It's all about the seal

I was really happy how my first "blog" was accepted, thank you for all of your kind words and comments.

This time I thought I'd talk about a subject that comes up most days of the week, which is what tape/seals to fit.

We manufacture three types of tape that can be used for fire rated glazing systems

1) ceramic tape, which has been tried and tested for over 30 years,

2) a bio dispersant fibre (non-ceramic) equivalent tape that has the certification to state that the two will perform identically and

3) intumescent tapes.

It was a deliberate use of the phrase "fire-rated glazing system" , we get asked regularly which tape to use, and it's never our decision to make. Any system which has a certification from a testing house such as Exova to give a Certifire certificate will have to have been tested with everything that goes into that system and has to be used as a whole, the frame, glass, brackets, tapes, fixings etc have been tested together and none of the elements can be substituted.

The ceramic and non-ceramic tapes are mostly used in systems made from hardwood, steel and aluminium frames, using a glass-like Pyrostop, Pyrobel, Pyrobelite or Pyroshield and in some cases Georgian polished plate glass, but it is always the case that a fitter must refer to the Certifire certificate for clarification as to which materials must be used and in which combination as the certificate is very specific, even down to the maximum size of pane of glass which can be used.

When a customer buys a frame or glass it will have been tested and the supplier should be able to give them a test certificate number for them to be able to refer to. This will give them all the information they need as to what tape to use. the certificate will say for instance ceramic tape 3mm x 15mm and this is the only tape that can be used to ensure that the window or door will definitely do its job if and when required, the thought of using the wrong materials and the window or door failing is beyond imagination as to the damage to property and life that can be caused.

I have personally turned customers away who appear to have little or no knowledge of how these systems work and why it is so important for all the components of a system to be used together to ensure that the system works. I also have on many occasions explained this to potential customers and luckily managed to get them to fit the correct tapes within the system but it does make me wonder how many fire rated windows are not fitted and assembled correctly with the correct components.

If you need any help choosing the correct tape, please feel free to give us a ring and we'd be happy to advise you.

Blogging Malarkey

So... I thought it was time I had a go at this blogging lark, its been something I've been meaning to do for a while now, but not got round to it, but I've found some time so I thought I'd start by giving you a bit of the history of Fireprotect.

Going back to 1963 David Powell was born with a problem with his ankles, so his mum and dad, Jean and Ron powell had to take him for therapy at hospital once a month. There was a little girl who was always there at the children's unit at the same time who had been playing with matches and her clothes and toys had caught fire and she was badly burnt. Ron was so appalled that her toys and clothes were so combustible and he was so moved by her plight that he set about researching ways of preventing this from happening. Jean made some toys that were stuffed with a brand new product which was a revolutionary wool called ceramic fibre, it is non combustible and didn't have the same issues as was with asbestos. They took pictures of the toys and made a story book called Icky the Fire-bobby to try and promote their ideas and campaigned in national newspapers and on North west television to raise awareness about fire safety. Ron campaigned for mattresses to be made fire retardent as well as household furniture, but he was ahead of his time and manufactures in the 70's were only interested in how they could save money and his words fell on deaf ears. Although, this had caused a bit of a stir and thankfully legislation was eventually changed. This lead Ron & Jean to think about more industrial products and ended up with 8 international patents on various products ranging form paints, balistic panels and plumbers pads. Ron worked with the Aerospace industry, construction and many other industries campaigning and inventing solutions to fire protection and heat insulation problems.

As with all companies, some of our products are now obsolete and new products have come to the forefront with tapes being our biggest product line. We're still very proud that the company we have today was formed from compassion for a little girl and the need to protect others from being so badly injured.

As Ron & Jeans daughter I'm still very touched by this story and find it inspiring. Im proud that the company is still a very family orientated and caring place to work. Me and my husband Allan now run the business along with staff who are very focused on being a caring an ethical company. Ron and Jean are now in their 80's, have retired and enjoying life, but I'd love to find out what happened to that little girl.