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Fire protection at design stage

Early Engagement

Specialist passive fire protection consultancy from the design stage. We work alongside your architects, fire engineers and main contractor team to make sure fire protection is designed in, not retrofitted later.

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Passive Fire Protection should never be an afterthought

Most passive fire protection problems on site can be traced back to a single root cause, the contractor was brought in too late. By the time fire stopping, intumescent coatings or cavity barriers are specified, the architectural decisions have already been made, services have been routed and the programme has been locked in.

What follows is a familiar story; design clashes, costly rework, missed deadlines and a compliance scramble at handover. Details that should have been resolved at design stage become problems that have to be managed under programme pressure, often at a premium.

It does not have to be this way.

Our leadership team brings over 40 years of combined experience across design consultation, intumescent coatings, firestopping, compartmentation, structural encasement and cavity barrier installation. From hands-on site delivery through to technical direction and commercial management. We hold qualifications including NVQ Level 6, IFE Level 2, FSIDip and ICORR certification, and we have delivered passive fire protection on some of the UK’s most complex commercial, healthcare and education projects alongside tier-one main contractors. 

That experience has shown us, time and again, what changes when passive fire protection is treated as a strategic decision from day one rather than a problem to solve at the end. We push this agenda because we believe the industry deserves better. Too many projects still treat fire protection as a box-ticking exercise bolted on at the tail end of a build. We are committed to being the change we want to see in this sector; raising the standard, challenging the status quo and proving that when fire protection is engaged early, everybody benefits. 

What Early Engagement looks like

Early engagement is a consultative service we provide to design teams, main contractors, fire engineers, developers and architects from the earliest stages of a project. We review the proposed fire strategy, examine the architectural and services drawings and identify where passive fire protection will need to be installed, how it will integrate with other trades and what documentation will be required to satisfy Gateway 2 and Gateway 3 sign-off. 

We work alongside your fire engineer, not in place of them. Our role is to bring the practical, on-site knowledge that turns a fire strategy into a buildable installation plan, flagging issues that only become obvious once you have installed thousands of seals, coatings and barriers across hundreds of projects. We assess penetration details for buildability, coordinate cavity barrier positioning with M&E routes, verify that intumescent coating specifications are correctly matched to steel section factors and ensure that boarding details are resolved before they clash with other installations on site. All with cost engineering and compliance as the main focus. 

The cost of engaging late

When passive fire protection is left until the final stages of a project, the consequences are predictable. Service penetrations are routed without adequate space for the correct seal. Cavity barriers are missed because the design did not identify all void locations. Intumescent coating specifications are wrong for the steel section factor. Boarding details clash with mechanical and electrical installations. 

Each of these problems carries a cost, rework, programme delays, difficult conversations with the client, failed inspections. In the worst cases, refused Gateway 3 sign-off and delayed occupation. 

Early engagement prevents these problems before they arise. The investment is small. The savings in time, cost and reputation are significant.

Frequently Asked Questions

The earlier the better. We typically engage at RIBA Stage 2 or 3 when the fire strategy is being developed, but we can add value at any stage before construction begins. If the project has already started, we still recommend talking to us as soon as possible.

For most projects we provide early engagement as part of our overall scope. The investment is built into the long term value we deliver. For larger or more complex projects we can structure a separate consultancy arrangement.

No. We complement the fire engineer’s work. They define the fire strategy. We translate it into a buildable, compliant installation plan and execute it on site.

Any project where passive fire protection is a meaningful part of the build. We work on projects ranging from single-building developments to multi-phase commercial schemes.

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