Even in the safest buildings that meet all technical requirements, a fire may occur. Regardless of the actions of the people responsible for the condition and safety of the building, a fire may occur at the least expected moment. During a fire, regardless of its size, smoke detectors play a key role, as they will first signal that something disturbing is happening, but also other elements of the fire protection system, i.e. the Fire Alarm System, such as the Control Panel, Manual call points fire alarms, Signaling devices (sirens) and numerous control and monitoring modules.
From the point of view of people who have to evacuate the endangered building on fire, the most important seems to be the marking of escape routes, at the end of which there are appropriate fire-resistant doors enabling quick and smooth exit from the building.
The evacuation of a burning bulding
Fire-resistant doors on fire routes cannot be revolving or lifting doors. Sliding doors can be installed, but only if they meet specific design requirements, i.e. they can be opened both automatically and manually, and there is no possibility of blocking them. Additionally, when signaling a fire, they should automatically slide apart and remain in the open position to allow for easy evacuation.
According to the technical conditions, in rooms with more than 300 people, fire doors should be equipped with panic bars. These types of door hardware are designed so that even when locked, they can be opened, which allows for quick evacuation of many people.
On escape routes, exit doors (equiped with panic bars) with type B locks are most often used, but each investor individually determines what function the lock is to fulfill, because there is always a possibility of access from the oposite side.
The panic bar allows people evacuating to open the door by pressing with their hands and, if necessary, by pressing with their whole bodies. They do not need keys or access cards, and the evacuation is quick and efficient.
Why is it worth choosing a fully certified fire-resistant door (fire door)?
High quality – certified fire-resistant doors are compatible with all the above-mentioned elements of the Fire Alarm System, and guarantee the effective and safe evacuation of people from the building.
Which fire-resistant doors are an effective barrier to fire?
The doors in terms of fire resistance and smoke-proofness (learn about the differences between fire-resistant and smoke doors) are classified in accordance with PN-EN 13501-2 on the basis of tests performed in accordance with the following standards (Polish and EU standards):
– PN-EN 1634-1 (E) and (I),
– PN-EN 1634-3 (SsS200),
– PN-EN 14600 (C).
Explanation of the above terms:
- E – fire integrity, the ability of the structure that acts as a partition to withstand fire applied at one side, without transferring the fire to the unexposed side as a result of flame or hot gas penetration to the other side.
- I – fire insulation, the ability of the structure to withstand fire applied at only one side, without transferring the fire to the unexposed side as a result of significant heat transfer from the heated side to the unheated side.
- SsS200 – smoke doors (the doors stop smoke from moving to the other side of the door)
- C – self-closing feature assessment
The numbers accompanying the symbols E and I – 15/30/45/60/120 – are the number of minutes during which the door maintains the parameters of integrity and fire insulation.