Yet the people who are in a position to stop us from being burned to death are not certified, registered, trained, or approved. They walk onto the project site, get handed caulk, mortar, or mud and are told to fill in joints, gaps, and openings. Even if they are conscientious, they rarely have the knowledge or training to know whether they are installing the right product or system to save lives. It's time for the firestopping industry to establish an association which can set standards and certify firestopping professionals the same way welders are certified. Once this is achieved, code officials and design professionals must support and require it.
Manufacturers claim they are trying to provide the training.
The time has come for current training to be mandatory. Our lives depend on it. As a product representative for a firm in the same market segment and having made numerous presentations on this evolving product category, I know of the need for continuing education of the designer and contractors on this subject. The article, due to its limited length and scope, gave a very good overview of the trends and major changes, but some observations and comments to clarify some points bear being presented to the readers. Due to a technical procedural error by the committee in the adoption of the recommendation, this has been withdrawn and will be brought up in the next ICC Code hearing cycle.