The Hicking Building was originally built in 1873 as a factory as part of a larger complex of warehouses in the lace industry. In 2005, the building was redeveloped into four spacious apartment blocks and is popular with local professionals working in the city due to its location close to the city centre and next to Nottingham’s train station.
After the tragedy of Grenfell Tower in 2017, the pressure for adequate fire safety and risk assessments has massively increased for all owners, landlords, and occupiers of large residential buildings. Passive fire-stopping works started in 2020 in all the communal areas in the building.
What is Passive Fire Protection (PFP)?
Passive Fire Protection is essential to any fire safety strategy. It’s built into the structure of a building to ensure people in the building are safe and it works to limit the financial impact of damage to property. It works by limiting the spread of the fire, and also smoke, by containing it in one area, and by protecting the building structure to ensure the sustainability of the building.
PFP methods are built into the building’s structure to provide stability and built into the walls and floors to be able to separate building areas if need be.
Examples of PFP Methods:
- Fire-resisting doors and fire door assets
- Structural fire protection systems
- Suspended ceilings
- Industrial fire stoppers
- Fire-resisting walls and floors
- Cavity barriers
- Penetrations seals for cables and pipes
- Firefighting stairwells
How Was The Hicking Building Protected?
Expert operatives used a range of passive fire stopping procedures to protect the communal riser cupboards and above the ceiling boards in the corridors. Any foam that had been used previously was removed and the fireline plasterboard was installed instead, joining this to the existing plasterboard and using a sealant to seal the fireline in place. Fire pillows were installed where needed and fire collars were used around the pipework running through the building.
If you’re concerned about the fire safety of your building and want to enquire about our one-stop-shop or have us complete a fire risk assessment for you, then contact us today on 0800 799 9514, or click here to fill out our online enquiry form.
