A Burning Issue

May 1, 2006 12:00 PM, By Pat Jaugstetter

Fire-rated cabinets, now produced by the three manufacturers of extinguisher cabinets, have been met with enthusiastic acceptance in the architectural and construction communities.

“Fire-rated cabinets provide architects with an alternative design solution when a standard cabinet does not meet all of our needs,” says Nicholas Sperides of American Institute of Architects and Welman Sperides Architects. “It's one of those products that provides high value. It does a lot more than hold a fire extinguisher.”

Fire-rated cabinets, developed and introduced to the marketplace in 1991, were created in response to the concerns expressed by fire marshals, code officials and architects. These industry professionals were interested in a product that they could inspect after installation in order to determine that the fire-resistive requirements of the wall had been maintained. Fire-rated extinguisher cabinets are designed to maintain the integrity of fire-related walls while using recessed, or partially recessed, cabinets, as required by building codes.

Before fire-rated cabinets were created, architects would typically specify that, where fire-rated walls are penetrated, the opening around the cabinet must be framed, lined on all five sides with a fire-rated gypsum board (type “X”) membrane, taped and finally sealed with joint compound, in order to uphold the wall's fire-resistive qualities.

This “lining the opening” was often a procedure that lacked precision and consistency, as compared to using a standardized product, which is listed and fabricated to specific tolerances and subject to third-party quality inspection at manufacture.

With the breakthrough introduction of fire-rated cabinets, the fire official and inspector no longer must wonder if the integrity of the fire-resistive membrane behind the cabinet has been compromised by “lining the opening.” It also eliminates the need to inspect the lined opening before installation of the extinguisher cabinet. Instead, the use of a listed and labeled fire-rated cabinet provides assurance that the fire barrier, as required by code, has not been compromised.

In addition to the benefits to the fire official and inspectors, a fire-rated cabinet benefits the building owner by saving labor costs and materials. A standard cabinet wall opening that is framed, lined with gypsum board, taped and finished with joint compound can take approximately one hour per installation, plus materials. The cost for a fire-rated cabinet averages from $60-80 to the contractor, depending on the size of the cabinet. The additional cost for the fire-rated cabinet is offset by the labor savings for the typical installation crew.

In 1992, fire-rated cabinets were used extensively during the construction of the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn. The contractor realized the cost savings compared to using the originally specified non-rated cabinets with the “lining the opening” installation method.

Fire-rated cabinets are certified and listed by Intertek Testing Services or Underwriters Laboratories to conform to one-hour combustible and two-hour non-combustible fire-barrier wall system building codes. These cabinets are fabricated in accordance with UBC 7-5 (ASTM E814) and UBC 7-1 (ASTM E119) under positive pressure to measure fire resistive performance.

Currently, fire-rated cabinet sales comprise approximately 25 percent of overall cabinet sales. This statistic is a healthy percentage of overall cabinets, considering that fire-rated cabinets are also placed in many non-fire-rated wall applications, including surface-mount applications, where the wall is not penetrated at all.

The growing use of fire-rated barriers in commercial construction calls for a steadily increasing need for all fire-rated accessory items, including cabinets, in order to maintain the integrity of the fire barrier. This industry shift is indicated, in part, by the growing prevalence of fire-rated type “X” gypsum wallboard usage. (Studies show the ratio of type “X” used to all wallboard growing from 24.9 percent in 1992 to 29.7 percent in 2003, with projections of 33.3 percent in 2007 and 36.1 percent in 2012.)

Looking ahead, building safety performance demands will continue to increase; and, as a part of this, fire barriers for structural integrity and life safety will continue to become more widespread. Therefore, it can be expected and predicted that fire-rated cabinets will play an even more significant role in future projects.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Pat Jaugstetter is president of Fire Equipment Manufacturers' Association (FEMA, The Life Safety Group), an international, non-profit trade association representing the world's leading fire equipment manufacturers. Visit www.femalifesafety.org for further information.

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