How and why is it important to specify contract Fire Rated (FR) standard upholstery fabric?

The main fire rating (FR) that needs to be adhered to by designers when specifying fabrics in a commercial application is ‘Crib 5’. Crib 5 refers to a material that has been testing to pass UK Fire Regulations. The three-fold main aims of the test are to: “Determine the possible risk of ignition”, “Ensure that a material or furnishing won’t easily catch fire,” and “To save lives.” On very rare occasions a ‘Crib 7’ rating is required. These are mainly required for offshore sites where the FR of fabrics needs to be higher for longevity of time for response of emergency services and for prison installations where security is at its highest for access. Another two tests that can be carried out on fabrics are the ‘match test’ and ‘cigarette test’. The match test can be used for fabrics being specified for domestic environments. This is where a material is exposed to a certain level of naked flame within a residential setting. The cigarette test is where fabrics can be used without special fire-retardant treatments. Cigarette tested fabric only meets domestic guidelines if it is accompanied with a Schedule 3 Fire Barrier or interliner fabric. Where fabrics do not meet “Crib 5” It is possible to treat the fabrics in order to raise their rating to the required level. Methods include back coating and fabric coating or dipping. Coatings can be used to cover the fabric with flame retardant chemicals. Dipping a fabric in flame retardant chemicals is often a way to add flame retardant characteristics to a natural fibre fabric. This allows the fabric to absorb the flame-retardant chemicals, which then work to put out any flames if a fire does begin. These types of fabrics are labelled as ‘non-durable’ flame retardant fabrics, as they do not withstand plenty of washing. After the non-durable fire-retardant fabrics are washed several times, they begin to lose their flame-retardant properties. As a general rule of thumb, the less natural fibres that a fabric contains, the less fireproof and harder to treat it will be. Acrylic & polyester upholstery is particularly difficult to treat. Fabric that consists of 70% or more acrylic or polyester will require spraying with a specialist chemical.