Upgrading fire safety in existing buildings often starts with fire doors. While new buildings are designed with fire doors from the outset, retrofitting fire doors in existing buildings requires a careful approach to ensure safety, legal compliance and structural compatibility. Whether you manage a commercial building, mixed-use premises or residential property subject to fire safety Read more »
Fire doors are a core part of a commercial building’s passive fire protection—they protect escape routes, maintain compartmentation, and slow the spread of fire and smoke. In the UK, compliance isn’t just about having a “fire door”; it’s about ensuring the correct doors are installed in the correct locations, are self-closing where required, are not Read more »
Fire doors are designed to save lives by containing fire and smoke and protecting escape routes. Yet across the UK, they are routinely wedged open for convenience in offices, blocks of flats, schools and care homes. This is not a minor oversight. A wedged fire door cannot perform its life-safety function, may breach UK fire Read more »
Fire door compliance in blocks of flats is not optional — it is a legal requirement and a critical life-safety measure. In multi-occupied residential buildings, fire doors form part of the building’s compartmentation strategy. They are designed to contain fire and smoke, protect escape routes, and give residents vital time to evacuate safely. At Fire Read more »
Fire safety is about ensuring everyone can reach safety in an emergency — including people who may find it difficult to evacuate a building without assistance. A Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) is a written, person-centred evacuation plan designed to support individuals who may require assistance to leave a building safely during a fire or Read more »
Fire extinguishers are life safety equipment — but only if they are maintained, accessible and in working order when needed. In the UK, portable fire extinguishers should be visually checked at least monthly and serviced every 12 months by a competent person, with additional extended servicing or overhaul intervals depending on the extinguisher type and Read more »
Passive fire protection (PFP) refers to the fire-resisting elements and systems built into a building’s structure that are designed to contain fire and smoke within defined compartments without requiring activation. Unlike active systems such as fire alarms or sprinklers, passive fire protection works continuously and automatically. It is part of the physical construction of a Read more »
Fire stopping is a critical part of a building’s passive fire protection strategy. It refers to the process of sealing gaps, joints and penetrations in fire-resisting walls, floors and ceilings so that fire, heat, smoke and toxic gases cannot spread through them. By containing fire and smoke within defined compartments, fire stopping helps protect escape Read more »
Fire compartmentation is a fundamental principle of building fire safety design. It refers to the practice of dividing a building into separate fire-resisting sections — known as compartments — to slow the spread of fire and smoke. The purpose is simple: to protect escape routes, limit fire damage, and give occupants time to evacuate safely. Read more »
Fire doors and fire exit doors are frequently confused — but they are not the same thing. They serve different roles within a building’s overall fire safety strategy and are designed for different life-safety purposes under UK fire safety legislation. In simple terms: A fire door is designed to resist the spread of fire and Read more »
