BMF Fire Doors Business Guide

BMF Business Support

BUSINESS GUIDE SELLING FIRE DOORS AND COMPATIBLE THIRD PARTY CERTIFICATED FIRE DOOR COMPONENTS ATTENTION: Follow these guidelines

INFORMATION FOR:

to fulfil your obligations under Consumer Protection Law and Fire Safety Law.

Directors Senior Managers Marketing Managers Compliance Managers Procurement Managers Branch Managers Branch Sales Staff

To avoid attracting liability, the merchant should only sell third party certificated door leaves and compatible fire door components, and should provide adequate instruction to customers to ensure they purchase all compatible components required to ensure product performance. This gives opportunity for merchants to upsell product, by providing their customer with a suite of compatible products, as well as the documentation required to prove that third party certificated product has been supplied to the end customer, fire safety officer or building control.

This allows access to third party certificated compatible product information, sales tools and market information, promotional materials, marketing activities and training resources.

All fire doors leaves, frames, ironmongery and associated compatible components should be sold with detailed installation instructions, enabling the consumer to install and maintain the product correctly.

When a customer requests a fire door, what they really mean is that they need to purchase a number of different compatible components as well as the fire door leaf, which will enable it to perform if a fire breaks out. Essentially they have been contracted to supply or install a life safety product into a building to protect people and property.

To achieve a successful installation, a variety of other associated products are required such as intumescent pads for ironmongery or gap filling materials used between the frame and the wall. Only products detailed on the specific fire door certificate and fire door installation instructions should be supplied and product substitution should be avoided.

BWF-Certifire works in partnership with BMF members to license their retail outlets as BWF-Certifire Approved Fire Door Centres.

Traceability of product also helps to manage any future risks and helps to support future maintenance and ensure the door continues to perform throughout its serviceable life.

Guidance on selling fire doors: A fire door is not just a single product, it is a tested system of compatible products.

WHAT IT COVERS: Fire Doors are critical life safety products and must be fitted with compatible components to work safely if a fire breaks out. A fire door is not just a single product, it is a tested system of compatible products. Responsibilities under the Consumer Protection Law 2015 define the merchant’s responsibilities for supplying products that are fit for purpose. This business guide outlines a practical route to managing obligation and liability using the BWF-Certifire Approved Fire Door Centre (AFDC) approach.

As a merchant selling life safety products, in order to fulfil obligations and manage liability under the Consumer Protection Law 2015, only products that are fit for purpose and supplied in a manner that allows their consumer to install and maintain the product correctly to achieve performance should be carried in the merchant portfolio.

Further information: www.bwfcertifire.org.uk

✓ Door leaf ✓ Frame / lining ✓ Intumescent seals ✓ Smoke seals* ✓ Latch or lock ✓ Hinges ✓ Door closer* ✓ Signage* ✓ Other ironmongery* ✓ Fire door glazing* ✓ Frame / wall sealing ✓ Threshold seals* ✓ Air transfer grille (ATG)*

What do we mean by compatible products?

To ensure a fire door is fit for purpose, it needs to be installed with all of the correct and compatible components detailed on the door leaf fire certificate.

These fire tested, compatible components include: door leaf, door frame or lining, intumescent seals, smoke seals, hinges, latch or lock, door closers, letterplates, air transfer grilles, threshold seals, door viewers, and intumescent pads for ironmongery.

Any fire doors requiring vision panels should be supplied, already fully fitted with compatible fire protected glass and glazing systems, through the merchant from a licensed BWF-Certifire fire door processor, as cutting apertures or glazing on site invalidates certification.

But how does a merchant ensure that a product is fit for purpose and reduce their exposure to liability?

Third party certification of fire door leaves and associated components goes some way in proving that the product is fit for purpose because the product will be fire tested and production controlled and audited. However, in the case of fire door systems, it is the critical compatibility of all the associated products and components with the fire door leaf certificate, which will maintain third party certification, and will prove that a product is fit for purpose.

BWF-Certifire Members AFDC (Approved Fire Door Centres), uphold a strict system of product certification, traceability, promotion, training and guidance for merchants and consumers regarding the supply and installation of suitable third party certificated product and compatible products.

*if required

Summary: To ensure that their members fulfil their corporate and consumer obligations, the BMF advise their members to: • Only sell products that are third party certificated and compatible to the fire door leaves or fire door blanks that they are selling.

• Only sell the full suite of compatible fire door products required to make a fire door system work when installed, and ensure sufficient information is provided to their customer within branches enabling them to purchase all that is required to achieve a safe fire door installation.

• Carry out regular checks on their product portfolio of fire doors and associated products to ensure that they are compatible and listed on the fire certificate for the fire door leaf.

• Undertake regular training with their sales representatives (in branch and external) regarding fire door specification and associated products, update training when required and keep a permanent record of training.

• Review their current product portfolio of fire door and associated components and products and consider whether they are suitably third party certificated and compatible with each other and that documentation is available from each different supplier.

Further information: www.bwfcertifire.org.uk

1180 Elliott Court, Coventry Business Park Herald Avenue, Coventry CV5 6UB

Tel: 02476 854980 Fax: 02476 010390

©BMF MF846-SELLING FIRE DOORS AND COMPATIBLE THIRD PARTY CERTIFICATED FIRE DOOR COMPONENTS-09/16 Notice: Whilst every care is taken to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information contained in this Guide, the Builders Merchants Federation cannot accept liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of the information supplied.