For years, weak and fragmented legislation, combined with poor skills and control in construction and maintenance has resulted in incorrectly installed and unsafe fire doors. The inadequacies in inspection and maintenance regimes has meant that many are unaware about the necessary measures to ensure that fire rated doors are not only installed but done so correctly. You can have the highest quality fire door but unless it is fitted correctly, it is rendered useless. It has become apparent following several high-profile fires that inadequately fitted doors are sadly a deeply rooted problem. Door manufacturers are being thrust directly into the spotlight. The British government are testing more than 200 door manufacturers over the coming months. Initial test are already showing HUGE failings. With a lot of new doors falling well short of the claimed protection times. That is before possible errors in installations are considered.

Having worked together in the construction industry Steve, Matt and Alex are no stranger to discovering ill-fitted doors. While working on office refurbishment rip outs and installations, they frequently come across fire doors that would struggle to halt the spread of a fire. Thankfully in their line of work they are often there to install new doors and do so in line with the government’s regulations. They are aware and passionate about the importance of fire safety and have prided themselves in their attention to detail. Unless your attention is drawn to doors, many don’t give fire doors a second thought. They forget that their real job is to provide a barrier to fire, prevent it spreading throughout a building and keep escape and access routes clear.

Part of the job of a Construction Manager is to provide quality service and to “snag” anything that is incorrectly built, installed or used. After Grenfell and other recent tragedies, the harrowing images stuck with them. They became increasingly aware of the importance of fire door safety and number of compromised doors they passed in their day to day life. They couldn't help but notice and snag ill fitted doors as they passed. When they looked further into support services for business to check their doors, they were surprised by the lack of available services.

It appeared hard for non-construction minded companies to easily ensure their fire doors met regulations but were also maintained to protect themselves. Frustrated by this Stephen Hussey, Matt and Alex Hughes founded Pro-tect in 2018.