Nullifire solutions underpin fire safety at new prison facility

The large-scale site, comprising of seven prison blocks with four wings and seven ancillary buildings, is set to open early in 2022 and will deliver a major boost for the local economy.

Commonly referred to as Wellingborough Prison (or HMP Wellingborough) due to it being built on same site as the latter, HMP Five Wells will be a Category C male prison with a maximum capacity of 1,680. The facility will serve as the largest prison in the East Midlands and, indeed, one of the largest in the UK. On completion, HMP Five Wells is to be operated by G4S under contract from the Government.

Nullifire products including FB750 Intubatt Coated Batt, FS702 Intumastic Fire Resistant Acrylic Sealant, FR230 Intucompound Fire Mortar and FS709 HP Intumescent Sealant are being installed throughout the development.

Working closely with the technical team at Nullifire, GRJ Contracting was able to offer the main contractor a wide range of firestopping solutions to meet the stringent needs of this project.

For the ultimate in reassurance, each installation has a specific detail reference and detail sheet, all of them being tracked by GRJ Contracting.

GRJ Contracting and Nullifire’s technical team have worked closely throughout the project, including at the design phase, remotely viewing BIM models via an online meeting and offering advice on the creation of benchmark walls and building sections for approval before commencing work on site.

Variety of situations  

Tom Hall of GRJ Contracting informed Fire Safety Matters: “We’ve needed to pay attention to a wide variety of situations within the overall building, with Nullifire’s technical team working in collaboration with ourselves and the client to provide details for each scenario. This has included prison bedrooms. Each has a riser cupboard containing M&E services such as lighting, shower heads and ducting. All haveto be safe and secure. Details have been provided by Nullifire to accommodate these features.”

Alex Lawie, Nullifire’s technical manager, noted: “This project demonstrates the partnership approach between Nullifire and our trained partner network. Working with GRJ Contracting, we’ve been able to add real value to the project team, demonstrating how we can work together to meet the exact needs of a complex, large-scale project such as this.”

Lawie noted: “Our Technical Department members understand all of the relevant regulations and requirements and work closely with specifiers to act as trusted advisors. This ensures safety and performance are delivered as standard.”

*Further information about Nullifire and its products can be accessed online at www.nullifire.com/en_GB/home/