The Door & Hardware Federation (DHF) has welcomed the Ministerial Statement to the House, given by the then Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, James Brokenshire, in which he updated members on building safety.
In particular, the Minister informed those present that following an independent investigation into timber fire doors, no issues had been found with the consistency of the fire resistance performance of the doors tested. The DHF says this ‘is good news for the industry’, and adds further weight to its continuing campaign for all fire doorsets to be factory-prepared (as opposed to prepared onsite), and certified by a third-party.
In reporting his findings on 18 July, Mr Brokenshire explained that all tests were undertaken to British Standard BS-476:223 in a UKAS-accredited test house on complete doorsets facing into and away from the furnace. In all, 25 timber fire doors from different manufacturers (and including a range of glazed and unglazed such doors with a variety of hardware) were furnace tested; all passed the 30-minute standard on both sides. As a result, the Expert Panel concluded that timber fire doors perform consistently in fire resistance when tested, and pass the 30-minute required standard across the market when manufactured to specification.
Mr Brokenshire did, however, make clear that complete assurance can only be achieved if building owners insist that installed fire doors are fit for purpose and have the required documentation and certification in place.
Commenting on the findings, DHF’s CEO, Bob Perry, said: “We are delighted with the outcome of this investigation, which is very positive for the industry. As an organisation, DHF has lobbied assiduously for third-party certification of manufacture, installation, maintenance, and inspection of fire, smoke and security doors, all of which form a vital part of fire safety.”
