Passive Fire Services
Fire suppression basics (sprinklers, extinguishers, etc.) are familiar to many, but passive fire protection that stops a fire at its source is often invisible and nearly forgotten, until one day it becomes essential to life. Passive fire protection properly installed and maintained can save lives and assets.
Advance Groups provides three main areas of passive fire protection
Fire Compartmentation
An architect will divide a building into different compartments based on its use. Compartmentation is most commonly used for passive fire protection. Fire compartments are used to limit the spread of fire, smoke, and gases throughout buildings.
Fire Doors
Compartment closure is completed with fire and smoke doors that provide passive fire protection. There are fire doors in fire escapes as well as the front doors of units in buildings.
Generally, there are two types of fire doors:
- Sole Occupancy Unit Fire Doors: Rated for one hour.
- Fire Door for Common Property: Rated for two hours.
Firestopping Materials
A fire barrier can easily be breached during a renovation by electricians, plumbers, and communication engineers who leave holes in the barrier as they work. The smoke can easily rise through a building if it penetrates a fire barrier. These firestopping materials are used to limit the spread of fire through penetrations in fire barriers.
