more than 30 years’ experience of fire door testing and consultancy. Through our sister company, BM TRADA Certification Ltd, we are also able to offer third-party certification, under the Q-Mark banner, for many products, including doors, windows and fire doors. Chiltern Fire first started working with fire door manufacturers in Dubai, some three years ago. At that time, BM TRADA Middle East had already been operating for a number of years and was providing quality management certification under the internationally recognised standard ISO 9001:2000, a cornerstone of the BM TRADA fire door certification scheme. Over 100 fire door manufacturers in Dubai, a significant percentage of the industry, are now registered with BM TRADA Middle East. The pace with which fire door manufacturers have embraced certification is impressive – it has taken the UK industry almost 20 years to reach a comparable position. There is no doubt that having our own team of auditors on the ground is of huge advantage to BM TRADA. It also proves more cost-effective for manufacturers wishing to undertake certification with us, as there is no need to fly auditors in from the UK, as our competitors might do. As our reputation has spread, we are now regularly approached by companies in other countries keen to sell into the thriving construction market in Dubai, including Lebanon, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Similarly, Chiltern Fire is able to help clients to make the most of their test evidence. Test reports relate only to what has been tested and allow no variations. Changes to a fire doorset tested under the British standards will require either another fire test, or an assessment. This is a desktop study undertaken by our experienced fire consultants and which may allow variations on a tested design. We therefore advise clients to provide a specimen that not only meets the immediate requirements of a particular project, but may also offer coverage of a range of products if used as the subject of an assessment, which will prove more cost-effective for them in the longer term. At all stages we work closely with our clients. Our aim, with BM TRADA, is to enhance the quality and performance of products in the market, an aim very much in tune with manufacturers in Dubai. For further information on
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Kevin Towler, Managing Director of Chiltern International Fire, discusses the impressive pace with which the fire doors industry in Dubai has embraced third-party certification.