Fire Escape & Secured by Design
Download our latest CAD drawings on windows, doors and stairs from Fastrack CAD
Fire escape
To meet the requirements of Building Regulations Approved Document 'B' 2000, there must be escape routes from habitable rooms in many situations. Window openings must be 450mm or wider. This means a 630mm-wide single casement side-hung window, fitted with butt or fire escape projecting hinges, will comply – as long as the window is 900mm or higher to provide a clear opening greater than 0.33m².
All the windows we supply with fire escape projecting hinges have non-locking fasteners. These fasteners are also available on standard windows for use in fire escape situations. Releasable Restrictors are recommended for windows in fire escapes.
To comply with Secured by Design rules Fire Egress windows should have laminated glass externally and annealed Low E glass internally.
Secured by Design
Secured by Design (SBD) is the official Police initiative for ‘designing out crime’. Our SBD windows provide enhanced security, to meet the requirements of BS 7950: 1997 for security performance of casement windows in domestic applications. All our windows with the SBD option are supplied to this standard specification:
- softwood window either basecoat stained or primed
- factory-glazed with annealed Low E insulating glass units
- butt hinges (or projecting hinges on top-hinge sashes)
- espagnolette locking
- simulated divided light glazing design where appropriate.
Important
SBD requirements may vary from region to region, so when specifying windows, it is essential to check whether 100% use of laminated glass is required. Where a window is adjacent to a door, at low level or in a hazardous area, it will be necessary to have toughened glass internally as well as laminated glass externally.
