Fire Curtain Replacement Costs in the UK

We can get to costs later, but if I had to pluck a figure based on company house turnover records for UK fire and smoke curtain manufacturers, I would estimate that there are in excess of £100 million pounds worth of fire curtains in terms of manufacture and installation costs in situ across the UK. That represents, and again this is an approximation, some 25000 fire curtains. Each and every one of them providing a life critical function, the protection of people and buildings.  In theory, every fire and smoke curtain forming part of a building’s fire strategy should be as manufactured and tested, so without rips to the fabric or damage to the smoke seals and ready to descend upon activation of an alarm signal. The question for all responsible parties is, are yours?

Because fire curtains are a relatively new technology, these installations stretch across a 35-year period, and volumes are increasing with the UK supply and installation fire curtain marketplace growing to an estimated 23 million pounds in 2021. With the introduction of the BS 8524 standard in 2014 there has been an increased focus on long term planned preventative maintenance, but it would be fair to say that despite the requirements of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 many sites have failed to maintain fire and smoke curtains in compliant working order, and as logic dictates, the older the installation, the more likely that replacement of fire curtains is now a critical and legal requirement. Certainly, some of the photographs and videos we receive at head office following our initial site surveys would indicate that curtains are often neglected and no longer in compliant working order.

The problem has been further exacerbated by a responsible party’s limited options when it comes to repair of fire curtains which is succinctly explained in the Association for Specialist Fire Protection’s definitive Black Book on fire curtains,

“Where Fire Curtains have been damaged, it is vital to establish the make and type of before repairs can be made. This is to ensure that compatible or ‘like for like’ systems are used in the repair and reinstatement. Mixing of systems even from the same manufacturer must be avoided unless test data is available to demonstrate that the original design fire resistance can be achieved. If this is not possible, it is recommended that replacement of the complete Fire Curtain is undertaken to ensure compliance with fire resistance requirements.”

5.7.2. Page.38 Active Fire Curtains, First edition 2020.

With ageing fire curtain systems which must be tested regularly, increasingly discontinued components, general wear and tear, (particularly in retail, commercial and high footfall environments), and disruption to regular servicing, caused by business failure, change of ownership, personnel changes, and paperwork dead ends, it is not surprising that  the A1S Group is currently quoting and winning ever growing numbers of fire and smoke curtain replacement projects. In recognition of our 33-year history and financial strength – (so significant experience and in for the long haul) - many UK organisations are choosing A1S for replacement works and servicing as we can always offer the originally tested compliance regime i.e., BS 476-22, BS EN 1634-1 with BS EN 1634-3 or an upgrade to BS 8524-1 and BS 8524-2. Furthermore, we always  offer a competitive and comprehensive long term planned preventative maintenance agreement as standard.

Fire curtain replacement can be a complex area, but generally speaking there is no legal or regulatory requirement to upgrade systems to new standards or legislation without the building undergoing “a change of use.”- (You should always check with your competent professional, fire strategist, architect, or Building Control.) However, many companies are now choosing fire curtain replacement as the time to improve their systems and take advantage of new technologies and testing. We have found interest around our C1 class durability and reliability with the client particularly emphasising the requirement for compliance AND robustness. Often, we are able to deal directly with the end client and so we are better able to take the time to explain our comprehensive operational manuals, with nothing being lost in translation. The key to every project is not just the manufacture, installation, and product commissioning but also a carefully coordinated long-term sharing of responsibilities to ensure functionality of such products through weekly or monthly site tests by the client team and regular servicing by A1S.

An extremely famous store (subject to non-disclosure agreement), in London and their Estates and Procurement team chose to upgrade to our front line Flameshield  system, a third-party certified BS 8524, manufactured, installed, and commissioned product with obstruction warnings, and bespoke steel back of house guide protection systems (ideal in busy goods in, goods out environments) to replace their existing BS EN 1634-1 fire curtains. They continue to roll-out these further phases throughout their estate and by commercial necessity, these works have to be carried out of hours, another regular feature of replacement fire curtain projects the A1S Group are involved with.

As for our title, Fire Curtain Replacement Costs, it is easy, to receive a comprehensive and compliant quotation, just send in an email with your sizes and we will contact you within an hour to discuss locations, compliance requirements, fire performance and ancillary costs.

Extremely famous store (subject to non-disclosure agreement), Front of House, Oxford Street after rip out of existing fire curtains and replacement with Flameshield 8524 fire curtains

Out with the old and in with the new. Extremely famous store (subject to non-disclosure agreement), Oxford Street front of house lifts demonstrating discreet guide channels.

For any comments on this blog or a discussion on your latest fire curtain replacement project in the UK please contact:

Paul Caldwell-Jones on paul@a1sgroup.com

Andy Martin on andy@a1sgroup.com

For a discussion on your latest fire curtain replacement project in EMEA please contact:

Mark Dougill on markdougill@a1shutters.co.uk