Our projects team can provide room integrity testing for a range of facilities installed with fire suppression systems from server rooms, generator and battery rooms to gas turbine halls. The integrity testing service can be provided with little disruption to normal operations with a detailed report detailing all the test data, air leakage diagnoses and rectifications works (air sealing if required) and an air leakage certification.
The testing predicts how long a fire suppressant agent takes to descend to a given height within a room, without having to discharge the actual fire suppression system. Over time room integrity characteristics can change, with holes and leaks developing due to weakening seals around doors, floors, ceilings and other voids and on-site building works.
The room under integrity test is sealed and the air pressure tested with a door fan and sensing equipment. The fan is placed within the test room doorway to pressurise and then depressurise the room. A data set is created including measurements for air flow, pressure and leakage characteristics and is used to model the room using specialist software.
A retention rate of at least 10 minutes is required for a pass. This time period is considered enough to allow deep-seated fires to be cooled beyond re-ignition levels and allow the emergency services to attend site.
Room Integrity Test Times
A typical server room takes around 1.5-2 hours to complete. There is minimal disruption and IT servers and networks can continue to function as normal. If there is air conditioning and cooling fitted, any supply or extract ducts will require temporary sealing or closure. Where a site has fire suppression covering several rooms, each room will require integrity testing.
Relevant Room Integrity Standards
Room integrity tests should be completed annually for any installation with a fire suppression system installed to BS ISO 14520-1 (ISO 14520-1:2015 gaseous fire-extinguishing systems) and BS EN 15004-1 (the design, installation and maintenance of fixed firefighting and gas extinguishing systems).
Contact our projects team for a site survey or to book our a room integrity test for your datacentre.
Fires in a server room or datacentre are a risk that can be mitigated against by installing a suitable suppression system and testing the room’s integrity. The aim of the testing is to ensure that a sufficient level of the fire suppression agent or gas is retained for a long enough period to extinguish the fire and prevent reignition. Fire suppression systems and their components are normally subject to annual maintenance by a certified fire engineer. The same should apply to room integrity testing and some organisations may be obliged to do so.
A pressure relief vent (PRV) is used to ensure a room is not over pressurised if the fire suppression system activates during the test and releases its clean agent. Without a pressure relief vent, an over-pressurisation could occur which can lead to damage to the building and room structure and any equipment within the room. The PRV automatically opens its blades when a sensor circuit sees an overpressure situation.
Our projects team will generate a complete report from the results, including any works required and send this to the client electronically within 24 hours. The report provides a complete set of results, observations and any remedial works such as sealing, required including material and labour costs.
Datacentres and Server Rooms typically have fire suppression systems. A room integrity test is a type of air tightness test to ensure that the room can retain an effective concentration of the fire suppression agent within the system to put a fire out.
