CW-FS Firestop from Siderise tested to India’s IS 18190:2023 standard

This test result strengthens the product’s extensive test portfolio and reinforces its suitability for protecting curtain wall façades in India’s thriving high-rise construction market.

A requirement of the National Building Construction Standards (NBCS 2026) published by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), IS 18190:2023 provides a national test method for assessing the fire resistance of perimeter fire barrier assemblies used for sealing the joint between the floor slab and curtain wall within the spandrel zone.

The standard draws on established international approaches: ASTM E2307 – Standard Test Method for Determining Fire Resistance of Perimeter Fire Barriers Using Intermediate-Scale, Multi-Story Test Apparatus and UL 2079 – Tests for Fire Resistance of Building Joint Systems, thereby creating a robust framework for showing how solutions with movement capability maintain the fire resistance of the floor slab and prevent fire and smoke spread.

As part of the test programme, the CW-FS Firestop was subjected to mechanically induced movement between the minimum and maximum joint width before being left to stabilise at its maximum joint width ahead of fire exposure as required by the standard.

The provision for air leakage testing through the CW-FS Firestop compartmentation measure further provides a clearer picture of how effective it is at restricting the movement of smoke (as demonstrated by its L-rating at less than 1 CFM/lin.ft).

Construction boom

Commenting on this achievement, Sreenivas Narayanan (global partnerships director at Siderise) said: “India is experiencing a major construction boom, driven by urbanisation and external investment. In response, there’s significant demand not only for stronger fire safety guidance, but also for test standards developed specifically for Indian buildings and informed by global best practice.”

Narayanan continued: “We are approaching ten years since the BIS Act 2016 came into effect, establishing the BIS as the national standards body of India. The development of IS 18190:2023 and its adoption into NBCS 2026, which effectively replaced ISO 834 in the National Building Code 2016, is a strong example of progress and a major shift from product-based towards system-based compliance.”

Further, Narayanan stated: “Through our ongoing partnership with internationally recognised Testing, Inspection and Certification provider Thomas Bell-Wright, we’re proud that the Siderise CW-FS Firestop has been tested to this standard. It’s the first curtain wall perimeter barrier successfully tested in an IAS accredited test laboratory, helping to support safe and compliant buildings for generations to come.”

Siderise has been operating in India for more than a decade and, in January this year, supplied solutions for its 600^th project in the country: all of them high-rise developments.

The company offers an extensive portfolio of certified CW systems for a variety of curtain wall designs, including full vision glass. Its supply of high-performance cavity barriers and firestops is backed by comprehensive and freely available technical and site services, all of them delivered by engineers with extensive experience of working on both Indian and international projects.

*Further information is available online at www.siderise.com