Fire doors are a legal requirement for a number of different types of properties including business premises, buildings belonging to charities and voluntary organisations and accommodation where guests pay to stay along with domestic properties with more than 2 floors. This means many people are responsible for buying and maintaining efficient fire safety doors.
I was recently talking to a friend of mine who is responsible for Health and Safety at the company where he works. He said that he had recently asked the fire service for some advice relating to fire extinguishers in the offices. A lady from the fire service came to see him at the premises and she provided lots of helpful advice about which extinguishers were required and the relevant labels for them along with appropriate signage to indicate the route to the fire evacuation point. During her visit she also inspected the fire doors and she advised that the doors were not legally compliant. My friend was very surprised as he felt that the doors were thick, solid doors. However the fire officer explained that it is not simply the density of the doors that you have to consider. These particular doors featured worn hinges that were not compliant with fire safety. All hardware and decoration on a fire door must be certified and CE marked and there are guidelines about various items and hardware that you must consider.
I am sure there must be lots of people who are legally responsible for fire safety and yet are not aware of the requirements of a fire door. This is not just an issue of legal compliance, but ultimately it is about personal safety. Property fires are fairly rare however the consequences can be devastating and if you have followed the latest fire safety advice then you can rest assured that you have done all you can to ensure the safety of your employees, visitors, members or guests. If you require new fire doors please contact Doorsan on 0845 467 1910 or 0113 897 0984.
