Employee
Also known as fire-rated partitions, fire partitions are free-standing walls or structures within a building that have the specific purpose of slowing the progress of a fire. While not the same as a fire barrier, a properly constructed fire partition can provide valuable time that increases the chances of evacuating the space before someone is injured. In many jurisdictions, local building codes include specific criteria that a fire partition must meet to be included in a building design.
One of the main differences between a partition and a fire barrier is that the barrier is usually more stable than the partition. A barrier usually extends across ceilings and floors, effectively creating another wall that the fire must pass through before reaching the next section of the building. In contrast, a fire partition does not extend through a ceiling or floor and is not connected to the ceiling. In some cases, a partition may not even touch the ceiling within a given chamber, a factor that also tends to decrease the overall stability of the structure.
It is important to note that a fire partition is not normally expected to completely stop the spread of a fire. The idea is to slow the spread of the fire so that anyone in the burning structure has a little more time to escape. The presence of the partition also means that overall damage to the building is minimised, assuming the fire is brought under control before the protective construction is breached.
Most jurisdictions that allow the inclusion of a fire partition in a new construction project will require that the construction meet specific safety requirements found in local building codes. These requirements may be specific to the types of construction materials used to construct the partition, as well as the thickness of the safety device and how it is anchored to the ground. The idea is to ensure that the materials actually help slow the progress of a fire and that the partition is stable enough to avoid weakening the overall strength of the structure.
There are some differences of opinion when it comes to determining if a fire barrier is more effective than a fire barrier. Proponents tend to claim that the partition offers protection that is at least as effective as the barrier, but will cost less to build. Critics point out that the decreased stability associated with a fire partition doesn’t really make up for the difference in construction costs and can mean losing a few valuable seconds of time in the event of a fire.