Fire testing of insulation materials for buildings and construction

What classification does your product need? How can you develop it quickly and cost-effectively? And what is the best order to tackle the process? Download DBI's new free guide for practical advice on how to achieve the best results with your maritime fire testing.

AAU and DBI have entered into a strategic cooperation agreement on fire and safety. The partnership will strengthen the link between research, public sector services and practice, and accelerate the translation of new knowledge into solutions for companies, authorities and society.

New research suggests that the environmental consequences of fires in timber buildings extend far beyond smoke and flames. The findings highlight why fire safety and sustainability can no longer be treated as separate disciplines.

If you are responsible for operating fire protection systems, it is important that you understand your responsibilities and have documentation proving that you are in control of them. In practice, however, some operational managers lack the necessary training and do not know what to do if the alarm goes off.

The green transition is not only affecting our energy sources and choice of building materials, but is also changing the conditions under which emergency services operate. This creates a need for greater knowledge about new materials and technologies that can prepare rescue services for future operations.

Emergency signage is designed to be understood instantly in a crisis. But research shows that even well-designed signs are often overlooked – which is pointing at a new generation of dynamic and intelligent evacuation systems.

As the number of batteries in our society increases, so does the need for knowledge about fire risks and safety. Therefore, DBI has developed new test facilities that make it possible to conduct fire tests of batteries under safe and controlled conditions.

Modern cars burn far more intensely than they used to. This challenges fire safety in existing parking facilities, as regulations have not kept pace with developments. A new report may help car park owners map their risks.

If you want people to comply with fire safety rules in a building, you need to understand their behavior and make it easier for them to do the right thing. User involvement and a focus on building design are therefore the path to a safer building.

With the accreditation of DBI’s new laboratory for testing fire detection systems, it is now possible to meet the high demand in this area.

A fire door is not a smoke control door, and a smoke control door is not a fire door. A lack of knowledge about the difference remains a challenge for fire safety in construction, but divided classification shows how smoke control doors are tested.

A new study shows how unprotected steel in hybrid steel-timber (HST) floor cross-sections can act as a heat transfer pathway during a fire, increasing charring of the timber in HST connections. However, appropriately designed intumescent coating of the exposed steel surface can prevent this damage under standard fire exposure.

How to encourage fire-safe behavior in buildings Building owners must instruct occupants so that they comply with the building’s fire safety regulations. But how do you get people to change their behavior and do the right thing?

A new white paper from DBI demonstrates how infrared machine vision and data processing uncover hidden variations in insulation materials during fire-exposure testing – and points to a method that could transform testing of other construction products.

In December, emergency services extinguish twice as many living-room fires as in the other months of the year. A well-watered Christmas tree keeps its festive glow and significantly reduces the risk of fire, according to a new fire test conducted by DBI and Danish Emergency Management Organisation.

Most test laboratories can test two or three fire dampers at a time. But with new testing equipment, DBI can now conduct fire tests on four dampers simultaneously. This makes the process both faster and cheaper for manufacturers.

Which classification does your product need? How can you develop your product quickly and cost-effectively? What specifications does the fire laboratory need before your fire test? See DBI’s new free guide, and get useful tips on how to complete your fire test and project in the most efficient way.

Until now, little has been known about how modern multi-pane low-energy windows behave in fully developed fires. Fire models have often assumed complete glass fallout. However, new furnace tests conducted at DBI by researchers from DTU and DBI now show clear differences: Double-glazed windows exhibited significant fallout, while triple-glazed panes largely remained in place.

Timber is transforming construction, but its fire behaviour challenges the very foundations of current safety methods. A new guidance chapter from a European collaboration highlights why performance-based design is so valuable, why self-extinguishment must be the ultimate goal, and why layered fire safety is the only robust strategy in the face of uncertainties.

Europe lacks facilities for testing fire detection systems. DBI is now changing that with a new state-of-the-art laboratory and a new accredited testing area.

It can become costly if fire safety is forgotten during the design phase. But the operation of a building should also be taken into account in the early stages of a construction project. Otherwise, there is a risk of ending up with solutions that are both fire hazardous and lead to illegal use of the building.

Postdoc Guoxiang Zhao is working to improve computer simulations of fire in a facade. A new scientific article brings simulations one step closer to the ultimate goal: reducing the number of failed fire tests and shorten products’ time-to-market.

PhD student Leo Willem Menzemer has been awarded The Dr. Guylène Proulx, OC Scholarship for his research on how long people are able to remember a specific evacuation route in a building. The scholarship includes $5,000 and an invitation to present his findings at a conference in Canada.

DBI and FORCE Technology have acquired the company 3P Third Party Testing ApS and will henceforth continue the company’s activities within their respective core areas.

A new and revised European standard for fire testing of building covering will take effect on 31 January, 2026. However, DBI encourages manufacturers to test according to the revised standard already now. The new standard will provide a more uniform safety level across countries, as well as new, flexible opportunities for manufacturers.

A new study shows that timber construction is popular – both because of its aesthetics and its green profile. However, many people perceive timber buildings as being less fire-safe than those made from concrete, brick, or steel. But what are these perceptions based on? And could public perception become a barrier to increased timber construction?

With the BioFacades:UpHigh project, DBI (The Danish Institute of Fire and Security Technology) has gained valuable knowledge about material use, and the first developers are already applying the project’s findings to real construction projects. This marks an important step toward widespread use of bio-based facades in taller buildings.

Two additional scaled-down facade tests of thatched constructions have been conducted as part of the latest MUDP project, which aims to develop modular multi-story buildings using biogenic materials. A full-scale facade test is planned for later this year.

Three powerful impacts after the classification test are part of DBI’s new fire test, the Impact Test. This test is used for walls in industrial and warehouse buildings, where there may be an increased requirement for wall robustness in the event of a fire.

DBI and door manufacturer Jeld-Wen are analyzing and documenting the fire resistance of reused fire doors through the ReDoor project. They are also developing documentation methods and possibilities for certification. Initial fire tests show that both old doors and artificially worn doors perform convincingly.

DBI's recent study trip to Switzerland unveiled innovative solutions and more lenient regulations for timber construction compared to Denmark's building code.

As part of a so-called MUDP project, DBI has conducted three scaled-down facade tests of different straw constructions types. Consequently, adjustments will now be made to one or more of these constructions before further testing is carried out. The goal is to make it feasible to use biogenic materials in multi-story modular construction.

DBI has tested and demonstrated that a biogenic cladding wall’s fire resistance can meet the EI 30 fire classification. The scalability of the project now makes it possible to fire-protect a wide range of biogenic insulation materials with the tested construction.

Does the smoke alarm work? Is the fire department automatically alerted? Does the overpressure ventilation still function if the doors to the stairwell are open? These are some of the questions that DBI's inspection department seek to answer.

Seven years after the deadly fire at London’s high-rise Grenfell Tower, the final report concludes that lawmakers, housing management, architect and engineers, contractors, material manufacturers, testing institutes, certification bodies, and emergency services all failed miserably. This failure claimed the lives of 72 people.

Did the gas grill, the outdoor fireplace, the patio heater or something else cause the summer house to burn down? Join fire investigator Henrik Sværke, who makes a living solving such mysteries, on his daily routine.

DBI has combined a range of strong expertise to design custom-made fire testing equipment, enabling AkzoNobel to fire-test their own products during the development process. This allows them to get faster and cheaper indications of their products' fire-related properties.

New study finds that a fire in a mass timber compartment is less likely to auto-extinguish when the exposed surface is more than 20 % of the total surface area.

It is significant whether wood is fire-impregnated before or after it is cut into panels. Additionally, the material onto which the panels are mounted is of crucial importance for the fire properties of the panels. This was demonstrated by four comparative SBI fire tests conducted by DBI in collaboration with Burnblock.

In Denmark, almost all fire safety rules lapse when buildings are under construction, renovation or conversion. Following the disastrous fire at Børsen (the old Stock Exchange building in Copenhagen), DBI recommends that guidelines are worked out for fire safety during the construction and conversion phases.

Halfway through the Biofacades:UpHigh project, the short conclusion is: Wooden facades burn well – but it is certainly possible to build bio-based facades.

Construction material manufacturers can now have their components for ventilation ducts (EN 12101- 7) certified in Denmark. DBI’s subsidiary, DBI Certification, has obtained accreditation for the certification of both natural smoke and heat extraction fans and flue gas ducts with the aim of obtaining CE marking for the European market.

We need more climate and environmentally friendly solutions in construction. Therefore, DBI is involved in a new project to develop and fire-test prefabricated structures in biogenic materials scaled for multi-storey construction.

DBI – the Danish Institute of Fire and Security Technology has tested a solution based on early detection and a water mist system for multi-storey and underground car parks. The fire test shows that the solution can prevent the spread of an electric vehicle fire to vehicles parked alongside for at least 30 minutes.

The third construction in DBI’s BioFacades:UpHigh easily passed a full-scale facade test. This was preceded by a number of downscaled fire tests and adjustments along the way, which proved to be very successful.

11 megawatts. This is the power output of DBI’s large multi-furnace. In addition, it can fire test specimens measuring 5 x 3 metres. This offers some unique opportunities and is difficult to find anywhere other than at DBI – The Danish Institute of Fire and Security Technology.

The test standard for walls with wooden panels has previously been inadequate, which has made it impossible to classify the panels. Years of work by DBI (The Danish Institute of Fire and Security Technology) has now made the test standard more accurate and enabled classification.

The first full-scale facade test in the BioFacades:UpHigh project has just been conducted at DBI. After 11 ½ minutes, the fire reached above the second flame deflector, and the construction failed the test. A further nine tests will follow in the project, which will shorten the path for sustainable facades in multi-storey buildings and result in actual facades being built in Denmark.

DBI has successfully conducted 39 indicative small-scale fire tests on 14 different bio-based structures. This forms part of the ‘Fireproof Bio-Based Structures’ project.

The burn rate of recycled wood – regardless of its age – remains within the Eurocode 5 limit values and thus does not differ from new CE-marked wood in terms of fire safety. The Spireprojekt Upcycling Orangeri 2.0, which was recently completed, has proved this. The next step is to find non-destructive methods for evaluating the wood.

On 21 April, more than half of Danes’ electricity came from solar panels. But the more solar panels we install, the more fires we will see, says DBI's expert in solar panel fires, Jens Steemann Kristensen.

A Danish company has tested the usability of its EV Firefighter in collaboration with DBI. The documentation is of great value to the Danish company in a new world market, which has a strong focus on finding ways to extinguish fires in electric cars.

How do you ensure fire safety in the attic of multi-storey buildings? Should a fire safety engineer always be used, or can the housing association carry out its own checks to increase safety? A new campaign provides answers and some simple tips for better fire safety.

Fires in electric or hybrid vehicles cars on ferries pose a new, special risk. But it can be handled with the right additions to the existing emergency preparedness on board. This is the conclusion of the ELBAS project, which has been led by DBI.

In collaboration with the manufacturers Troldtekt and Komproment, and the waste collector RGS Nordic, DBI is aiming to develop pilot plants over the next three years that will use construction waste to produce geopolymer binders. This can replace cement in new building materials.

As part of the Wood:UpHigh project, DBI has recently carried out a fire resistance test of a wall construction with primarily bio-based materials. The wall passed 71 minutes (REI60) before the insulation collapsed.

“It’s ambitious, it’s brave, it’s bold.” And: “Through experimentation and cross-disciplinary collaboration, insight, learning and useful results are achieved that can lead to radically new sustainable directions for construction”.

Solar panels mounted on flat roofs can spread fire in the gap between the roof and the panel. Jens Steemann Kristensen, who is a Research Consultant at DBI – the Danish Institute of Fire and Security Technology, has written a PhD thesis on the issue.

DBI – The Danish Institute of Fire and Security Technology has recently conducted extensive testing into the detection and extinguishing of battery fires in electric cars on vehicle decks in ferries. It took place in a structure consisting of 40-foot containers. Read some of the preliminary experiences and recommendations.

Re-insulation in the attic is popular with many home-owners looking to cut their heating bills. But if the building also has a fireplace and chimney, there are strong indications that this can cause a risk of fire. This is demonstrated by the experiences of both fire investigators and chimney sweeps, as well as tests conducted by DBI.

Flammable facade cladding, incorrect fire ventilation, no sprinkler system, dubious evacuation strategy and fire doors which only held for 11 minutes. There were problems all round when Grenfell Tower caught fire in summer 2017 and 297 people were trapped inside. The latest information about the fire has been revealed at a recent conference hosted by DBI – The Danish Institute of Fire and Security Technology.

The plastic used in, for example, wheelchairs and dialysis equipment, in electronics and in trains, must adhere to certain standards of flammability and thus also to the methods used to test it. With its new test facility, DBI can now test smaller components in accordance with, for example, the UL94 standard.

The first report following the Grenfell Tower fire in London has been published. It comes with recommendations for a new building code and fire safety system in England.

There is considerable evidence that timber will become an even more important construction material. In recent years, several researchers have been investigating the strength and fire safety properties of cross-laminated timber, and it is hoped that newer versions of solid timber elements will, by and large, be fire-resistant.

It is not perfect, but it is a big improvement. A draft proposal has been put forward for a common European standard for testing building facade systems, and even though it has some flaws, there are grounds for optimism.

This autumn, a new calorimeter arrives at DBI's fire lab. It will be used for small scale trials of materials before testing in full scale. And it can mean substantial savings for manufacturers.

Classic technical challenges fighting fires in high-rise buildings probably played a part in the catastrophic Grenfell Tower fire in London, in which at least 80 people lost their lives.