While inspecting fire safety features during a building renovation, we realized that walls designed to resist fire for an hour lose much of their effectiveness if the doors aren’t rated appropriately. It led to asking: how does installing a fire rated door in 1 hour wall change evacuation time, smoke control, and overall safety when fire strikes?

Incorporating a fire rated door in 1 hour wall made a crucial difference during testing, because it maintained structural integrity under high heat and prevented smoke spreading into escape routes. Once the door performed as required, we felt confident that occupants would have more time to evacuate and responded with greater assurance that the building truly met safety standards.