News
8 | MAY 2026
News
Read online at www. proinstaller. co. uk
COMPETENCE AND TRANSPARENCY:
A NEW ERA FOR FIRE DOOR SAFETY
As the built environment navigates a period of significant reform, Karen Trigg of Allegion UK examines the two principles that are proving fundamental in reshaping fire safety standards.
The fire door safety model is changing. Improved building safety requirements and the demand for greater accountability have been the driving force behind new regulation and guidance. However, it is the growing relevance of competence and transparency that is redefining how responsibility is understood across the supply chain.
Competence and transparency are far from new concepts, but in the wake of regulatory updates, their interdependence is helping to form a framework through which higher standards can be achieved.
More than ever before, the ability to specify, install and maintain effective fire safety systems- such as fire doors and their hardware- hinges on demonstrable expertise. Crucially, that expertise must now be reinforced by clear, accurate and accessible information. Whether approaching a new development or retrofit project, displaying a sufficient level of capability and clarity is now a prerequisite for compliance. Not only must decision makers show confidence in the products specified and installed on fire doors, but also in the data that underpins those choices. Whilst legislation outlines what is expected of responsible parties, how are competence and transparency defined in theory? And in what way can professionals translate this into practice?
Concepts defined
In the context of fire doors, both safety and compliance are compromised when gaps emerge between regulatory expectations and execution. A certified fire door will typically compartmentalise a space for 30 to 60 minutes, preventing the spread of smoke and fire and providing occupants with a critical opportunity to escape. However, an ineffective fire door system can lose its integrity within minutes, with common failures often identified as the result of incorrect specification, poor installation and inadequate maintenance.
The Regulatory Reform( Fire Safety) Order 2005 states that fire doors should be installed by a‘ competent person’, yet the demand for competency extends beyond installation alone. Specifiers, maintenance professionals and responsible persons must all demonstrate capability past general awareness. In fact, individual competence is defined as possessing the appropriate skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours( also referenced as SKEB), as outlined in The Building Safety Act, BS 8670-1:2024.
The Building Safety Act also stresses the importance of transparency, whereby those involved in building design and the management of high risk buildings must refer to the‘ Golden Thread of Information’ as part of their duties. Following years of legislative reform, there is a higher expectation for clear product documentation, with greater transparency able to support more informed decision making. For this, the‘ Golden Thread’ acts a single source of truth, providing clear, accessible and accurate records of buildings and the systems used within them.
Further emphasis is being placed on product information through the Construction Products Reform Green Paper and the Code for Construction Product Information( CCPI). These initiatives focus on how manufacturers communicate product information and aim to eliminate misleading
Sources: https:// www. legislation. gov. uk / uksi / 2005 / 1541 / contents, https:// www. legislation. gov. uk / ukpga / 2022 / 30 / contents, https:// www. thenbs. com / PublicationIndex / documents / details? Pub = BSI & DocId = 342570, https:// buildingsafety. campaign. gov. uk / building-safety-regulator-making-buildings-safer / building-safety-regulator-news / understanding-the-golden-thread /