Fire Door Safety Week (September 25 - October 1) is a timely opportunity to bring to light the critically important role of fire doors in building fire safety and to remind responsible individuals of the legal requirements and to give tips and guidelines to reinforce this crucial message.
Fire doors are key to the safety of individuals in the event of a fire; these critical products ensure a fire can be contained in a compartment, keeping smoke and fire trapped for a defined period of time allowing people to escape, be rescued and the fire to be tackled.
There are three vital things to remember about fire door safety that will save lives;
1. Select certified products from a reputable and reliable source
2. Ensure proper installation
3. Undertake regular inspection and maintenance routines
1. Select certified products from a reputable and reliable source
Building owners and contractors are responsible for ensuring that fire doors have the correct certification.
So, how to go about selecting the correct certified fire door hardware?
To help with choosing the right products with confidence, Laidlaw, the UK’s largest independent supplier of ironmongery, integrated doorsets, balustrades and security systems, have launched their new product range Firemongery™.
Firemongeryis a fully certified range of ironmongery, fire door controls, integrated doorsets and automatic door controls. It provides a quick and fool proof way to select exactly what you need for new fire doors or to maintain existing fire doors. All products within the range are fully tested and CE marked where applicable. In addition, many are also Certifire approved which is an internationally respected mark of fire safety.
With over 140 years of experience and expertise, Laidlaw can assist in the selection of exactly the right fire safety products and solutions for any type of project and their qualified staff are readily available to offer help and guidance whenever it is needed.
To understand more about the importance of certified fire door hardware, take a look at our recent blog about certified products.
2. Ensure proper installation
The correct installation of fire doors is fundamental to their overall performance because it will ensure the fire door will remain reliable to its fire integrity rating in the event of a fire and perform as it should.
The British Woodworking Federation advises that building owners and contractors should use registered fire door installers which can be found through the Fire Door Installer Register.
The Fire Door Installer Register is a new industry-led initiative backed by the UK’s leading fire door experts, associations and organisations.
It aims to bring greater recognition to professional fire door installers and to help building owners who need installation services to find qualified and certified people they can trust.
3. Undertake regular inspection and maintenance routines
There are approximately 3 million new fire doors bought and installed every year in the UK in hospitals, offices, schools and public buildings and all of these fire doors need to be maintained on a regular basis. Maintenance of fire doors is essential for ensuring the safety of individuals operating within a building, these are not fit and forget products.
For professional advice on meeting their responsibilities under the Fire Safety Order, it is recommended that hospitals, offices, schools and public buildings should always use a Certificated FDIS Inspector. At Laidlaw, they have qualified FDIS Certificated Inspectors who can visit, inspect and advise on any fire safety needs.
To understand more about fire door maintenance, take a look at our recent blog on maintenance schedules.
Selecting certified products from a reputable and reliable source, ensuring proper installation and undertaking regular inspection and maintenance routines will save lives.
