Dorgard - For When You Want to Keep a Fire Door Open

In a perfect world all fire doors would be kept closed but, we don't live in a perfect world,

To get over the problem of fire doors being held open with fire extinguishers, rubbish bins, boots and the like there is an interesting piece of equipment on the market called "Dorgard". 

No wires.

Certainly no plumbing.

But it does need batteries.

The  Dorgard is battery operated and designed to safely and legally hold open a fire door and automatically release the fire door when a fire alarm sounds.

It takes approximately 5 minutes to install by fixing to a fire door with four screws. Dorgard can be used to hold a fire door open 24 hours a day.

However, it is recommended that fire doors are closed at night so Dorgard can be set to release at a pre-set time.

When Dorgard is used to hold open a fire door, after approximately 14 seconds of the continuous sound of a fire alarm over 65 decibels, it will release, allowing the door to close under pressure from the overhead door closure.

And it comes in different finishes.

DorGard Fire Door Retainers

 

Recently Updated - Approved Document B is Effective 6 April 2013

Approved Document B:Fire safety covers building work in England and Wales, such as the erection, extension or material alteration of a building, and how fire safety is designed into a building.  It has been split into two volumes:

Volume 1 deals with dwelling houses and includes updated standards for smoke controls

Volume 2 includes amendments to the guidance on wall coverings and thermoplastic lighting diffusers and roof lights.

Part B

Approved Document B Volume 2 (Buildings other than dwellinghouses) has two minor changes in the guidance to Requirement B2 Internal fire spread:

• A new footnote to Table 10 permits decorative wall coverings which achieve European Class C-s3,d2 to be used in circulation spaces, provided they are bonded to Class A2-s3,d2 substrates. The change is intended is to remove a barrier to the adoption of the European classification systems.

• The limitations on the use of type TP(b) thermoplastic diffusers and roof lights have been relaxed to allow smaller units to be used closer together: the revised limits are in table 11 and diagram 27A. It is anticipated that will facilitate energy efficient lighting layouts.

The new Approved Documents have an open, single column layout which should be easier to read, particularly on screen.


Published by NBS

NBSBuildingRegulations

The Red Book by the LPCB at the BRE

The Red Book is an essential reference for specifiers, regulators, designers and end users of these products and services - if it is listed here, you know it has been checked out by people you can trust.

The LPCB Red Book is the list of approved products and services. LPCB is part of BRE Global which is part of the BRE Group operating under the BRE Trust. It is an independent third party approvals body offering certification of fire, security and sustainability products and services to an

international market.

The LPCB mark and listings signify that products and services have been approved by LPCB.

The Red Book is divided into sections which list related groups of products and services such as suppression, security and so on.

 

The Red Book should always be used in conjunction with rules, regulations and design specifications required by the relevant Authority Having Jurisdiction.

The 2013 edition of the Red Book comprises 2 Volumes:

Volume 1:

Fire detection and alarm products, systems, and cables

Manual fire extinguishing equipment
Automatic sprinkler, water spray and deluge systems
Fixed fire fighting products and systems
Related installers

Volume 2:

Passive fire protection products

Security protection products
Fire doors and shutters
Management Systems
Construction products



The Red Book is the essential reference publication for everyone having a responsibility for the design, specification and purchase of fire and security protection and construction products and services.
 
 
 

www.redbooklive.com

Asheela, the Asbestos, Safety Health and Environmental eLearning Association.

I am a member of Asheela and do offer elearning courses in "Asbestos awareness" and "Duty to Manage".


www.asheela.org

Asheela is the Asbestos, Safety Health and Environmental eLearning Association. It is a not for profit organisation.

Its aims and objects are:

To develop and improve standards of content and delivery of eLearning and computer based training within the asbestos, safety, health and environmental markets.

 

To provide a quality assurance and auditing system for of eLearning and computer based training providers and courses.

 

To provide an accreditation service for eLearning & CBT providers.

 

To provide a forum and resources for developers, providers and users of eLearning and CBT to encourage and enable promotion of best practice and technology.

 

eLearning provides on demand learning ensuring consistency of delivery and the traceability of assessments.

Independent learning offers flexible training with the accessibility to online support from professional tutors unrestricted by geographical location or availability.

Within ASHEeLA’s specialist industries: Asbestos, Safety Health and Environmental eLearning technologies are constantly evolving from assessment based learning to webinars and interactive courses via personalised avatars.

If you would like to sign up for a course please click on the link: 

Click Here to Email me About Asbestos ELearning Courses


Asheela Directory

 

BREEAM is Not a Freshwater Fish!

BREEAM is the world's foremost environmental assessment method and rating system for buildings.

There are 200,000.00 buildings with certified BREEAM ratings and over a million registered for assessment since it was first launched in 1990.

A certified BREEAM assessment is delivered by a licensed organisation, using assessors trained under UKAS accredited competent person scheme, at various stages in a building's life cycle.

BREEAM addresses wide-ranging environmental and sustainability issues and enables developers, designers and housing managers to demonstrate their environmental credentials of their buildings to clients, planners and other parties.

BREEAM covers all building types, schools, health care buildings, offices, industrial units and more. For the housing sector there are a number of variants.

BREEAM at the BRE

If The Cap Fits Mr Cameron, You Still Have to Wear It

As of 6th April 2013 if you think you no longer have to wear your hard hat on site any longer, you're wrong,(assuming of course you have always worn it before and of course the right way around and of course without a woolly hat underneath or with a multitude of tatty go faster stickers on top). 

Under the changes  which came into effect on 6th April, the Construction (Head Protection)  Regulations requiring construction workers to wear hard hats, were revoked but employers must still comply with the Personal Protective Equipment Regulations which cover provision and use of protection on site.

So, Mr Cameron, please carry on setting an excellent example when  you visit sites.

London Building Firm Fined for Worker Fall - Lucky to be Alive

London interior fit-out company has been fined for safety failings after a worker suffered life-changing injuries when he fell through a fragile roof light at a construction site in Kensington.

The 46-year-old worker broke three vertebrae, his right shoulder blade and several ribs in the fall at a property undergoing redevelopment in Rutland Gate, Kensington, on 3 February 2011.

The married father-of-four is unlikely to be able to return to manual work as a result of the injuries.


Westminster Magistrates' Court heard yesterday (27 February) that he was carrying out insulation work on a flat roof for Shoreditch-based Sherlock Interiors Contracting Ltd.


He fell through one of the roof lights and six metres to the ground below.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigated and found that hard-board coverings previously installed over the roof lights had been removed and replaced with thin plastic sheeting. In addition, safety decking beneath the roof - designed to protect workers in the event of a fall - was no longer in place when the man started work.

The fall could have been prevented had the risks been properly assessed, and had the work been better planned and managed.
Sherlock Interiors Contracting Ltd, of Vestry Street, London, N1, was fined £8,000 and ordered to pay £5347 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 9(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Peter Collingwood said:
"Work at height is inherently fraught with risk, and falls remain the single biggest cause of deaths and serious injury in the construction industry.
"It is therefore essential that effective management arrangements are in place to ensure risks are managed and workers are protected. Fragile roof covers provide little or no protection, and should be viewed with the same level of danger as an open void."



HSE - London Building Firmed Fined for Workers Fall



The latest HSE statistics show that 40 workers were killed and more than 3,400 were seriously injured in falls from height in 2011/12. Further information on safe working at height can be found online at www.hse.gov.uk/falls