How does the required hose stream test work and why does it matter?>
What do I need to know about impact safety testing for fire-rated glazing?>
Can fire-rated glass pass any additional performance tests?>
At-a-glance: Which tests do TGP’s products meet?>
How does thermal shock impact fire-rated glass?>
When is exterior fire-rated glazing required?>
Building codes set benchmarks for ensuring occupant safety. Updated every three years, they reflect the most current advances in safer design strategies.
Starting with the 2021 edition of the International Building Code (IBC), Section 703.2: Fire Resistance includes the phrase “without the use of automatic sprinklers or any other fire suppression system being incorporated” when detailing how fire-resistance ratings are determined.
This means fire-rated assemblies must achieve their ratings through their materials and construction alone. The implied reason behind this requirement is that automatic sprinkler systems fail to operate 1 out of 10 times according to data from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Overreliance on one active system can put occupants at risk in the event of a fire. This is why passive fire defense systems like fire-rated glass are essential to safe and code-compliant design.
Known as passive fire protection, fire-resistance-rated glass and other fire-rated materials stand guard at all times, supporting compartmentation strategies and safeguarding egress routes. When installed correctly, fire-rated glass does not rely on alarms, triggers or other active systems to perform effectively and as intended. Sprinklers and other active fire defense systems can and sometimes do fail to activate, which can put occupants at risk during a fire if no other defense mechanism is used.
This is why sprinklers cannot replace fire-resistive glass—not in ASTM International (ASTM) or UL Solutions (UL) fire-resistance tests and not in real-world applications.
When specifying fire-resistance-rated glass that meets these stringent IBC requirements, project teams are encouraged to look for systems that meet UL 263, ASTM E119, NFPA 251 or CAN/ULC-S10 test standards for fire endurance. These fire tests closely model real-world fire conditions and analyze glazing performance to give specifiers accurate and usable data when creating fire-rated glazing systems.
Technical Glass Products (TGP) has multiple fire-resistance-rated glazing systems that meet code-driven requirements for fire and life safety. Contact TGP today to start your next fire-rated design.
