Every Responsible Person knows the value of a clear, well-rehearsed fire evacuation plan. But an evacuation plan is built on a critical assumption: that the building's passive fire protection will perform as designed during a fire. Poorly maintained fire doors break that assumption.
How can poorly maintained fire doors undermine evacuation plans?
- Gaps outside tolerance allow smoke to bypass the door inside the first few minutes
- Damaged or missing intumescent seals prevent the door from sealing under heat
- Wedged-open doors defeat the compartmentation entirely
- Failing closers leave doors ajar at the worst possible moment
- Replacement doors need appropriate fire performance evidence and installation to the manufacturer’s instructions
How do multiple fire door failures compound the risk?
When one fire door fails, smoke spreads to a protected escape route. When the next fails, evacuation routes that the plan relies on become unusable. Within minutes, a manageable incident becomes a life-safety emergency.
How does RiSKFiX support your evacuation strategy?
We pair fire door inspection with clear reporting: identifying the doors your evacuation strategy relies on, setting out what we find so the Responsible Person can prioritise remedials with their Fire Risk Assessor, and keeping an evidence trail of inspections and repairs.