Door Industry Journal - Summer 2016

Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk THE door industry journal summer 2016 fire & security feature Compliance: Protecting Lives Pat Jefferies, Commercial Director at Abloy UK discusses how emergency escape and fire door compliance is vital to ensure the safety of a building’s occupants. Specifying the correct locking solution on emergency escape and fire doors is a great responsibility, and access control is not a subject to be taken lightly - fitting the correct system can mean the difference between life and death for the occupants of a building. However, research shows that there is uncertainty and confusion over exactly who is responsible for ensuring compliant solutions are in place, with low awareness of fire safety duties. A study conducted in 2014 found that respondents with formal responsibility for fire safety in their organisations were not fully aware of their legal obligations – when asked, almost half (46.5 per cent) said they either did not know what they were, or admitted they were unclear 1 . A similar proportion (45 per cent) of people responsible for fire safety in their organisations said they really would not know how to spot a ‘dodgy’ fire door – one of the most critical passive fire protection features in the buildings we use every day. This is evidence that there needs to be greater education on escape and fire door safety, how to ensure the solutions specified are both safe and compliant, and who is accountable for this. 97