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Alan Cox
Member - 36 posts
What many people do not realise is that whilst doors appear to be a very simple way of protecting openings from fire, weather and unauthorised entry there is a great deal of technology build into this simple piece of building equipment when it is used for preventing the spread of fire.
Some years ago I produced a Fire Door Educational Package in conjunction with Central Television and at the start of the project they did not feel that there would be enough material to produce a 20 minute production but the final product was over 2 hours and was described by one industry expert as "the third major milestone in the history of fire doors".
Anyone that has seen the production will realise the complexities involved in assessing, specifying,installing and maintaining firedoor sets, which is really the term that should be used, as fire doors cannot be considered without their respective frames and hardware.
During my recent investigation for the BBC on hotel fire safety in the South West problems with fire doors were one of the main areas where problems were identified and these included:
1. Fire doors wedged open/ left open
2. No fire or smoke sealing
3. Incorrect hardware
4. Poor fit
5. Severe damage/warping
Also in the programme viewers saw how two standard 30 minute fire doors, one with fire and smoke seals and one without, performed in a fire test. The unprotected door failed in just over 15 minutes whilst the protected one lasted for nearly 45 minutes.
When I visit clients fire doors are nearly always a problem and this inevitably is because they were incorrectly specified in the first instance and I will advise carrying out the following:
1. A door useage survey to estimate daily useage
2. A door requirement survey to understand what the door is required for eg security, fire, noise etc
3. Accident history or near misses - you may be surprised how many accidents occur with doors, particularly with self closing fire doors.
The above information allows me to produce a Risk Assessment and Door Maintenance Schedule which can be included with the Fire Risk Assessment for the building
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