New ASFP Blue Book offers practitioners guidance on fire-resisting ductwork

This second edition of the Blue Book European Version outlines the tests and classifications from BS EN 13501 Parts 3 and 4 and is suitable for products which may have to be CE marked under the European Construction Products Regulation. It provides complementary information to the UK version: Fire-Resisting Ductwork Tested to BS 476 Part 24 (Third Edition).

This new document is intended to assist the understanding of many of the essential details that play a significant part in ensuring that fire-resisting ductwork is correctly designed and installed in accordance with current BS EN standards and UK legislative requirements. 

Detailed information is provided on European fire tests for ducts, together with a summary of the rules for both direct and extended fields of application. The document describes the different types of system and their function as well as providing guidance on all the relevant legislation, standards and Codes of Practice as well as notes on penetration seals and support systems.

Until CE marking becomes mandatory, both BS and EN versions remain valid in the UK. Once CE marking becomes mandatory, the BS version will become redundant for EU markets, but can still be used in applications elsewhere.

The document also references the ASFP’s latest Technical Guidance Document TGD 20: Fire Test Standards and the Construction Products Regulation in Relation to Fire-Resisting Ventilation and Smoke Control Ductwork. This document, produced in collaboration with the British Engineering Services Association and ADCAS, provides further explanation of where BS EN 1366 testing is mandatory and highlights areas where it’s still possible to use BS 476-24.

The documents were launched during a webinar which is now available to view on demand. The webinar describes the essential factors relating to the design and installation of fire-resisting ductwork (including smoke control ductwork) in accordance with UK and EU legislation and explains what fire-resisting ductwork is and the performance requirements placed upon it.

*Copies of the Blue Book European Version Second Edition, the Blue Book UK Version Third Edition and TGD20 can be downloaded free of charge at www.asfp.org.uk