To ensure compliance with the fire certification, it is crucially important that the doorsets are manufactured correctly, and we operate an internal system that ensures that they are 100% suitable for the application where they are going to be used. Our customers, however, require greater confidence in our doorsets other than our declaration, and want independent evidence from a reputable source that they have been manufactured correctly and in accordance with the test evidence.

Third Party Certification

International Fire Consultants was founded by Peter Jackman, the lead author of BS476:part 22 1987 and went on to form IFC Certification the who are a UKAS accredited and internationally recognised provider of independent third party certification.

We are third party assessed under their Fire Resistant Timber Door Certification Scheme IFCC. The third-party certification is designed to give confidence to specifiers, users, occupiers, owners, enforcement bodies, and contractors that our doorsets have been thoroughly and independently evaluated and will continue to be manufactured to the same specification as originally tested.
We also work closely with IFC who provide us with manufacturing advice and if there are any elements of the fire test evidence that we are unsure about they will give us guidance on design changes that will ensure compliance.

Door Identification

The IFC certification scheme, IFCC for fire resistant doorsets, incorporates the labelling of each door with a tamper proof label, a fully traceable unique number, and regular audits to ensure that our doorsets are manufactured in accordance with the door core manufacturers’ fire test evidence.

These labels are tamper-proof and cannot be removed, and they provide assurance to both contractors and installers that the doorset provided and installed is the required fire rating for the location.

Manufacturing

Process

The fire rated timber doorsets that we manufacture utilise door leaf cores that are sourced from different manufacturers depending on the Fire, Acoustic, Size, and Security requirements.

The manufacturers of these door cores have undertaken extensive fire testing with UKAS accredited testing companies and these test reports formally confirm the integrity of the fire door.
These fire test reports are primary source of information which is summarised into manuals which details how the doorset should be manufactured including:

•  Lipping material and thickness
•  Frame material and thickness
•  Intumescent type and configuration

We operate strict guidelines to ensure that our doorsets are manufactured in accordance with the details set out in these manuals, and the IFC certification scheme involves the auditing of our processes, factories, and supply chain to ensure full compliance.

The door leafs for all of our fire rated doorsets are hung into the frame in the factory to ensure that the gaps between the leaf and frame are within tolerance.

The mortice ironmongery, including locks, flush bolts, and concealed
door closers, are also installed into the doorset in accordance with the requirements of the manuals, complete with the required intumescent protection.

Once the doorset is fully assembled, it is thoroughly inspected and a QA checklist is completed, which is kept and recorded as part of the production paperwork.

Project Assessments

In some instances, the architect’s design intent for the doorset may be outside the scope of the Global Assessment, and in these instances, we ask IFC to carry out a project specific assessment.
As part of this process, they analyse the fire test reports and the proposed design, and will either give us a straight yes or no or they may say yes provided the design is altered. They will also advise us on what configuration of intumescent is required.

If the answer is no, then a project specific fire test is required, which is something we can organise.

The Exception

We are constantly expanding the range of doorsets that we can offer to our customers and as part of this process IFC Certification will carry out audits on the new manufacturers facilities. However, this takes time, and in some instances the fire rated doorsets that we supply will not be part of the IFC certification scheme.

We do, however, operate a rigorous vetting process, and the manufacturer’s fire certification is checked to ensure full compliance with the UK fire regulations.
These doors will either have primary fire test evidence or be manufactured under a different UKAS accredited certification scheme such as BM Trada Q-Mark.

Installation

Of equal importance to ensuring that we have manufactured the doorset in accordance
with the fire test certification is that they are installed correctly.

Extensive instructions detailing how the different types of doorsets should be installed and how the gap between the wall and the frame should be filled are provided with each delivery, and are available to download from our website.
In conjunction with IFC, we also carry out one-day training sessions for installers that include a session on the importance of fire doors and a practical demonstration on how they should be installed.

Provided the course is successfully completed, they will become an approved installer of Aspex doorsets.

O&M

Once the project is completed and handed over to the client, it is critical that the information on how the doorset should be operated, and what maintenance is required, is passed on to them, and to facilitate this we provide detailed Operation and Maintenance manuals.