The Locksmith Journal Nov-Dec 2016 - Issue 47 | Page 47

FIRESAFETY&SECURITY • 47 PROUD SPONSORS OF THIS PAGE ALARMING NUMBER OF BUILDINGS BREAKING FIRE SAFETY REGULATIONS »»NEW RESEARCH HAS revealed that commercial buildings are more likely to be breaking fire door safety regulations and putting people at risk. The survey of 860 trade professionals, conducted ahead of Fire Door Safety Week (26 September - 2 October 2016), revealed that over the past few years 93% of tradespeople have spotted a fire door being propped open illegally with a door stop when they have been working on a commercial or public building. Commercial buildings containing small or medium sized businesses are the worst offenders with 72% likely to prop doors open illegally, followed by commercial buildings housing large businesses (64%) and public buildings (42%). Tradespeople are also more likely to witness this offence in older, traditional buildings (56%) than in new builds (15%). The study, which was carried out by IronmongeryDirect, a leading supplier of ironmongery products, also found that 74% of tradespeople have come across a fire door that was blocked or obstructed and 58% have spotted STRONG SYNERGY »»ASSA ABLOY HAS acquired Trojan Holdings Limited, suppliers of residential door and window hardware. Through this acquisition, ASSA ABLOY UK plans to further expand its product offering for its customers. Given the strong commercial synergies between Trojan Holdings Limited and ASSA ABLOY Limited, in particular with the Yale Door and Windows Solutions business unit, the acquisition will create opportunities for both businesses to leverage their respective capabilities enabling them to service and develop their combined customer base more effectively into the future. Trojan Holdings, formed in 1993, has sales of circa £20 million a year and employs 65 people in its facilities in the West Midlands. It will continue to operate as an autonomous business unit, retaining the existing, strong commercial and operational team that has made the business successful today. Announcing the acquisition, Neil Vann, Market Regional Manager of ASSA ABLOY UK, said: “Trojan has a strong track record of growth and innovative product development. It offers comprehensive ranges of door and window hardware, which complement and extend the ASSA ABLOY offering and its wealth of experience in the residential market will further strengthen our team and businesses in the UK to the benefit of our customers.” accessibility issues with fire doors in commercial or public buildings. When respondents were asked to reveal the most common faults they found when checking or maintaining fire doors, 73% said the biggest problem was that many did not have intumescent seals, which are vital for the fire door’s performance. Other common breaches are doors not closing properly (63%), incorrect signage (49%), general wear and tear (47%) and loose or faulty latches (30%). In light of these findings, IronmongeryDirect has created a fire door safety checklist to make it easy for people to spot a dodgy fire door and check that it is in full working order. The handy checklist covers all of the essential components that are required to make a fire door fully operational and can easily be taken on the job by tradespeople who have been tasked with installing or maintaining a fire door. Wayne Lysaght-Mason, managing director at IronmongeryDirect, said: “Fire safety is clearly still a significant problem concerning commercial and public buildings in the UK so having robust safety procedures in place is extremely important to ensure that building occupants and users are safe.” http://www.ironmongerydirect. co.uk/landing/fire-doorchecklist SECUSTRIP ANTI-JEMMY STRIP NEW TO ZERO, THE SECUSTRIP PLUS ANTI-JEMMY STRIPS FEATURE TWO INTERLOCKING STEEL PROFILES THAT ARE FITTED ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE DOOR TO PROTECT THE GAP BETWEEN DOOR AND FRAME AGAINST INTRUSION. UPON CLOSING THE DOOR, THE TWO STEEL STRIPS FIT TOGETHER, AND ARE INGENIOUSLY DESIGNED TO MAKE ATTACK BY JEMMY, CROWBAR OR SCREW DRIVER MORE DIFFICULT ON THE LEADING EDGE OF THE DOOR. THEY CAN ALSO BE FITTED TO WINDOWS. THIS PROVEN PRODUCT IS MANUFACTURED IN HOLLAND AND OVER 4 MILLION SECUSTRIPS HAVE BEEN SOLD IN HOLLAND TO DATE. THE PRODUCT IS AVAILABLE FROM STOCK IN WHITE AND BROWN IN TWO DESIGNS; TYPE 2 FOR INWARD OPENING DOORS (TYPICALLY FRONT DOORS) AND TYPE 3 FOR OUTWARD OPENING DOORS. TYPE 2 TYPE 3 FIXINGS ARE SUPPLIED FOR WOODEN DOORS BUT SECUSTRIP PLUS MAY BE FITTED TO ALUMINIUM, STEEL AND PVC DOORS. Zero Seal Systems Ltd Units 43 - 45 Ladford Covert, Seighford, Stafford, ST18 9QG, United Kingdom Tel : +44 (0)1785 282910 E-mail : [email protected] WWW.ZEROPLUS.CO.UK LOCKSMITHJOURNAL.CO.UK | NOV/DEC 2016