Fire safety in buildings and implementation of European fire test standards

Transcription

1 Fire safety in buildings and implementation of European fire test standards Dr Debbie Smith OBE Chair of CEN TC127 Fire Safety BRE Global Ltd, UK 18 th June 2014 Part of the BRE Trust

2 Construction Products Regulation Construction Products Regulation (CPR) came into force on 1 st July 2013 The CPR harmonises; the methods of assessment and test the means of declaration of product performance the system of conformity assessment of construction products but NOT national building regulations The choice of required classes of fire performance for the particular intended use is left to the regulators as custodians of life safety and public / private sector procurers at the national level.

3 Why do regulations matter? e.g. Trend in fire deaths in the UK since 1981

4 Minimum periods of fire resistance

5 Construction Products Regulation What does this actually mean? CE marking for construction products covered by harmonised technical specifications is mandatory Fire performance of construction products is determined using the European fire test standards

6 CE marking Assessment and Verification of Constancy of Performance (AVCP) System 1+ (product certification inc. the issuing of a certificate of constancy of performance with determination of the product-type, continuous surveillance and audit testing by a notified product certification body) System 1 (product certification inc. the issuing of a constancy of performance with determination of the product-type and continuous surveillance by a notified product certification body) System 2+ (factory production control certification continuous surveillance by a notified factory production control certification body) System 3 (determination of product type by a notified testing laboratory) System 4 (manufacturer s tasks only) Declaration of product performance manufacturer s responsibility in accordance with hen or EAD

7 CEN TC127 activities The permitted classes of fire performance are defined in Commission Decisions (Pre 1/7/13) (and now delegated acts (post 1/7/13)) We develop fire test methods in response to mandates developed by the EC in discussion with MSs (Fire Regulators Group, then Expert Group on Fire) to determine the fire performance of construction products in terms of the permitted classes We develop extended application standards which contain rules for classifying construction products beyond what can be tested e.g. for reasons of scale, extent of product family. We produce classification standards in line with the legal framework to enable the classification of construction products with a defined field of application based on test evidence and extended application rules

8 Fire classification of construction products and building elements Part 1 Classification using data from reaction to fire tests Part 2 Classification using data from fire resistance tests, excluding ventilation services Part 3 Classification using data from fire resistance tests on products and elements used in building service installations: fire resisting ducts and fire dampers Part 4 Classification using data from fire resistance tests on components of smoke control systems Part 5 Classification using data from external fire exposure to roofs tests Part 6 Classification using data from reaction to fire tests on electric cables

9 European reaction to fire tests and fire classification methods Standard reference BS EN ISO 1716 BS EN ISO 1182 BS EN BS EN ISO BS EN Title/scope Reaction to fire tests for building products Determination of the gross heat of combustion Reaction to fire tests for products Non-combustibility test Reaction to fire tests on building products Building products excluding floorings exposed to the thermal attack by a single burning item Reaction to fire tests Ignitability of building products subjected to direct impingement of flame Part 2: Single-flame source test Reaction to fire tests for building products Conditioning procedures and general rules for selection of substrates BS EN Fire classification of construction products and building elements Part 1: Classification using data from reaction to fire tests

10 Fire resistance assessed against a standard fire curve T = 345 log 10 (8t + 1) = 20

11 A selection of European fire resistance tests Standard reference BS EN BS EN BS EN BS EN BS EN BS EN BS EN BS EN BS EN BS EN Title/scope Fire resistance tests Part 1: General requirements Fire resistance tests Part 2: Alternative and additional procedures Fire resistance tests for non-load bearing elements Walls Fire resistance for non-load bearing elements Part 2: Ceilings Fire resistance tests for load bearing elements Part 1: Walls Fire resistance for load bearing elements Part 2: Floors and roofs Fire resistance for load bearing elements Part 3: Beams Fire resistance for load bearing elements Part 4: Columns Fire resistance for load bearing elements Part 5: Balconies and walkways Fire resistance for load bearing elements Part 6: Stairs

12 CEN TC127 issues and barriers to successful implementation of the CPR CEN TC127 works within the legal framework defined by the EU to enable the achievement of safety in case of fire through the national building regulations There are a number of current issues and barriers to the adoption and implementation fire test and classification standards for some products In the past these were resolvable by direct discussion through the EC with national regulators Now, no forum exists for this discussion CEN TC127 currently exists within a space where its members are aware of issues, willing to provide solutions but unable to resolve which means that some MSs use these problems as excuses and barriers to trade

13 CEN TC127 issues and barriers to successful implementation of the CPR - 1 Commission Decisions and therefore legal framework out of date e.g. Fire resistance (2000/367/EC) refers to superceded standards Pragmatic solution is available based on revision of Commission Decision to reference classification standards Requires dialogue between CEN TC127 and EC

14 CEN TC127 issues and barriers to successful implementation of the CPR - 2 Product Technical Committees and EOTA drafting their own fire test standards, extended application rules, interpretation of fire test standards (including mounting and fixing arrangements) without recourse to CEN TC127 and any understanding of the fire hazard that the test is designed to mitigate in terms of life safety levels (i.e. no mandates!) everyone s a fire expert? Solution is based on dialogue with CEN CMC and other parties as necessary Concerted and clear messages need to be reinforced with other parties as CEN TC127 can only respond when it is aware

15 CEN TC127 issues and barriers to successful implementation of the CPR - 3 New test method for evaluating propensity for materials to smoulder (in response to mandate from EC to develop an EN test method) is out for enquiry This characteristic is not referenced within the legal framework and therefore it cannot currently be used in the European reaction to fire classification for construction products A classification proposal is being developed in CEN TC127 for discussion with the EC

16 CEN TC127 issues and barriers to successful implementation of the CPR - 4 Proposed deletion of reaction to fire class F Will require revision of the Commission Decisions on reaction to fire Will require revision of classification standards parts 1 and 6

17 Conclusions Construction Products placed on the market in any Member State of the EU after 1 st July 2013 require CE marking in accordance with the CPR where there is a published hen. The classification standards EN parts 1-6 are the only recognised means of demonstrating fire performance for construction products across EU. We request the opportunity to work with the EC to make the legal framework relevant and as far as possible future proof The message for all stakeholders (Please) don t play with fire!

18 Thank you for your attention Any questions? Contact details; BRE Global Ltd, Garston, Watford, Herts, WD25 9XX, UK T +44 (0)