CLT and other wood products are increasingly used in public, commercial and high-rise residential construction in the Nordic countries. Usually, the visible wood surfaces of such buildings require fire protection according to Euroclass B-s1, d0. How to meet this requirement if the fire protection treatment has to be made in on-site circumstances?
There are two ways to ensure certified fire protection along with the requirements of European standard EN 13501-1. The simple way is to use certified, industrially fire-protected wood products.
However, this is not always possible. Then the right way to ensure required fire protection performance is to hire a certified fire retardant treater to make the treatment on the building site. Today this service is provided by Firesafe in Norway, Sweden and Denmark.
CERTIFIED FIRE PROTECTION FOR CLT
Technical manager Hallvard Engøy from Firesafe says that especially massive wood construction products like CLT have many good properties: they act as carbon sinks, they enhance insulation in a natural way and their fire performance is well known. For example, in the event of a fire CLT does not collapse within the rated time frame, which gives time for evacuation.
Nordtreat has certified the fire protection on CLT in cooperation with Finnish CLT manufacturers. This paves way for increased use of CLT in multi-storey construction as well as in demanding building types like social and health care units and schools.
“When excellent fire protection solutions are available for CLT, why not to use them? Nordtreat’s NT DECO provides needed fire protection, it is a single easy to handle component, it suits for outdoor use, and it is available in any desired semi-translucent tone, which is appreciated by the architects and designers”, Hallvard Engøy says.
EXPERTISE IN FIRE PROTECTION OF BUILDINGS
Firesafe is a well-established expert in fire protection solutions, operating in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland. Along with fire consulting services, the company provides professional treatment, installation and maintenance services for passive fire protection including fire protection and insulation of construction materials, sealing of inlets for fire compartmentation and fire control systems.
On-site fire protection is mainly needed for CLT and other massive wood structures and sometimes for exterior and interior panels. The cooperation between Firesafe and Nordtreat focuses on providing on-site fire protection services for building developers and contractors. The service includes fire protection treatment of wood, meeting Euroclass B-s1, d0 requirements according to standard EN 13501-1, and assembling of these fire protected wood products.
CONTROLLED AND DOCUMENTED FIRE SAFETY
Firesafe has about 640 technical professionals who are trained regularly. Nordtreat has provided the whole team a training webinar with practical guidance on on-site fire protection of wood products. This recorded training is available any time for Firesafe professionals. The normal practice at Firesafe is that nominated technicians specialise in specific treatments and assemblings. This is the case also with Nordtreat products.
“Nordtreat’s fire retardant NT DECO is a well researched and documented product. Now we can provide a controlled and documented fire protection treatment meeting B-s1, do requirements based on Nordtreat’s certified process and our own quality system”, says Hallvard Engøy.
Water-borne NT DECO does not contain any harmful ingredients for people or the environment, so it is perfect for controlled on-site treatments. No other treatments are needed, which enables relatively cost-efficient treatment and assembling process.
