Passive Fire Protection Including Fireproof Applications and Fire Stop Systems

Passive Fire Protection (PFP) – is a group of systems that compartmentalize a building through the use of fire-resistance rated walls and floors, keeping the fire from spreading quickly and providing time to escape for people in the building. Fire / smoke dampers are used in a facilities’ ducts to prevent the spread of fire/smoke throughout the building’s ductwork system. Fire doors help compartmentalize a building, while giving its occupants means of escape. Fire walls / barriers help separate the building into compartments to stop the spread of fire/smoke from room to room. For building with multiple floors, Photoluminescent egress path markers help light the way to safety in dark and smoky stairwells. Passive fire protection is designed to prevent smoke, toxic gases, and fire from spreading; and by compartmentalizing fire, passive fire protection systems:

• Strengthen the effectiveness of active systems
• Facilitate occupant evacuation
• Protect property
• Minimize property damage

Active and passive fire protection systems, although different, are important to a building’s overall fire safety. AFP uses systems that take action in putting out the fire, while PFP uses systems that help prevent the spread of fire and smoke. Just because one is working doesn’t mean you should ignore the other, or that one is more important than the other. AFP takes action in putting out the fire, but may not always work properly. Especially during winter, sprinklers often fail due to frozen pipes, roads could become icy, and hydrants could freeze, which all delays a firefighter’s job and let’s the fire grow. PFP compartmentalizes a building into smaller sections to prevent the spread of fire and smoke throughout the building, while also providing occupants more time for evacuation. However, it doesn’t put out the fire altogether, it just helps contain it to one location. Therefore, to ensure that a building has total fire protection, both AFP and PFP should be working together in unison.

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