Fire safety compliance in commercial and residential buildings has never been under greater scrutiny. In the years since Grenfell, building owners, FM managers, and property companies have faced increasing pressure to demonstrate that their fire safety provisions — including fire doors and fire stopping — meet current standards. For many buildings, a thorough audit reveals a compliance gap that was not previously visible.

The fire door problem

Fire doors are one of the most frequently identified compliance failures in commercial building audits. The reasons range from incorrect specification at installation, to damage and wear over the years of use, to modifications made during fit-outs that compromised the door’s fire rating. A fire door that does not close fully, has gaps above the threshold, or has been fitted with non-compliant ironmongery is not providing the protection it is rated to deliver.

For building managers, the challenge is not just identifying non-compliant doors — it is replacing them efficiently across an occupied building without disrupting tenants, compromising security, or creating a prolonged programme that generates complaints.

The fire stopping gap

Fire-stopping defects are frequently invisible until an audit or inspection reveals them. Penetrations through fire-rated walls and floors — made during M&E; installation, refurbishment, or previous maintenance works — that have not been correctly sealed represent a direct breach of the building’s passive fire protection. In a fire, these gaps allow smoke and flame to travel through the building in ways the original design was intended to prevent.

The remediation itself is straightforward when carried out by a competent contractor. The risk is leaving it unaddressed — both to building occupants and to the building owner’s liability position.

How CAM delivers fire safety programmes

CAM carries out fire door replacement and fire stopping remediation as part of our wider building maintenance capability. Because we operate across occupied buildings every day — managing access, coordinating with building managers, and working around occupiers — we are well placed to deliver fire safety programmes with minimal disruption.

We provide a full compliance pack on completion: photographic evidence of all works, certificates, and a schedule of completed items that your compliance team and insurers can rely on.

If your building has had a fire safety audit and you have a schedule of remediation works, talk to CAM about delivery. Contact us.