Clearview National September 2019 - Issue 214 | Page 58

FIRESAFETY& SECURITY
Doors, Windows
& Hardware:
Safe Specification
Graham Hulland, Product Marketing
Manager at dormakaba, speaks
about the importance of correctly
specifying door closers within social
housing properties, the factors that
should always be considered and
the potential impact of changing
an approved specification.
» » AFTER THE EVENTS OF
the Grenfell fire, the industry
responded by evaluating its
practices and an independent
enquiry was undertaken. During
this time, a report carried in
The Evening Standard revealed
that out of the 120 flats located
between floors four to 23 of
the Grenfell Tower, only 17%
had door closers that were both
fitted and working correctly.
This led to doors being left open
during the building’s evacuation
— compartmentation was
therefore compromised, which
would have affected residents’
safety as they attempted
to escape down the single
stairwell.
What are the key
legislative considerations
when looking to specify
closers for fire doors in
residential properties?
Initially, you need to make
sure that the specification is
compliant with both Building
Regulations and the 2010 Equality
Act. Approved Document B of
the Building Regulations requires
certain fire doors to be self
closing — fire rated flat entrance
doors fall under this category.
The main requirement of
the Equality Act is in relation
to the access into and through
buildings. Whilst that might
sound straightforward — it is
important to be aware that it is
impossible for a manufacturer to
claim it has a door ‘closer’ that is
compliant with the Equality Act.
The Act does not mention door
hardware. However, if the building
regulations (Approved Document
M and BS8300) are met then
this will meet the Equality Act’s
requirements for ease of access.
Unless the door is Automated
or fitted with a Hold Open or
Free Swing door closer, then
there is no way of guaranteeing
compliance.
Although this guidance is
provided, the legislation can still
be quite complex and there
are a number of other factors
that specifiers must consider to
ensure a compliant system. For
example, in the UK, any door
closer that is to be used on a self-
closing fire door should be CE
marked, which demonstrates that
the product is suitable for the
intended application. Whilst a CE
mark does show that a product
has successfully been tested
to meet ‘safety in case of fire’,
58 » SE P 2019 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M
TS 99 FL/FLR
EN 2–5
Free-swing slide channel door
closer in Contur design
this is not sufficient on its own
to ensure that a door closer is
suitable for an intended fire door.
The test completed within the CE
mark does not detail any specific
application and can therefore not
be applied as a standalone test for
any fire door type.
‘keeping the safety
of residents at
the forefront
of our minds’
The impartial approval from a
third-party certification scheme
makes sure that the door closer
can be used for specific fire
door applications. The Certifire
scheme is one that not only
certifies that the product meets
its intended fire performance, but
also that it meets its mechanical
performance, providing added
peace of mind for specifiers that
the door closer selected will
work as required.
How do specifiers make
sure that a door closer
not only satisfies UK
legislation but also works
for the residents who will
use it on a daily basis?
Every resident is different, and
the majority of social housing
projects will house both young
and old, with varying levels of
physical capabilities, which is why
the chosen door closer needs
to be carefully considered. By
specifying an adjustable powered
closer, you can adjust the closing
force for each door individually
and keep the force required to
open it to a minimum.
In some cases, if the force
exerted by a door closer is too
high, residents will find the doors
heavy and difficult to open which
increases the risk of fire doors
becoming ‘wedged’ and could
result in the door closer actually
being removed to ease usability.
> Continues on page 60