The Construction Products Regulation (CPR) came into force on July 1. As part of the legislation all those involved in the supply chain, from the initial specification right through to procurement, have a responsibility to ensure that all fire retardant construction products selected provide effective and assured risk management for the client, specifier, contractor and merchant and, most importantly, the end user of the building. In the event of a building fire, and any deaths caused, a court of law will want to know how fire protection systems were selected and whether the protection was appropriate.
In choosing fire protection for timber, how can you be sure you are specifying or purchasing treated material backed with the right credentials?
Specification
Creating a robust, product-specific fire retardant specification, supported by independent product approvals, gives assurance in terms of liability and risk management. Open-ended, non-specific product specifications may well create ambiguity for merchants, contractors and building control officers, leading to the possible selection of sub-standard products.
When you are looking to specify fire retardant treated timber for a particular project there is an initial choice of either impregnation or surface coating fire retardant products.
Fire performance can be assured when timbers can be given a controlled, effective and permanent built-in protection to all faces. This is exactly what impregnation treatments provide over surface coatings – a consistent fire protection within the timber structure that will not require maintenance. While CE marking of factory-applied fire retardant surface coatings for timber and plywoods sold from stock does now introduce the legal requirement for third-party audited Factory Production Control by the applicator to ensure the necessary application rates are achieved to meet the fire performance claimed, there is still the considerations of uncontrolled on-site applications, as well as the ongoing maintenance required. Fire retardant coating products sit on the surface of the timber and will often require ongoing maintenance. Also, once in situ, maintenance to the reverse of fire retardant coated timbers or boards is extremely difficult.
An impregnation treatment needs be relevant to the end use of the timber. Making the correct choice of tried, tested and trusted products will provide assurance of the longterm, maintenance-free fire performance and durability.
Whichever impregnation fire retardant treatment is chosen, it must have independent certification in place to meet either Euroclass B or C of BS EN 13501-1. It is vital that these independent Classification Reports are specific to the particular timber species, its thickness, the air gap behind the timber and any highrisk backing materials. Demand to see a relevant Euroclass Classification Report, not just a fire treatment certificate – it is the only way of providing assurance of a totally appropriate treatment.
Any product is only fully effective if it is applied correctly. Ask if the treatment company is ISO 9001 approved or has accreditations such as British Board of Agrément (BBA), which will provide full traceability and quality assurance of the fire protection. Independent accreditations on fire treatment impregnation treatments also help confirm product performance and assurance. Some treatments have BBA approval or are accepted by organisations such as NHBC for exterior claddings in new build projects.
CE marking
If you are looking to purchase fire retardant treated timbers or board products from stock, then the new CE marking of construction timbers will help you manage the risk factor.
CE marking of any product generally confers that it has been through various quality procedures and checks in its production and is fit for its intended end use.
Under the CPR the responsibility for CE marking of fire retardant treated timber and plywood sold from stock to the open market lies with the ‘manufacturer’. This generally means the merchant. Declarations of Performance are required for fire retardant treated timber materials held in stock and we have been working with our major merchant customers to help them put these in place.
In summary, using fire retardant treatments that have independent certification, proven durability and an assured application will bring real peace of mind in terms of your risk management.
