12/11/2024
In this blog, BWF Technical Director, Kevin Underwood, discusses the recent government amendments to the fire safety guidance in Approved Document B, set to take effect between March 2025 and ...
The British Standard Code of Practice for fire doors, has been revised and a draft for public comment (DPC) is available on the BSI Standards Development website where anyone who has an interest in the standard can register to post their comments on the draft and view other comments that have already been made.
The new title for the standard is BS 8214, Fire-resisting and smoke control doors – Practical considerations concerning specification, design and performance in use – Code of Practice
If you produce, process, or install fire doors as part of your work then this code of practice will be relevant to you.
The consultation draft can be found by going to, www.standardsdevelopment.bsigroup.com, and entering BS 8214 in the search box when prompted. You will need to login or register to be able to post comments. The closing date for comments to be posted is the 28th of October 2024.
A draft for public comment (DPC) is the principal means by which BSI consults on the content of British Standards. It is used for all amendments of a technical nature that might affect the application of a standard or the attestation of conformity to it. A DPC is a mature draft, reflecting the proposed technical content of the standard, and comments are invited on the text proposed for publication, with the drafting panel seeking opinions from the wider community and informed responses from any organisation or individual is encouraged. The panel will consider and resolve all comments received which could involve rejection of a comment or of a specific proposed change.
The draft was prepared by a panel formed under the BSI Technical Committee B/538/1, Windows and Doors. The panel members were co-opted for their personal expertise and experience and they neither represented nor took a brief from any organisation or company.
Where the previous version of the code of practice was limited to timber fire door assemblies the new draft covers fire doors of other material, e.g. steel fire doors and composite fire doors, and it covers fire doors supplied as doorsets, kits or assemblies.
The code of practice is intended to complement the guidance given in BS 9999, Fire safety in the design, management and use of buildings and BS 9991, Fire safety in the design, management and use of residential buildings, where fire doors form part of the passive fire safety system.
BS 8214 gives recommendations for the design, specification, installation and maintenance of pedestrian fire resisting and smoke control doors installed in the vertical plane and the performance of fire doors when installed with reference to relevant and applicable supporting evidence. It covers doors that have been tested for fire resistance in accordance with BS 476-22 or BS EN 1634-1 and smoke control in accordance with BS 476-31.1 or BS EN 1634-3 and includes guidance on both national and European classifications for fire doors.
The intended users of this British Standard are all those who are involved in providing fire doors for buildings, and those involved in considering performance in use. It is applicable to fire doors used in new builds and in refurbishments, maintenance and improvements (RMI).
The order of the sections has been changed to reflect the construction process with recommendations concerning roles and responsibilities preceding specification and supporting evidence followed by guidance on design, installation, handover and maintenance.
The clauses concerning smoke control provide more information on the use of seals while the reliance on intolerant construction recommendations that were difficult to achieve has been removed.
The guidance on sealing the interface between fire doors and the surrounding structure has been clarified in respect of the recommended evidence supporting the use of materials including stone wool, mastic and foam sealants.
