What to Know When Specifying Doors for a Data Centre

Balancing fire-rating requirement with door entry size

Many doors in data centres must be fire-rated. The building class requires the separation of ‘fire compartments’ – partitioning different areas of the facility from one another to slow the spread of fire. Fire-rated doors have been tested in a lab and certified to attain this fire-rating in the first place. The size of the tested doorset however is now its upper limit, a taller or wider version of this doorset cannot be specified. This is at odds with the needs of data centres or similar facilities where large openings are ideal to transport large equipment in and out. As such, finding a way to extend a doorset without compromising compliance is a must.

Many manufacturers resort to fitting fire bolts in their fire doors in order to pass testing on taller or wider doors. The bolt activates by shooting into the frame and fixing the door shut in the event of a fire, thereby mitigating risk of bowing from the heat. Whilst this mechanism does often allow for larger fire doors to pass lab testing, it also comes with significant security risks. With the door fixed shut, it risks trapping occupants inside during a fire, as well as impeding the fire department from getting in. All of Fire Rescue Victoria, Fire and Rescue NSW, and ACT Fire and Rescue have condemned the use of fire bolts for this reason.

The better way to extend a fire doorset is with a Transom or Mullion; these are framing pieces that allow for a fire-rated panel to be fitted above or alongside the door, creating an overall larger opening. Importantly, these framing pieces and the adjoining fire-rated panel are easily removable. This removable design means that, when large goods need to be brought through, these sections can be taken off to create a tall or wide opening. When finished, the panel and frame section are simply re-fitted and the fire door’s safety and compliance remain uncompromised.

Even non-rated doors should possibly be non-combustible

There are doors within the facility that do not require a certified Fire Resistance Level in accordance with Australian Standards and the National Construction Code (NCC). However, even in these instances, it is important to take common safety practices into consideration both for safety and owner liability purposes. With this in mind, it may be a good idea to specify doors in high-risk spaces with non-combustible properties. A standard door is composed of timber and so is naturally susceptible to combustion when exposed to fire or extreme heat. Non-combustible doors have metal cladding as metal does not ignite under fire / extreme heat conditions in the way that timber does.

Need to manufacture at volume

When building an industrial facility, either a great volume or a great variety of doors will be required, or possibly both. Door manufacture must be completed in a timely manner to keep up with construction phasing in order for the facility to be operational on schedule. Spence Doors are built to meet these demands with factories in Victoria and Queensland which together are capable of delivering major production.

When building a data centre, fire doors can present a number of challenges, but each has an appropriate answer to meet the safety and compliance requirements of the facility. Spence Doors specialise in projects such as this, equipped with a wide range of tested fire doors, a focus on compliance, and capability to produce in high volume.