Intumescent Coatings
Intumescent paint is a legal requirement for commercial and public buildings. This essential fire safety measure plays a critical role in protecting lives and property by buying valuable time during a fire emergency, providing individuals with an increased opportunity to escape from danger.
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High-Performance Fire Protection for Steel
Intumescent paint, also known as intumescent coating, provides essential passive fire protection for steel structures. When a protective intumescent layer is added, the length of time the structure can withstand high temperatures is increased. This offers crucial additional time for evacuating occupants safely, and also reduces the damage incurred to the steel.
Intumescent Coating Products
There are various types of intumescent coatings, including water-based, solvent-based and epoxy-based. These typically
We work with various intumescent coatings depending on the safety and performance requirements of the project, for example, achieving BS476 or EN13381. Please let us know your needs and we will advise on the most effective system.
Benefits of Intumescent Paint:
- Increased evacuation time
- Protect steel structures
- Variety of finishes available
- The coating can be applied in situ or off-site as required
If you have a project that requires intumescent paint, please contact us for more details or a quote.
FAQ
The primary purpose of intumescent coatings is to prevent structural collapse if a fire occurs. When exposed to extreme heat, steel structures will eventually reach a ‘critical temperature’, which can be between 350 – 750°C. When this temperature is reached, the steel begins to lose its structural integrity and load-bearing capacity, leading to a collapse.
When an intumescent coating is applied, the high temperatures by the fire trigger a chemical reaction in the coating that causes the materials in the paint to expand. This controlled expansion creates an insulating layer that increases the steel’s fire resistance time, allowing extra time for the building to be evacuated and the fire to be extinguished.
Intumescent paint and coating is specifically designed for steel structures.
The exact performance of intumescent products can vary, but they typically offer 30, 60, 90 and 120 minutes of fire resistance depending on the specific type of coating.
We work with various intumescent coatings depending on the safety requirements of the project, for example achieving BS476 or EN13381. Please let us know your needs and we will advise on the most effective system.
Thin-film coating systems tend to be used for fire protection in commercial buildings with resistance requirements of 30, 60 and 90 minutes.
Thick film coatings systems are typically epoxy-based and are developed for use in buildings in the offshore or hydrocarbon industry, where the test heating process is more stringent than that for industrial and commercial settings.
Intumescent coating Project
FIREPROOF COATING REFURBISHMENT, BATH
he main contractors were refurbishing a commercial building and converting it into a supermarket. As a part of this renovation and in line with BS476 fire safety standards, the new steel beams required intumescent fire protection with a decorative finish.
