Fire resistance of buildings

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Approved document B, Fire Safety, Volume 2, Buildings other than dwellinghouses, suggests that:

The fire resistance of an element of construction is a measure of its ability to withstand the effects of fire in one or more ways, as follows:

• Resistance to collapse, i.e. the ability to maintain loadbearing capacity (which applies to loadbearing elements only).
• Resistance to fire penetration, i.e. an ability to maintain the integrity of the element.
• Resistance to the transfer of excessive heat, i.e. an ability to provide insulation from high temperatures.

Other information about fire resistance in the approved document includes:

• Guidance in section 2 concerning the use of fire-resisting construction to protect means of escape.
• Guidance in section 9 about the fire resistance of external walls to restrict the spread of fire between buildings.
• Information in appendix A about methods of testing and the performance of elements of construction.
• Information in appendix B about fire doors.
• Information in appendix C about methods of measurement.
• Information in appendix D about purpose group classification.

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