Posted 17 July 2019
The RRFSO Reforms 30 Year Old Fire Safety Legislation
New fire safety laws came into force on the 1st October this year, and early indications suggest that a number of employers are still unaware of the implications. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (RRFSO) sets out a change in legislation applying to all non-domestic buildings and emphasises a shift in responsibility onto the employer. This means that business owners will now need to be more aware of the mechanics of fire safety engineering.
The reform aims to improve public safety by focusing on fire prevention, therefore taking a more pro-active than reactive approach to fire safety.
The implications for the cabling industry are hugely significant. The reform brings to light the need for effective fire safety systems and the need for fire alarm and detection equipment that conform to the necessary requirements. Clearly, there becomes a very definite need for appropriate fire performance cabling to be installed.
The impact of the reforms needs to be addressed on two fronts. Firstly, there are the inherent dangers posed by unprotected combustible materials in concealed spaces, which can potentially increase the spread of fire should it occur.
The threat of cabling systems spreading fires in this way is a real one. A continued build-up of combustible cable can add greatly to the fuel-load within ceilings, which can cause a fire to reach extreme temperatures, produce excessive smoke, and enable fires to spread throughout a building. The Seven Dials fire in Covent Garden in 1999 and the Heathrow Airport fire in 1997 are known to have spread through buildings via cabling systems and act as a sobering reminder of the dangers that exist.
Secondly, there is a need for cabling systems which retain their integrity in the event of an emergency, for safety dependent systems such as alarms, fire detection equipment and emergency lighting, right down to the protection of networks and information storage systems. High performance fire safety cabling systems, once the preserve of large institutions and data centres are now being seen as strategic investments to protect lives, property and vital business assets.
Fumes are the greatest cause of damage to electrical equipment in offices, rather than heat or flame. Even if a fire has been successfully extinguished, the smoke that has been created can wreak havoc with circuitry, even in equipment located a long way from where the fire started. Specifying LSHF cabling can reduce this risk.
Advances in cabling materials have enabled the installation of systems which go a long way to addressing these some of these dangers. In light of the new legislation, building owners and managers, architects, electrical engineers and installers of cabling systems need to be aware of available options to improve fire safety.
One such option is the Draka FireTuf series which is designed to emulate as closely as possible the performance of Cat 5. These high performance fire survival data cables are designed to carry on functioning even in the event of fire, allowing safe monitoring of evacuation without putting lives at risk.
Where video signal is carried the coaxial version performs in a similar way to RG59 which is widely used in the CCTV sector. This allows continued monitoring of fire exits and evacuation routes in the event of fire.
While it is important to recognise the important part that cabling plays in the recent reforms, it certainly doesn’t end there. Increasingly, business owners need to recognise that fire safety doesn’t simply begin and end with cable. Of course, installing a LSHF system goes some way to reducing the spread of fire, but so often people overlook the amount of other combustible materials that are present and the other contributing factors that need to be addressed.
Appropriate cabling systems can go a long way to improving fire safety systems and help business owners conform to the new legislation.But when it comes to protecting your most important assets, don’t take any chances.
For more information or to read the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order in full, please visit www.communities.gov.uk