Summary
Car Park Storage is a family business, founded as a result of the growing demand for secure and convenient storage at an affordable price. In 2020, Car Park Storage was looking to demonstrate to its customers that its over bonnet storage lockers were fire resilient so approached the FPA to help them achieve this by creating a close to real life fire scenario at the FPA's testing and research laboratory in Blockley, Gloucestershire.
Challenges
Following the Grenfell Tower tragedy, Car Park Storage found an increase in queries from customers about whether its products had been fire tested. The company needed evidence to show that its products would not cause increased spread from fire, and were not going to increase the likeliness of a fire. They found property managers were looking for reference of fire safety consideration for fire risk assessments, particularly in residential buildings. Without a reputable test, they were unable to reassure customers of the fire resilience of their cabinets.
The goal was to undertake a test which would replicate the environment of a fire situation when an over bonnet storage container was present. The challenge was to design, build and conduct a test to demonstrate the resilience of the cabinets under the influence of fire. A test environment needed to be created to replicate the common use of the product in a residential underground car park.
How the FPA helped
Car Park Storage opted to work with the FPA to undertake this bespoke fire testing because of our renowned reputation and ability to provide unbiased, impartial testing conducted by our experienced technical staff. The FPA's team of qualified experts provided a comprehensive plan including timelines, budgets and hypotheses designed to meet Car Park Storage’s needs and objectives.
We adapted one of our purpose built testing units to replicate an underground car park, and conducted a test in a close-to-life scenario. Car Park Storage staff were able to attend and observe the test, and were kept informed throughout the process, ahead of receiving the comprehensive test report.
Results and future plans
The results of the test mean that Car Park Storage are now able to demonstrate the fire resilience of its product to its customers. The results showed that their storage unit held its place throughout the test and the fire did not spread from unit to unit, or into the units which provides that vital information for the fire risk assessment of the buildings in which the units are placed.
As a consequence of undertaking the test and demonstrating due diligence, Car Park Storage has since increased the sales of its product. Having now tested two products at our testing laboratory, we look forward to working further with Car Park Storage to help learn more about its new products as they evolve through their ongoing R&D cycles.
Chris Minett, Managing Director of Car Park Storage said: “I highly recommend the Fire Protection Association’s bespoke testing to anyone looking to showcase the fire resilience of their product. The test has been invaluable for us, since undertaking the work and sharing the results with our customers, we have seen a marked increase in sales.”
Find out more about the FPA's bespoke fire testing service.