The Automatic Door Suppliers Association (ADSA) has launched a collaborative industry initiative to address a growing technical challenge: how to safely automate existing fire-rated doors without compromising their fire performance.
Automation is increasingly used across healthcare, education, transport and commercial buildings to improve accessibility, manage footfall and support safer movement. However, retrofitting automation to manual fire doors is not always a simple upgrade. Modifications such as installing operators, routing cables or replacing closing devices can alter the door’s construction and potentially affect its integrity as a fire-resisting system.
ADSA steering group
In response, ADSA has brought together a cross-industry steering group including leading manufacturers: record UK, dormakaba and GEZE UK, alongside the Guild of Architectural Ironmongers, the British Woodworking Federation and a leading fire test house.
Controlled testing will be carried out to replicate common retrofit scenarios – initially focusing on timber fire doors. The aim is to understand how typical modifications, such as drilling for cabling or changing hardware, influence fire performance and to build a robust evidence base for the industry.
Darren Hyde, Technical and Training Manager at ADSA, says: “Many of the questions we receive now relate to automating existing fire doors. When you retrofit automation, you’re potentially changing the construction of the door. What we want to do as an industry is understand exactly how those modifications affect fire performance.”
While new-build projects benefit from tested, fully specified door systems, retrofit environments are far less predictable.
Darren continues: “In new-build, manufacturers can provide clear test evidence for complete systems. In retrofit situations, that level of certainty doesn’t always exist. We want to close that gap in understanding.”
Findings from the programme will inform new guidance for engineers, specifiers and building owners, expected later this year. Rather than prescribing a single solution, the guidance will help professionals assess the impact of common modifications and apply practical measures – such as appropriate cable routing, fire-stopping and installation methods – to maintain door integrity.
The initiative also reinforces the need to consider accessibility and fire safety together. While automation delivers clear benefits, it must be implemented with a full understanding of its impact. At the same time, ADSA recognises that full door replacement is not always necessary; with the right technical approach, many existing fire doors can be adapted safely and responsibly.
By bringing together industry expertise, testing and practical guidance, ADSA and its partners aim to close the knowledge gap around retrofit automation and support safer, more informed decision-making across the built environment.
For more information about ADSA, visit www.adsa.org.uk
