Facades and fire

� Lars Boström, SP Mechanics Research

� What is a façade

� Fire scenarios

� Test methods

� Swedish regulations

� SP Fire 105

� Future

What is a facade?

� The skin, or exterior sides of a building

� ETICS (External Thermal Insulation

Component Systems)

� Curtain wall

� Double-skin facade

� Green facade

� …

What is a facade?

� The evaluation of a facade system

depends on how the facade system is

defined

� How deep into the exterior wall goes

the facade?

� Are details, such as dilatation joints,

penetrations, sun screens, windows,

etc, parts of the facade system?

Fire scenarios and fire spread

Fire scenarios and fire spread

Test methods and requirements

� Varies considerable from country to country

� Euroclass enough in some countries, while other require full scale tests (or a combination)

� Full scale tests varies from large R2F-tests of a surface to complete buildings with fire

resistance

Different test methods

BS 8414-1

SP Fire 105

ISO 13785-2

Facade test method – what to evaluate?

� Fire resistance – made in Hungary and to some extent in France

� Fire spread on the facade – general

� Fire spread in the facade – general

� Heat release rate (HRR) – lately made with SP Fire 105 (in order to learn more)

� Falling parts/burning droplets/pool fire below – some countries

� Smouldering fire – mainly Germany

� Detailing (cavity barriers, penetrations, ventilation cavities, window openings…) – some countries

� Toxicity – under discussion

� Neither fire resistance nor reaction to fire but a combination of both

Swedish regulations (BBR)

5:55 Exterior walls

Façade linings must only develop heat and smoke to a limited extent in the event of fire. (BFS

2011:26).

General recommendation

Limited extent means the ability to satisfactorily maintain the evacuation and fire suppression

capability.

Rules for protection against fire spread between buildings are contained in Section 5:6. (BFS

2011:26).

Swedish regulations

5:551 Exterior walls in building class Br1

Exterior walls in buildings of class Br1 shall be designed to ensure

1. the separation function is maintained between fire compartments,

2. fire spread inside the wall is limited,

3. the risk of fire spread along the façade surface is limited,

4. the risk of injury due to parts falling from the exterior wall is limited. (BFS 2011:26).

Swedish regulations

General recommendation

Exterior wall constructions that, when tested in accordance with SS-EN 13501-2 with fire affect as specified in Chapter 4.2 (standard fire curve) comply with applicable parts of the requirements in Section 5:531 for separating function, meet the provision's requirements in point 1.

Exterior walls containing only material of at least class A2-s1,d0 or separated in such a way that a fire inside the wall is prevented from spreading past the separating structure, meet the provision's requirement in point 2 for protection against fire spread inside the wall.

Exterior walls meet the provision's requirements in point 3, when designed in at least class A2-s1,d0. As an alternative, the requirements can be met by the exterior wall being clad externally with materials in at least class D-s2,d2, and if any of the following conditions are met

– the building has a maximum of two storeys,

– the cladding, regardless of building height, only covers the building's ground floor,

– the building has a maximum of eight storeys and is fitted with automatic fire suppression systems and the exterior wall in the ground floor is designed in materials of at least A2-s1,d0,

– the building has a maximum of eight storeys and combustible material of at least class D-s2,d2 only covers a limited part of the façade surface.

Exterior walls should be designed so that the requirement in point 4 is met to ensure the risk of falling structural elements, such as broken glass, small bits of plaster and the like is limited.

Swedish regulations

Exterior wall constructions that pass the test in SP FIRE 105 issue 5 with the conditions below, meet points 2, 3 and 4 of the provision.

For exterior walls to buildings with up to eight storeys if the test shows that

a) no major parts of the façade fall down, for example, large pieces of plaster, panels or glass panes, which could cause danger to people

evacuating or to rescue personnel, (Exterior walls should be designed so that the requirement in point 4 is met to ensure the risk of falling

structural elements, such as broken glass, small bits of plaster and the like is limited)

b) fire spread on the surface finish and inside the wall is limited to the bottom edge of the window two floors above the fire room, and

c) no exterior flames occur which could ignite the eaves located above the window two floors above the fire room. As an equivalent

criterion, the gas temperature just below the eaves must not exceed 500 °C for a continuous period longer than 2 minutes or 450 °C for

longer than 10 minutes.

For exterior walls in buildings with more than eight storeys, in addition to criteria a–c in the test, the exterior wall must not increase the

risk of fire spreading to another fire compartment in a floor above the fire room. As an equivalent criterion when testing according to SP

FIRE 105 issue 5, the total heat flow into the façade in the centre of the window in the storey above the fire room must not exceed 80

kW/m2. (BFS 2011:26).

Swedish regulations

5:552 Exterior walls in buildings in classes Br2 and Br3

Exterior walls, in buildings in classes Br2 and Br3, shall be designed to ensure that fire spread

along the façade surface is limited. (BFS 2011:26).

General recommendation

Cladding should meet the requirements for class D-s2,d2. (BFS 2011:26).

SP Fire 105

1 SCOPE

This SP method specifies a procedure to determine the reaction to fire of materials and construction of external wall assemblies or facade claddings, when exposed to fire from a simulated apartment fire with flames emerging out through a window opening. The behaviour of the construction and material and the fire spread (flame spread) in the wall/cladding can be studied.

2 FIELD OF APPLICATION

The test method described is applicable to:

- external wall assemblies

- and facade claddings added to an existing external wall.

The test method is only applicable to vertical constructions.

The method is not applicable for determination of the structural strength of an external wall assembly or facade cladding construction when exposed to fire.

SP Fire 105

SP Fire 105

The test specimen shall in construction and materials be representative of that used in

practice. The material shall be applied on the test rig in a way corresponding as closely as

possible to that used in practice.

Arrangements at window openings shall be as detailed as in practice. Other construction

details such as fire stops shall be detailed and positioned in the test specimen as in practice.

SP Fire 105

New project

� Register of regulatory provisions – all EU/EFTA member states

� Complementary verifications – differences from BS 8414-1 and DIN 4102-20

� Falling off

� Meeting regulatory provisions – identify if regulatory provisions goes beyond BS and DIN

� Classification method – develop criteria for classification

� Assessment method

� Technical reference – round robin and needed research

� Project time: Jan 1, 2017 – Dec 31, 2017 !!!!!

Partners

� SP (coordinator and project leader)

� Effectis, France

� BAM, Germany

� BRE, UK

� EMI, Hungary

Subcontractors

� IBS, Austria

� DBI, Denmark

� CSTB, France

� LSF, Greece

� ITB, Poland

� FireCERT, Ireland

� FIRES, Slovakia

� University of Zagreb, Croatia

� VTT, Finland

� MFPA-Leipzig, Germany

� Fire Research Centre, Lithuania

� ITECONS, Portugal

� CNSIPC, Romania

� AFITI, Spain

Stakeholders, liaisons

� AGF

� Construction Products Europé

� EGOLF

� EUMEPS

� European Aluminium

� PPA – Europe

� ISO TC92 – Fire Safety

� European Phenolic Foam Association

� CEN TC 127

� EAE – European Association for External

Thermal Insulation Composite Systems

� EOTA

� Eurima

� FSEU – Fire Safe Europé

� PU – Europé

� …