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50 • FIRE SAFETY & SECURITY
Creating clarity
around CE Marking
Correct fire door hardware can save lives.
» » BUILDING OWNERS AND
contractors are responsible for ensuring
that fire doors have the correct
certification, but certification can be
quite a tricky subject. There are different
bodies, keywords, and standards to be
aware of; CE marking, British Standards
(prefixed by BS), European Standards
(prefixed by EN), harmonised standards
or third-party approval schemes such as
Certifire, they all have to be considered
and checked before purchasing fire door
hardware.
We have put together a quick and
comprehensive diagram that should help
to explain this a little better:
• BS EN 1155 – Electromagnetic Door
Closers
• BS EN1158 – Door coordinators
• BS EN 179 & BS EN 1125 – Panic and
emergency exit devices
HOW DOES A PRODUCT
GAIN A CE MARK?
As of the 1st July 2013, any product
that comes under the scope of a
harmonised standard must be CE
marked before it can be placed on the
market.
One big misconception is that
ironmongery products are fire tested
individually, that is incorrect. There is no
fire certification for individual products,
they cannot be tested in a fire scenario
without being fitted to a door. Provided
the products added to that door have
not undermined the integrity of the
door during the test then they are
deemed to have been ‘included in a
successful fire test’.
‘There is no fire
certification for
individual products,
they cannot be tested
in a fire scenario
without being
fitted to a door.’
As you can see from our diagram,
each item of hardware on a fire door has
to meet a British (BS) or European (EN)
standard. CE marking isn’t applicable
to every product used on a fire door.
CE marking is applicable only to those
products where the BS EN standard has
been harmonised under the Construction
Products Regulation adding another level
of compliance. These include:
• BS EN 12209 – Locks and latches
• BS EN 1935 – Hinges
• BS EN 1154 – Mechanical Door
closers
These test results are then used by
the third-party test house to complete
the requirements under the Construction
Products Regulation (CPR). After
successful completion of mechanical
testing of the ironmongery the product
can be deemed ‘Suitable Forfor Use On
Fire Doors’. This combined evidence
allows the issue of the CPR document
and permits the use of the CE mark on
the items of ironmongery tested (where
the products standard is a harmonised
Standard).
LOCKSMITHJOURNAL.CO.UK | NOV/DEC 2017
All products that are CE marked, and
therefore deemed suitable for use on a
fire door, will have a valid Declaration of
Performance (DoP).
WHAT IS A DECLARATION
OF PERFORMANCE?
The Declaration of Performance is a
key part of the Construction Products
Regulation. It provides information on the
performance of a product.
DO I NEED TO CHECK THE
DECLARATION OF PERFORMANCE?
The simple answer is yes. Just
because you can see a CE mark, it
doesn’t always mean it has been formally
CE marked.
Unfortunately, there is a very similar
mark out there which is the China Export
mark, look at the similarities above.
To be sure that you can use a product
on a fire door you should always check
the DoP. If the product needs to be CE
marked, you will need to check for a
number 1 in the fire classification box.
WHERE DO I FIND A PRODUCT’S
DECLARATION OF PERFORMANCE?
DoPs must be made available for every
CE marked product. This is either included
with the product in the packaging, or
available on the manufacturer’s website.
If they’re listed on the website, they
must be readily accessible.
OK SO, I HAVE BOUGHT A CE
MARKED HINGE AND IT HAS A
1 IN THE FIRE CLASSIFICATION
BOX ON THE DOP, CAN I NOW
FIT IT TO A FIRE DOOR?
Unfortunately, it isn’t that simple.
If buying doors and ironmongery
separately, you will need to refer to the
fire test evidence for the door from the
door supplier. This can be a third party
dedicated fire test report or a Global Fire
Assessment. Both reports will define
exactly what models have been tested