HARDWARE & SECURITY
Winkhaus UK launches range of UKCA external fire doorsets
Following an 18-month development, test and accreditation program, door and window hardware manufacturer and fire door solution systems house Winkhaus UK Ltd has launched a range of timber and composite UKCA 3rd party certified external fire doorset solutions to massively increase the scope and market offering for existing and prospective fire doorset manufacturing partners.
» ANDY TOWNEND COMMERCIAL Manager Fire states,“ Fire safety and fire doorset legislation has changed significantly in recent years, with the testing and accreditation requirements for external fire doorsets significantly different than those for internal solutions. The design and test evidence for a fire doorset is the“ Golden Thread” that flows through the lifecycle of a fire door and is the reference point for the other stages of specification, manufacture, installation, and maintenance. It is therefore critical for specifiers to understand the differences in legislative requirements between an internal and external doorset so that they are included in any specification.”
What are the differences between an internal and external fire doorset?
Mark Alton Head of Product Management at Winkhaus UK advises: An external doorset as defined in EN14351-1 is“ a doorset which separates the internal climate from the external climate of a construction, for which the main intended use is the passage of pedestrians”.
There are three main differences in legislation between an internal and external fire doorset:
1. Testing for external fire doorsets must be carried out to the European standard EN1634 for Fire resistance and for Smoke control.
2. Under the Construction Products Directive( CPD), all external fire resistant doorsets are covered by a designated standard and therefore must be conformity marked CE or UKCA. They are also subject to the Assessment and Verification of Constancy of Performance( AVCP) system 1 requirements, which effectively means that the AVCP must be completed by a 3rd party to deliver a 3rd Party UKCA certified solution.
3. External fire doorsets require a Declaration of Performance( DoP) and a 3rd Party classification as specified under EN13501-2
In addition, weather protection testing is only completed for external fire doorsets.
3rd Party certification and verification is not only in place to ensure solutions are fit to be brought to market, but that they
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MARCH 2025
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