Kick The Wedge

Wesley KentSales & Marketing Director

Fireco Ltd History of fire doorsHistory of the door wedgeKick The WedgeRosepark Nursing HomeDoor retainer legislationDoor hold open devicesConclusion

Agenda

Established in 1994

Inventors of:

DorgardFreedorEasydorDeafgardDMSSystem X

Pioneers in wireless technology

Fireco Ltd

Great Fire of London - 1666• The Great Fire of London started in the early hours of 2nd

September 1666 at the end of a long dry summer and after burning for 4 days had destroyed 80% of the city.

• Although only 6 people died it was a national disaster and London acquired its first complete code of building regulations and means for its implementation

• On September 13th King Charles II issued a proclamation in which:

• The walls of all new buildings were to be of brick or stone.

• The main streets were to be widened to prevent fire spread

• Existing narrow alleyways were to be considerably reduced

• A survey of every ruin and ownership shown of every plot

• Compartmentation between rooms using a thick timber door

Fire DoorsAfter the Great Fire of London the “Fire door” was born.

Buildings are compartmentalised to delay the spread of fire from one area to another. Fire doors have two important functions in a fire;

•When closed they form a barrier to stop the spread of fire

•When opened they provide a means of escape.

•Every fire door is therefore required to act as a barrier to the passage of smoke and/or fire to varying degrees depending upon its location in a building and the fire hazards associated with that building.

•A fire door required to provide resistance to the passage of a well developed fire must be fitted with intumescent seals. These seals remain dormant under normal conditions but expand greatly in the heat of a fire to close the gap between the door and its frame.

Door Wedge• The greatest threat to the spread of fire in a building is a held

open fire door.

• Ever since the first door was created, it is likely that human beings have understood how to use an object or device to keep it open.

Heavy stones Bricks or metal Chunks of wood Extinguishers Chairs

• All work to prevent a door from closing. It was Dec. 10, 1878, that a person was given credit as the inventor of what is commonly known as the "door stop" or "door stopper."

Door Wedge InventorVery little is known about Osborn Dorsey. Even his first name is generally reduced to "O." by those who surrender after attempts to learn more about this hard-to-trace gentleman. What we do know is that Mr. Dorsey was a 19th century African-American inventor. The door stop was his most famous invention. On Dec. 10, 1878, Osborn, or O, Dorsey received patent number 210,764 for this invention.

However the more common door wedge which we are more familiar with was invented in 1965.

Herbert Arenson

• Herbert Arenson filed for a patent on a wedge doorstop on Sept. 7, 1965 and the last patented doorstop came on Oct. 15, 1991.

How door wedges are used

How many of us have seen something like this?

For many years the hindrance to free movement posed by a Fire Door has been resented by companies and a business culture, whereby it was acceptable to prop them open, soon developed

How door wedges are used

The “British Standard Wedge”

If you haven’t seen one of these, you must be new here!

Why is this a problem? Fire doors are provided, at considerable expense, to protect the safety of building occupants. In the event of a fire, they stop smoke spreading into corridors and stairs - provided they are shut. In this way they make sure people have a protected route to get out of the building, and they protect the building and its contents against the spread of damage. Leaving fire doors wedged or propped open disregards the safety of others. It is also against the lawMerseyside Fire Brigade

The ‘Kick the Wedge’ survey was carried out by independent researchers during 2007 on behalf of Fireco Ltd.

Over 100 accredited UK Fire Risk Assessors, and individual Fire Safety Officers from the UK’s Fire and Rescue Services answered fire safety specific questions relating to their observations during fire safety audits.

This survey was designed to evaluate how effective the means of escape were in UK businesses.

Wedge Pledge

Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI) determination by Sheriff Principal Brian Lockhart lists a catalogue of precautions including:

All bedroom doors to have had door closers and smoke seals fitted to them

After years of research and test fires, it is proven how effective fire doors with self closers would have been. It is also noted that the residents wanted their doors open.

Rosepark Nursing HomeThe fire at Rosepark Nursing Home in Uddingston, South

Lanarkshire, broke out in a cupboard on 31 January 2004 and ripped through the building.

Some room doors had self closers but some had been removed or disconnected, or were intact but the doors had been wedged open.

Recreating the fire With a closed bedroom door on the fire corridor in the recreation area, the asphyxiant gas concentrations increased only slowly. There was no discernable heat hazard and conditions would probably have remained survivable if any occupant was removed 30 to 50 minutes after the start of the fire.

Rosepark Nursing HomeOnly two bedroom doors closed.

Closed bedroom doors would have starved the fire.

Door Retainer legislationDoor retainers must comply with standards and legislation. The purpose of a fire door retainer is to allow the door to be held open, and to close in the event of a fire.

BS EN1155:

BS EN 1155: 1997, Building hardware, electrically powered hold-open devices for swing doors. This is a harmonized European standard which specifies requirements for separate hold-open mechanisms incorporated in a door closer intended to be used on fire/smoke doors.

BS7273-4Code of PracticeBS 7273-4 concerns the interface (critical signal path) between fire detection and fire alarm systems with forms of door hardware, including devices to hold open self-closing fire doors.

•Category A Fail-to-safe when 12 specified faults or disablements on the fire system occurs.

•Category B Fail-to-safe only when critical path wiring faults occur or when there is power loss to the fire alarm

•Category C As category B, but interface via another system.

Door hold-open devices• There are now a number of ways to legally hold your fire door

open

• Over the past few years new technology has allowed new and innovative ways to keep your fire doors open

• Magnetic door retainers – Hardwired into the fire alarm

• Free swing door closers/retainers – hardwired and battery operated devices

• Battery operated door retainers – stand alone and radio linked products

Before installation, carry out a risk assessment and identify the type of fire door you are holding open.

Magnetic hold-open devices• Products that have been on the market for many years are

magnetic hold open devices• Hardwired into the fire alarm• Magnet on the wall and the door• The magnetic current is cut when the alarm sounds

Free-swing Door Retainers/Closers

• Free-swing door retainers/closer allow the fire door to “free swing” • Hardwired into the fire alarm system• Battery operated versions are now available• Ideal for bedroom doors in care/residential homes

Dorgard Dorgard enables you to legally and safely keep fire

doors open, byallowing the door to close when the fire alarm sounds, preventingthe spread of fire and smoke. Installed onto the bottom of the firedoor in under 5 minutes, Dorgard is listening for a continuous firealarm of 65dBA or higher.

Dorgard • Wireless unit with fail-to-safe technology• Improves access throughout buildings• Complies with EN 1155 and accepted by the Fire and

Rescue Services• Available in a variety of colours and finishes• Automatic night-time release facility• Adjustable sensitivity• CE marked

Conclusion• Fire doors are an integral part of your building; they save

lives and protect your property.

• Risk assess how fire doors in your building are used.

• Carry out a risk assessment on the type of door retainer you are using in line with legislation.

• Do not wedge open fire doors!