PASSIVE FIRE PROTECTION PLANNING

Considerable evidence exists to show that, in a large proportion of buildings, passive fire protection has not been effectively designed, specified and installed – putting lives in danger. To combat this issue, Fire Protection Association NZ is working to educate the industry

Over the past five years, Fire Protection Association NZ (FPANZ) has been taking a leading role in cleaning up the passive fire protection sector to ensure buildings are compliant upon inspection.

To this end, FPANZ Passive Fire Special Interest Group (SIG) has been working collaboratively with industry participants to put tools and measures in place to help everyone in the industry understand the importance of passive fire protection and how it can be done properly from the start – saving builders and homeowners time and money.

FPANZ strongly supports the use of trained and experienced specialist passive fire protection installers and specialists for your Passive Fire protection requirements. In 2021, there is sufficient knowledge, and enough companies and staff across NZ, to ensure passive fire protection is always completed in a compliant manner.

Listed below are some initiatives FPANZ has delivered and made available to the wider industry to ensure passive fire protection isn’t a headache on your next build. Visit fpanz.org to access the below information.

Passive fire products register

FPANZ developed a register of compliant passive fire products that manufacturers chose to list. It is an impartial document that provides a tool for searching or checking compliant materials and systems. Currently available on the FPANZ website as a PDF, it will soon be transferred to a searchable, online version that will show comparisons for all available compliant options, along with manufacturer and distributor contact details.

Intumescent coatings Code of Practice

FPANZ developed this Code of Practice document to enhance the design, specification and application of intumescent paint on NZ buildings. This Code of Practice is a step-by-step guide for best practice and satisfying NZBC when it comes to intumescent paints.

NZQA Level 3 Passive Fire Installer qualification

FPANZ has worked hand-in-hand with Competenz to develop the NZQA Level 3 Passive Fire Installer qualification. This is the first and only NZQA-recognized qualification for the installation of passive fire protection systems.

Since the establishment of the qualification at the start of 2020, more than 250 learners have enrolled and over 40 have completed the qualification. A description of the course can be found on the Competenz website.

Position Statements

FPANZ regularly develops and releases Position Statements to the market free of charge as a quick way to distribute information where there may be a particular troublesome point in the industry, or area where clarification is required.

Recent Passive Fire Position Statements have included:

• 01 – Fundamentals of Passive Fire Protection
• 02 – Fire Stopping Methodology
• 04 – Smoke Stopping

‘Get it Right’ seminars

FPANZ hosts a variety of half-day and full-day seminars across New Zealand which are hosted by subject matter expert speakers.

In June 2021, the Passive Fire SIG delivered its first “Get it Right Seminar” in Christchurch to an at-capacity audience.

In 2022, FPANZ will be delivering these to audiences across Aotearoa. Dates and locations will be announced once Covid-19 restrictions have eased.

The agenda will include: Intumescent Coatings Code of Practice, Passive Fire design & specification, Passive Fire installation, test labs, and NZQA Level 3 and Level 4 Qualifications.