Abloy UK produces fire door safety infographic promoting compliance

Pat Jefferies, commercial director at Abloy UK, informed Fire Safety Matters: “Every year, Abloy UK is a big supporter of Fire Door Safety Week. As a business, we continually promote the crucial importance of fire doors in saving lives and protecting property, not just during this annual initiative, but indeed throughout the entire year.”

Focusing on the statistics, Jefferies continued: “After a steady decline in previous years, the latest fire statistics showed an increase in fires in the UK, with 152,608 fires attended by the Fire and Rescue Service in the year ending March 2022. That’s a 1% increase compared with the previous year.”

Further, Jefferies noted: “Of these episodes, 63,482 were primary fires, which are generally more serious in nature and harm people or cause damage to property. The number of such fires represents a 3% rise on the previous 12-month period.”

Fatalities increasing

Sadly, fatalities have increased by almost 15%, with 272 fire-related deaths compared to 237 in the previous year. These included 99 deaths during the final three months of 2021, which was the highest quarterly figure recorded since spring 2017 and, prior to that, the largest since winter 2008.

“Fire Door Safety Weeks is the ideal time to highlight the importance of this pertinent topic,” explained Jefferies. “When it comes to access control in public and commercial buildings, there’s no greater responsibility than specifying the correct locking solution on emergency escape and fire doors. It really can mean the difference between life and death for building occupants.”

In conclusion, Jefferies told Fire Safety Matters: “Our infographic features some very worrying figures. Here at Abloy, we champion the crucial role of fire door standards. We truly believe that education in the subject of life safety standards is vital for any business involved with access control specification. With this in mind, we offer a number of free courses at our Academy.”

*Further information is available by visiting the Abloy UK website

**Visit the Fire Door Safety Week 2022 website for additional campaign details