With schools under pressure to eke out their budget for refurbishment, Chiltern International Fire has warned that upgrading the fire resistance performance of fire doors must be approached with care to avoid wasting money.
Fire resisting doors play a key role in the event of fire by helping to provide safe egress from the building and reducing damage to property. They must therefore be in good working order and capable of providing the required level of fire resistance. Senior Consultant Peter Barker said, ‘In the current climate schools may opt for upgrading rather than replacing fire doors as part of a refurbishment project, because it is perceived as cheaper, quicker and easier. It should be preferable in terms of waste, too, but we would advise caution.’
He explained, ‘There are numerous products on the market that claim to be suitable for upgrading and reinstating the fire resistance of doors to 30/60 minutes’ fire resistance, but not all will be suitable for all the different types of doorsets to be found in buildings, assuming that the door is suitable for upgrading in the first place.’
Upgrading of the doorset must include all aspects of the design including, among other things, leaf construction, frame, hardware, intumescent seals, glazing and installation. An error in any one of these elements can significantly reduce the fire resistance performance of the doorset.
Mr Barker added, ‘The inherent risk involved with upgrading, without fully understanding the doors, the various products available and the associated supporting test evidence needed, is that it is very easy to spend a lot of money and achieve little. In more than one instance, we have spoken to a building owner who has spent a considerable amount of money on upgrading doors, only to discover that they are unlikely to perform for more than 10 minutes because of an oversight in a fundamental component such as glazing.’
It is also necessary to understand how a doorset’s fire resistance performance can be drastically altered over time, say through the fitting of incompatible hardware. He stressed, ‘In the current climate it is important to ensure that any outlay is wisely spent but in the crucial area of fire protection, schools cannot economise on safety.’
PDF: Chiltern International Fire warns against wasting money when upgrading fire doors in schools
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