Safety and visibility come first to people. Over the years, building teams have pushed the limits of what’s possible indoors with stringent fire and life safety standards, narrowing the purpose of these glass fire doors from bright, open exits to entrances that seamlessly integrate with non-rated materials. Can use today’s fire-rated glazing materials. To fully reap the benefits of these advanced offerings, consider the following tips when specifying glass fire door assemblies.

1. Prioritise transparency

Building industry professionals can also select from a suite of products with nearly distortion-free viewing surfaces for clear fire-rated glazing. For example, fire-resistant glazing products, such as glass fire doors and ceramics, can be ground and polished on both sides. This type of glass has a smooth surface finish, high visible light transmission, and low reflection, making it ideal for doors where exceptional clarity is desired.

Fire-resistant transparent wall panels, which are often used in temperature-rise doors, can also meet visual requirements. They enable large, clear viewing areas in locations subject to strict fire-rate criteria by code.

2. Create a visual match

Although traditional hollow-metal steel fire door and frame assemblies can provide the necessary fire protection, the size and shape of their frame profiles may not match the surrounding windows and curtain walls. New generation glass fire doors can help overcome this challenge with their sleek form.

For example, using inherently heat-resistant framing materials such as carbon steel generally does not require a thermal barrier in their core to achieve the required fire protection. Their thin, extruded profile and crisp edges closely match the aesthetic and technical aspects of traditional aluminium frames for indoor applications for design teams that require strict fire protection.

Building industry professionals can now select from a wide array of versatile frame cover caps to help match glass fire doors to surrounding materials. They allow the design team to create a cohesive look across interior or exterior spaces without altering the fire and life safety performance of the frame.

3. Create fire-rated focal points

While maintaining visual harmony between fire-rated and non-fire-rated elements is an important design goal in many buildings, in others, it is equally important to differentiate the design. A character-defining entrance, for example, can help set the tone for a building and invite people to come inside.

In assemblies where building teams need to achieve a more custom look, from bold colours to muted colours, there is an ever-increasing range of options from which to choose. Glass fire doors and frames are customs painted, anodised, or powder coated to meet project goals.

4. Add a decorative surface treatment

For aesthetic purposes, designs may call for fire-rated glass doors with a decorative surface treatment. An example is healthcare facilities, where glass fire doors designated by code to provide fire protection may also need to balance light transmission with patient privacy. To meet the needs of specific projects, manufacturers and suppliers now offer fire-rated glass with decorative treatments that will not affect its integrity.

Today’s fire-rated glazing materials provide the aesthetic properties necessary to support a wide range of design goals in glass fire door assemblies.