Designing with Fire Resistive Framing

Designing with Fire Resistive Framing. Advances in fire resistive framing mean that designers can create glass walls and assemblies that meet fire and safety codes and allow maximum design flexibility and transparency.

Recall that the IBC and other fire codes require that window assemblies in certain places contain fire resistive glass and fire resistive framing, and that the entire assembly be tested to pass tests that show it can block the transmission of radiant heat. Aside from offering superior fire safety performance to traditional hollow metal framing, today’s advanced fire resistive framing products offer tremendous design flexibility to help fulfill the architect’s design intent while still meeting code requirements. Here are some examples along with added benefits they bring.

Design Continuity

Fire resistive framing systems such as SAFTI FIRST’s GPX Architectural Series System offers sharp, clean edges that mimic the look of a traditional storefront. This way, the fire rated assembles are able to match the look and sight lines of adjacent non-rated assemblies.

Multiple Finishes

Typically, hollow metal frames can only come with a painted finish. GPX Architectural Series Framing is available in virtually any architectural finish without affecting the system’s fire rated properties. Options include anodized, painted, wood veneer, ornamental metal, stainless steel, and more.

Curtain Wall and Security Performance

When fire rated glass and framing systems are used as part of the building envelope, the system not only acts as a fire barrier, but must meet curtain wall performance. SAFTI’s 2-hour CW Framing System successfully passed dynamic curtain wall testing prescribed by Curtain wall Design and Construction (CDC), a leading independent firm providing a wide range of building envelope design, engineering, and consulting services to design professionals nationwide.

GPX Curtain Wall Framing system’s documented performance shows its ability to prevent air and water infiltration under non-static conditions, such as wind load or moving live loads that meets or exceeds the performance of curtain wall systems offered by other leading U.S. manufacturers. Click here for the story.

In addition to protecting against fire, SAFTI’s fire rated framing systems can also protect against ballistic attack, blast and hurricane forces. Also, the CW framing system is thermally broken, making it a natural selection for exterior fire resistive applications in places that experience extreme weather like the Northeast.

90 Degree Corners

From a design standpoint, a 90-degree corner is can be an architectural feature or statement.  It offers design options in lieu of a straight wall in a single plane, giving architects flexible product options in their design depending in a particular assembly. The GPX Frame’s 90-degree corner is extruded (instead of a break shape), providing clean, crisp, sharp features that is available in any finish.