Fire protection of storage cabinets and valuables

Security cabinet after fire test

Security cabinet after fire test

Room according to EN 1047-2 before fire test

Security cabinet before fire test

Security cabinet before fire test

Storage cabinets and waste containers play an important role in the daily work of many companies. They are used to securely store work materials and documents, protecting them from external influences or unauthorized access. Since these are commercial furniture, they may – unlike furniture in private settings – be subject to certain requirements from the occupational health and building regulations, especially in fire protection.

In the case of storage cabinets such as safety cabinets for storing flammable liquids or compressed gas cylinders, the high danger of the stored goods plays an prominent role. It is essential to demonstrate the necessary fire resistance of these cabinets. Accredited fire protection testing facilities like the MPA Dresden are capable of verifying, through fire tests according to standards 14470 (Parts 1 and 2), whether in the event of a fire the stored goods are protected for a certain period – usually 30 minutes, but often 90 minutes – so that they do not participate in the fire, thus ensuring that people inside can evacuate safely. Furthermore, this allows the fire brigade to begin firefighting efforts with minimal risk to themselves and, if necessary, extinguish the fire before the stored goods catch fire. Typically, safety cabinets are not permanently protected against internal fires. After the fire resistance period expires, the stored goods can also ignite and be lost. The higher the fire resistance, the greater the chance that valuable stored items will be preserved.

With regard to safes ("security containers"), the focus is not solely on personal protection, such as evacuating or rescuing people, limiting fire spread, and providing firefighting access, as is required by law for fire protection in companies. The protection of the material value – that is, property against fire damage – required by safes is not part of legal fire protection. This so-called voluntary fire protection usually exceeds legal requirements significantly. In certain cases, it is also demanded by insurance companies. Therefore, it is necessary to take intensive measures to protect the company's relevant valuables. In companies, these include, besides cash, especially irreplaceable documents in paper form or on data carriers, and in private settings, also jewelry and art objects. Often, irreversible damage can occur without direct contact with flames. To demonstrate the fire endurance of a safe against external fire exposure, the specifically developed European standard EN 1047 exists. When it comes to data protection, the entire safe must be examined. This should be done according to EN 1047 Part 1.

A particularly challenging part of proof is the so-called fire and drop test. In this test, a safe is repeatedly exposed to full fire conditions until it reaches a glowing red state, and is then dropped from a height of 10 meters into a special drop pit. At no point during this process should a certain internal temperature be exceeded. For heat-sensitive papers, this temperature is around 170°C, for data carriers around 70°C, and sometimes even only 50°C. The internal humidity must not exceed 85%, as moisture-sensitive papers and data carriers can also be damaged by high humidity.

Since fire testing of safes requires different expertise from building fire protection testing, there are only very few certified testing laboratories. The MPA Dresden is an recognized and accredited testing facility for fire protection of data safes and waste containers according to EN 1047-1, data storage rooms according to EN 1047-2, and safety cabinets for storing flammable liquids and compressed gas cylinders according to EN 14470 Parts 1 and 2. For the latter, all tests according to EN 14727 can also be performed, and the GS mark can be issued. Additionally, the MPA Dresden is a recognized, accredited, and notified fire testing facility for building fire protection. In the in-house engineering office, solutions for project-specific problems are developed. If necessary, energy certificates, e.g., according to ENEV, can also be prepared.