Reducing fire risk in glazing with a system approach

Cath McLean, segment manager – Glass at Promat UK, explains how fire resistant glazing can be specified and installed with total confidence by choosing a fully tested system.

Large glazing is very much the order of the day as architects, developers and homeowners increasingly want to maximise natural light and external views, and make internal spaces feel more spacious and connected.

And when it comes to internal features such as partitions and glass screens, these glazing elements will often need to be designed to ensure fire safety is not compromised.

The good news is that the performance capabilities of today’s most advanced glass products mean fire safety is easily achievable, even in butt-jointed and ‘frameless’ glazing. The bad news is that it is very easy to overlook weak points that can quickly undermine the glazing element’s fire resistance –these are not immediately obvious when you are combining a frame, glass product, seals and all the other components needed for the first time.

There is also the issue of traceability and evidence that the fire resistant glazing element will actually provide the end-user with the specified performance in the event of a fire.

The industry is moving towards products that have a ‘golden thread’ running through them, which will make it easier for anyone to see the origin of the products used in a building for the purposes of maintenance and safety.

So having products and systems designed, manufactured and tested with the golden thread in mind will ease the burden for specifiers and installers.

This is why Promat Systemglas helps reduce risk. The range offers 360-degree assurance that the products used for the creation of the frame and the glass will work together as promised, because each assembly has been independently tested as a complete system.

As a result, specifiers and installers can reliably create glazing elements with confidence to an EI30-EI120 minute fire rating in a timber or steel frame, as well as a Promatect H calcium silicate frame. This highly fire-resistant material can be painted, over-clad or recessed within walls, floors and ceilings to give a frameless look to glazing.

As every Systemglas product has been designed, manufactured or sourced by Promat, there is clear traceability and no ambiguity over the origin of individual elements.

So, providing that the Systemglas element is assembled and installed in line with Promat guidance, a certificate of conformity can be issued on completion.

The reason why Promat can offer this assurance stems from the fact that the company is a global passive fire protection specialist, working in numerous industry sectors from construction to heavy industry, transport and consumer goods manufacturing.

A deep understanding of how to create effective barriers to heat and flames lies at the heart of the Systemglas design, using advanced materials to enable property owners and architects to realise key design goals such as optimising natural light with total peace of mind.

This supply chain control and visibility is something that Promat is helping to provide to fire door manufacturers too. The post-Grenfell shake-up of testing for fire doors to ensure that they ‘do what it says on the tin’ has meant looking at every component, material and product in detail to assess whether it is fit for purpose when the complete doorset is in-situ. And here again, manufacturers may want to seek assurances from their suppliers.

This is why Promat has also recently extended its range of products for door manufacturing, including intumescent seals and core materials for door slabs. These can be specified for fire doors typically in the E30-EI60 range, but they are also suitable for achieving up to four hours in specific steel door applications.

And, as with Systemglas, for those installers and specifiers who prefer a complete package approach, Promat also offers complete timber fire rated doorsets which can be fitted by any approved installer.