The day after the Grenfell Tower tragedy I received a call from a public-sector fire-safety expert who said: ‘There is more to this than the cladding you know… the fire doors!’ As it turns out, there was much more…
Grenfell was the deadliest structural fire since the Piper Alpha oil platform disaster in 1988 and the worst residential fire in the UK since the Second World War.
The inquiry found that doors that were meant to self-close remained open, allowing fire and smoke to spread through the building. Flat entrance doors had missing self-closers and they failed to meet the legal minimum standard of 30 minutes fire resistance. These were purpose- made fire-rated flat entrance doors, of composite construction, manufactured using 21st-century technology – not original doors from the 1970s.
A combination of insufficient fire testing, lack of proper factory production control and a failure to install and maintain fire doors to an adequate standard in the built environment, meant that when they were needed the fire doors were, in some cases, as good as absent.
Regulatory change
In May 2018 the Government published guidance for Responsible Persons to address concerns over the suitability of flat entrance doors at blocks of flats to resist fire and restrict smoke spread. It gave a reminder that widely used composite-construction flat entrance doors must be fire-tested from both sides, and that routine fire-door checks and assessments should be carried out to ensure the adequacy of flat entrance doors.
From then onwards the fire-door sector noticed a clear uptick in enquiries about fire-door inspection services and quotations for replacement fire doors.
The guidance on fire doors was eventually withdrawn in 2022 and has since been replaced by various new legislation and guidance, including fire-door periodic checks for high-rise residential blocks and guidance about fire doors in small blocks of flats. There have been many such changes, but how might they affect the real-world performance of fire doors in high density housing?
A message from the front line
With awareness of the role of fire doors, a lot has changed including a legal requirement that flat entrance doors and fire doors in communal areas in residential blocks above 11m in storey height are subject to safety checks every 12 months and three months respectively. Housing providers are also required to inform and remind occupants about the importance of fire doors that must effectively and reliably self-close. These doors must not be tampered with or changed for non-fire-rated doors.
At end-user level the importance of fire doors is now much better understood. The fire-door sector itself is a mixed picture. Fire-door inspections are now definitely a ‘thing’, and building management companies are mandating that leaseholders provide documentary confirmation that their flat entrance door will provide 30 minutes’ fire-resistance, while engaging fire-door inspectors to report on the suitability of the fire doors in communal areas.
What can go wrong?
The problem is that some fire-door inspectors are looking to offer additional services to supply and install new fire doors and therefore their inspection judgement can become clouded. Too often fire doors are deemed non-compliant by the inspector only because they bear no label or plug to trace the door to its fire- performance certification, and I suspect that insufficient effort has been made to find any traceability. So we have fire-door inspectors advising clients that their fire doors need to be replaced, offering those additional services and then providing an inferior replacement. Fire rated and certificated but inferior.
Clients would be well advised to procure the services of a fire-door inspector that is truly independent, one that does not offer supply, installation and repair services.
What else has changed?
The important change is that specific training for fire-door installers, maintainers and inspectors is available and being taken up by individuals, small companies, large building companies and their sub- contractors. This has to be a change for the good. Yet it’s interesting that when I talk to fire-door installers and maintainers, I find they nearly always want to do the job correctly but often their managers fail to appreciate that this takes longer than they might think.
Fire Doors Complete – “Can I Certify a Fire Door?” Course in Progress
The fact that there has been wide take-up of fire-door-related training means that in the longer term those that hold the purse strings might appreciate the value of competence.
We are on a journey
When we talk about fire safety, we often hear the word holistic. Every part of the process from procurement and specification, including value-engineering and risk assessment, through competent on-site activities to effective management and maintenance in the built environment will all be necessary if we are to achieve the desired outcomes.
One thing that hasn’t changed is that fire-safety law in the UK is based on risk assessment. The Responsible Person via their fire-risk assessor may consult an independent fire-door specialist for advice but the fact remains that it’s not possible to duck responsibility by simply ordering replacement fire doors.
Fire doors have an essential role in fire compartmentation in a block of flats to support a stay-put policy or to aid safe evacuation and should be inspected for adequacy and checked regularly for defects so that they can be maintained as suitable to meet the requirements of the relevant Fire Safety Order for the particular regional location.
As we reflect on the lessons learned from the Grenfell tragedy, it is crucial that we continue a journey towards proper fire safety measures in high-density housing, including the use of fire doors.
For more information, go to www.firedoorscomplete.com