Fire Safety

Fire doors are critical life safety components, designed to slow the spread of fire, smoke, and heat long enough to protect occupants and property. A recent incident in a Connect Housing residential block provided a rare real-world demonstration of how a fully certified fire doorset performs under genuine fire conditions. The event highlighted the importance of correct specification, a compliant product, and accredited manufacturing and installation.

Construction product manufacturer ROCKWOOL has announced the first products to launch from its new global centre of excellence for fire-stopping at Hams Hall, Birmingham.

Renowned for its Euroclass A1 non-combustible stone wool insulation, the company has used its deep fire expertise and state-of-the-art manufacturing facility to develop a new in-house fire-stopping range including coated batt, sealants, collars and wraps.

Howard Trotter, Business Manager at Shelforce, shares how efficiency, value, and social purpose combine in Shelforce’s fire door manufacturing journey, delivering fully compliant fire doors that won’t break budgets.

Whenever we’re behind the wheel of our car ready for a long journey, the first thing we do is put the sat nav on. Not necessarily because we don’t know the way, but because we want the best way. I want the quickest, most efficient, most cost-effective route from A to B. That’s exactly how we approach fire door manufacturing at Shelforce.

The Grenfell Inquiry transformed the fire safety landscape with the subsequent publication of the amended Approved Document B (Fire Safety) of the Building Regulations, the introduction of the Building Safety Act, and the Building Safety Regulator. Shaun Scott, Applications Engineer at Advanced, explains how social housing landlords are facing increased scrutiny and how Evacuation Alert Systems are a route to both compliance and Best Practice.

Nowhere faces more scrutiny on fire safety compliance than the social housing sector. On 26 June 2025, the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) published its latest quarterly survey assessing fire safety in social housing blocks over 11 metres. The report reaffirmed the immense pressure on social housing landlords to submit robust remediation data, not only to the RSH but also to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). 

Lorient, a leading manufacturer of high-performance sealing systems for fire safety, is delighted to announce the launch of its latest RIBA-approved CPD, created in collaboration with Douglas Masterson, Technical & Training Director at the Guild of Architectural Ironmongers (GAI). Entitled “The Design & Specification of Intumescent Air Transfer Grilles”, the CPD provides in-depth technical insights into this vital component of fire safety.

With ‘once in a generation’ weather events becoming more frequent and the increase in outdoor space on tall buildings, it’s no wonder that many of the major housing providers are concerned about the potential for unsecured paving to cause damage.

Consequently, there is a growing focus in the construction industry on how to protect vulnerable structures such as balconies and roof terraces from wind uplift to ensure their safety and durability.

So, what can you do to protect against wind uplift and provide safe, secure environments? First, let’s understand the cause. 

In the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy in 2017, stringent regulations have been put in place to ensure the safety of outdoor areas, particularly in relation to fire.  

While the requirement for the use of non-combustible components on specified attachments such as balconies is clear and unequivocal, areas that fall in the category of flat roof systems represent a different challenge.

Unlike balconies, the requirements for roof systems leave room for interpretation that can potentially lead to the installation of non-compliant build-ups.  To avoid falling on the wrong side of compliance, specifiers often resort to non-combustible options which can have a negative impact on their budget.