burning issue

Glass Times editor Nathan Bushell reviews the latest fire safety news.

Following last week’s news that the BBC had found that new-build homes were not fire safe, the Door and Hardware Federation has emphasised the importance of making fire safety an ‘absolute priority’ in new-build homes.

“The BBC’s Watchdog discovered serious breaches that had gone undetected during the construction process, leaving homes and lives potentially at risk in the event of a fire,” DHF’s commercial manager Patricia Sowsbery-Stevens said. “In many new builds, particularly timber-framed buildings, fire barriers are a vital part of fire protection and we would urge house builders to get it right at the construction stage and to have a workforce that is trained in, and understands, the importance of installing the fire barriers required to prevent potential problems down the line.

“Ultimately, responsibility for ensuring that buildings are compliant with Building Regulations lies with the house builder.”

As I said here last week, I believe people are taking the issue of fire safety seriously, and professionals in the construction industry have access to the appropriate training.
For example, the Association for Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP) has launched a new e-learning course to equip installers or new entrants to the sector with a basic knowledge of passive fire protection and its role in the overall fire strategy of a building.

Consisting of 13 short online videos, each of around 10-15 minutes in length, the ASFP Introduction to Passive Fire Protection is also ideal for all those involved in building maintenance or follow-on trades who may damage existing compartmentation and fire resisting walls in carrying out their work.

You can find more here.

Patricia Sowsbery-Stevens said the DHF urges “those in positions of responsibility (such as house builders) to ensure that they are not only fulfilling regulations, as well as legal and moral obligations, but insisting upon appropriate levels of training with regards to installation and maintenance.”
As always, your views are welcomed.