With Fire Door Safety Week (FDSW) less than a week away, Warringtonfire and its sister company BM TRADA, leading providers of testing, inspection, and certification services, are urging ‘Responsible Persons’ for fire safety to refresh their knowledge following recent changes to national fire safety legislation.
Taking place between 25 – 29 September, FDSW is the British Woodworking Federation’s (BWF) annual reminder that everyone has a part to play in ensuring fire doors perform as they should in the event of a fire. In conjunction with the event, Peter Barker, Technical Manager at Warringtonfire, is encouraging stakeholders responsible for fire doors to familiarise themselves with the relevant changes to the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 that came into force earlier this year.
Peter said: “Fire Door Safety Week is a great initiative that many will be familiar with, however it is imperative that everyone refreshes their understanding of how to keep our buildings safe from fire. If you are a ‘Responsible Person’, as defined under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (RRFSO), then you have a duty to comply with the regulations. The RRFSO applies to all workplaces and commercial buildings, as well as non-domestic parts of multi-occupied residential buildings – this includes those areas clarified by the Fire Safety Act 2021, and this applies to England only.”
Under the RRFSO, the ‘Responsible Person’ must carry out an assessment of the fire risks to people on the premises or within its vicinity, and these are described as ‘relevant persons’ in the order. “If you are unsure about your responsibilities you should read the legislation and consult guidance, such as that given within our book ‘Getting started with Fire protection: your responsibilities under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (RRFSO) 2nd Edition’, which can be bought through our sister company BM TRADA’s bookshop,” said Peter.
Along with being familiar with fire safety responsibilities, Peter also advises that throughout the built environment supply chain, stakeholders should be checking that manufacturers can adequately demonstrate the performance of their doorsets. For example, flat entrance doorsets often have to provide fire resistance, smoke control and security, and the performance can be assured by specifying doorsets that are certified for all three performance characteristics by a UKAS-accredited third-party certification provider, such as Warringtonfire and BM TRADA, who are part of Element Materials Technology. This will ensure compliance with the official police security initiative, Secured By Design (SBD), standards.
Last year, SBD announced all SBD member companies with doorsets listed with it that are fire rated and that are required by UK Building Regulations (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) must have smoke control properties for the intended installation. For example, flat entrance doorsets, need to be certificated for the following attributes – Security, Fire and Smoke Control.
“The control of smoke is imperative in a fire scenario and this has been highlighted by Secured By Design through its latest requirement,” said Peter. “Through our Certifire and Q-Mark certification schemes, offered by Warringtonfire and BM TRADA respectively, doorset manufacturers can meet SBD requirements and offer multi-performance doorsets that deliver the highest form of fire safety and security.”
For more about the ‘Getting started with Fire protection: your responsibilities under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (RRFSO) 2nd Edition’, click here.
