Cake Group have recently had the opportunity to provide a range of our services to a large non-profit organisation. The client enlisted the services of Cake’s Asbestos Removal and Passive Fire Protection divisions to remediate a concrete stairwell in an existing structure within the CBD of Wellington, New Zealand.
During the buildings construction Asbestos Rope was utilised to seal the gap between the prefabricated stairwell and the main structure. The purpose of this was to seal the stairwell so that the spread of toxic smoke would be slowed during a fire, bringing the building to compliance. Rigorous seismic activity in the region has shifted the stairwell however, resulting in the Asbestos Rope becoming damaged and dislodged, breaking the seal and creating a series of fire penetrations.
The Asbestos Rope was removed, and the stairwell cleared of remaining contaminants by Cake’s Asbestos team, and then our Passive Fire team began with stage two of the operation. Passive Fires portion of the works focused on first replacing the Asbestos Rope and then sealing approximately 150 penetrations throughout the structures Riser Cupboards. Due to the varying severity of the stairway penetrations and the frequent seismic activity in the region, our team opted for Intuspan from RyanFire, a compressible strip sandwich made from rubber sheet loaded with graphite compound and polymeric foam, used to seal small to medium movement joints against fire.
The next stage of the Passive Fire teams work involved sealing penetrations within the structures Riser Cupboards. These cupboards are found on every floor and contained ducts; metal, water and insulated pipes; data, and electrical cables, all of which penetrated through 100mm concrete floor which needed to be fire stopped. The team used a selection of RyanFire products to seal fire stop the varying penetrations including Intubatt, Intumastic, and Intustrap. The work was difficult as there is only a small amount of room in the cupboards, which made it challenging for our installers to move and install the fire-stopping devices.
Despite this challenge Cake’s Passive Fire team were able to successfully complete the project on time and reinstate the original fire rating of 60 minutes. The Fire Engineer onsite was very happy with Cake’s work and the finished product, and Ryanfire’s assessor was also impressed with our application of their products. By securing the services of multiple Cake divisions the client has also been able to enjoy a seamless and effective transition between the Asbestos Removal and Passive Fire Protection works.
