Technical Talks – Rigorous Testing and Technical Competence

As part of Etex, EOS have access to some of the best fire protection experts in the UK. Here, Technical Director Nigel Morrey considers how we ensure that materials are tested and fit for purpose. Specialising in passive fire protection for over 30 years, Nigel is a qualified fire engineer and Chair of the Finishes and Interiors Sector (FIS) Fire Safety Group and sits on the Association of Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP) Council and Strategy Group.

Our products, processes and whole business philosophy show that as a manufacturer we take our responsibilities extremely seriously. At the heart of this is rigorous testing, technically competent people and a systems-based approach to our solutions.

Current regulations tend to deal with individual products and how they perform in a laboratory test. This is not enough. Material providers should have comprehensive, full-scale testing regimes that study the performance of products working together to see how they interact under ‘real’ conditions, like fire or when exposed to wind and rain. We need to assess how all of the products in the system – boards, metals, screws, insulation – react under these circumstances.

Annually we conduct over 500 tests in Europe alone. We have three Innovation and Technology Centres where we have our own fire, acoustic, mechanical, structural and thermal testing facilities, equipment and laboratories. We also fully support and endorse third party certification systems such as BBA, BRE Global and Certifire. We work closely with certification bodies to jointly develop and design technical solutions.

Our range of technical support is there for specifiers throughout the lifecycle of the project. We also invest heavily in technical training – for instance, it is compulsory for every single person in a technical or specification role to have taken our Technical Expert Programme.

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