Dubai: Dubai Civil Defence has announced new fire safety standards and requirements for certain materials, products, fittings and alarms used in construction.
The updates were shared on the sidelines of a recent iftar banquet held during Ramadan with the strategic partners of the authority, in the presence of Lieutenant General Expert Rashid Thani Al Matroushi, Director-General of Dubai Civil Defence.
The banquet was held at the Emirates Safety Laboratory, a governmental entity accredited in fire testing and issuing certifications for fire and safety products and systems. Lt Gen Al Matroushi hosted stakeholders, manufacturers of fire safety products and systems, consultants, developers, contractors, and other parties involved in the field of security and safety.
The meeting aimed at strengthening partnership relations with strategic partners and improving the communication with officials to transfer expertise, and to observe the “qualitative leap” the laboratory has made over the years, as well as its access to leadership through the implementation of the most recent and significant international standards and specifications.
The authority announced new rules, terms and safety requirements for testing, issuing certificates and registering products in the emirate of Dubai to make it one of the safest and most sustainable cities in the world.
Brigadier General Ali Hassan Al Mutawa, Assistant Director-General for Fire and Rescue Affairs, said the Dubai Civil Defence’s hosting of such meetings is a supportive measure to review the department’s most important services and updates in the field of industry and consulting that supports building and construction in compliance with new requirements and laws for products and projects in Dubai.
He explained that Dubai Civil Defence seeks to achieve the strategic objectives to make Dubai one of the safest cities, which includes defining requirements and informing strategic partners who support the application of the most advanced technologies.
“Dubai Civil Defence aspires, through the implementation and the application of the new requirements, to enhance and raise the level of safety in the emirate of Dubai, in addition to continuing to provide competitive prices to manufacturers and project owners in order to ensure the provision of the best international quality services in the field of building and construction,” he said.
What products are covered?
During the banquet, the most important new rules, terms, and conditions that were recently updated to ensure the supply of high-quality products to sustain the construction process were introduced. Products with new requirements include: fire-resistant doors, cladding materials and facade systems, roofing systems, fire-resistant air duct systems and systems or pre-insulated, and fire-resistant cables. In light of recent technological advancements in wireless detection and alarm systems, Dubai Civil Defence has made provisions for the installation of detection and alarm systems in all villas constructed prior to the implementation of the current regulations.
In this regard, the updates and services to be provided by the Emirates Safety Laboratory (ESL) were also announced, which include testing and approval of cladding materials and facade systems for Dubai projects to ensure to ensure sustainable quality of roof systems, prior to their submission to the Dubai Civil Defence for product registration.
Certificate of Conformity
As for the manufacturers who have obtained an accreditation certificate from another certification body accredited in the UAE, they will be able to submit their tests and certificates for assessment by the Emirates Laboratory for Safety (ESL) in order to be certified and obtain a Certificate of Conformity (CoC) issued by ESL.
For building projects in Dubai, all fire-resistant doors, fire-resistant air ducts and systems, or pre-insulated must be evaluated at the Emirates Safety Laboratory and authorised by an official certifying authority in the UAE. The ESL will provide a Certificate of Conformity (CoC) for these items, which firms will need to submit to Dubai Civil Defence for product registration.
Feasibility evaluation
As for wireless detection and alarm systems for private and commercial properties in Dubai must be evaluated and authorised by the Emirates Safety Laboratory before being submitted for product registration to Dubai Civil Defence. As part of the certification procedure, the ESL will undertake a feasibility evaluation and issue a UAE Certificate of Conformity (COC) for wireless detection and alarm systems to manufacturers that have existing test evidence in other UAE approved laboratories.
In terms of fire-resistant cables, during their inspections, Dubai Civil Defense inspectors will take around 3 meters of fire-resistant cables from buildings and submit them to the Emirates Safety Laboratory (ESL) for testing and confirmation of their performance.
The Dubai Civil Defence and the Emirates Safety Laboratory will bear the cost of testing the cables from the project sites, and if the test fails, the manufacture company must re-test and approve the fire-resistant cables with the ESL before re-registering the product with the Dubai Civil Defence to permit it to sell cables to the projects in Dubai.
