Door & Hardware Federation (DHF) is demonstrating its continuing support for Fire Door Safety Week, a national safety awareness campaign that was first launched in 2013. Held this year from 21-27 September, the campaign seeks to raise awareness of the critical role that fire doors play in protecting life and property, drawing attention to specific issues such as poor installation and maintenance. It is the brainchild of the British Woodworking Federation, supported by the BWF Fire Door Alliance.
DHF has been a long-standing supporter of the objectives of Fire Door Safety Week, and a fierce and passionate advocate for third-party certification of manufacture, installation, maintenance and inspection of fire and smoke doors. It has been particularly vocal since the 2017 Grenfell Tower tragedy. In March 2019, in collaboration with Secured by Design (SBD) and the Fire Industry Association (FIA), DHF published a guidance document on flat entrance doorsets: A Guide for Selecting Flat Entrance Doorsets; A publication for housing associations, landlords, building owners and local authorities in England, which highlights the fundamental issues of fire safety for those selecting fire doorsets. This publication can be downloaded from the DHF website: dhfonline.org.uk/publications/safety–security/6.htm
DHF was also actively involved in the technical committees of the Industry Response Group, formed in response to Dame Judith Hackitt’s Report: ‘Building a Safer Future’, and also works on BSI Standards Committees, with compliance authorities HSE and Trading Standards as well as fire safety organisations in the UK and Europe.
As part of DHF’s Reachout Programme, at the beginning of 2020, and just before the UK entered ‘lockdown’, the organisation hosted a free fire safety seminar (11th February) at their training academy in Tamworth with a further one scheduled for 17th March that unfortunately had to be postponed. The seminar was utlilised by those with responsibility for compliance, fire safety, asset management and procurement within local authorities and housing associations in the West Midlands area. DHF plans to roll these out again at the beginning of 2021; should lockdown restrictions persist, DHF can offer these via an online portal. DHF will also have a presence at the FIT Show in May 2021 at Birmingham’s NEC and will form part of their education programme.
“We are delighted to continue our support of Fire Door Safety Week and hope that our collective message, that fire doors should be correctly installed with robust fire door maintenance procedures in place as a key part of fire safety, is heard,” said DHF’s Head of Commercial Operations, Patricia Sowsbery-Stevens. “In addition, we look forward to welcoming delegates to our future fire safety seminars, be they face-to-face, or online.”
For further information on Fire Door Safety Week, please visit: firedoorsafetyweek.co.uk/
