Door Industry Journal - Winter 2021

113 THE door industry journal winter 2021 2 Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk Fire Doors, Safety & Security Following reports such as Dame Judith Hackitt’s ‘Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety’, which drove the recent Fire Safety Bill amendment to the Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order and ‘The Construction Playbook’ by the UK government, the onus is now on us as an industry to come together and ensure that the fire doorsets we manufacture, specify, supply, inspect and maintain are compliant. Why doorsets? A doorset is the entire system, typically including but not limited to the door leaf and its frame, intumescent and smoke seals, hinges, hardware, signage, glazing and the glazing system, door closer, and any fanlights or sidelights. It is recommended that a fire doorset is factory-prepared, which means it is machined, assembled and prepped for any hardware – tolerances included – before arriving on-site. Plus, all components come from one source of supply and sit under one fire test certificate, a field of application or assessment. All work is completed under factory production control and ideally audited by a third-party, thereby ensuring the complete compliance of the doorset at the point of production. The doorset is manufactured to either stock or tailored sizes to suit new or existing buildings. Critically, it is also produced within the test data remit of the manufacturer. Decision-makers are advised to invest in fire doorsets that are fully factory-prepared because a complete doorset provided by the manufacturer is the end product for which they are responsible. In contrast, a fire door assembly is reliant on components and materials being obtained from several sources and then manufactured correctly on-site. This means the onus is then on those sourcing the door assembly to provide an end product that meets all the correct standards and demands, as well as detailing evidence of performance. With a factory-prepared doorset, decision-makers can be confident that all parts have been compiled from a single source, meeting exacting standards and tolerances, which are absolutely crucial for fire and security performance. Up to standard? Testing and certification of all products that can impact fire safety are mandatory and through impartial, third-party accreditation. To meet the necessary standards, a fire doorset must pass one or a series of rigorous tests, as well as be properly certified and rated to withstand fire for a set period of time. This testing should be conducted by an independent testing body, in accordance with the relevant British or European standards. With the Fire Door Inspection Scheme finding 76 per cent of fire doorsets inspected in 2019 as not fit for purpose, ensuring these systems are up to standard cannot be underestimated. Many of the fire safety products used in Grenfell Tower were found to have not performed as they should, with a leaked BRE Global draft report noting only 17 per cent of the door closers installed in Grenfell Tower were present and working. Shockingly, 50 per cent of door closers installed did not even work properly. It is therefore essential that a thorough study is completed by the decision- maker to compare the expectations of each fire doorset – including all hardware – to make sure they are accurately covered by the certification issued by the third-party accredited body. Validation should not be based on