2001/671/EC: Commission Decision of 21 August 2001 implementing Council Directive 89/106/EEC as regards the classification of the external fire performance of roofs and roof coverings (Text with EEA relevance) (notified under document number C(2001) 2474)
Date: 2001-08-21
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: building materials, building regulations, building safety, industrial hazard, product safety, safety standard, technical standard

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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COMMISSION DECISION

of 21 August 2001

implementing Council Directive 89/106/EEC as regards the classification of the external fire
performance of roofs and roof coverings

(notified under document number C(2001) 2474)

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2001/671/EC)

tions adopted at Community level and only subject to
the use of all or some classes or one class.

In the absence of a single, fully harmonised test method,
the classification used in this Decision should be based
upon one standard which incorporates three distinct test
methods that respond to different fire hazard scenarios.
This is considered to be an interim solution until full
harmonisation can be achieved through the develop-
ment of a fully harmonised test method. Once the latter
is achieved, this Decision could be amended to take
account of the new test method and its associated classi-
fications.

(8)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in
accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee
on Construction,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

A Community classification system as envisaged by Directive
89/106/EEC is hereby established in respect of the external fire
performance of roofs and roof coverings.

That classification system shall be as set out in the Annex
hereto.

Article 2

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 21 August 2001.

For the Commission

Erkki LIIKANEN

Member of the Commission

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

(7)

Having regard to Council Directive 89/106/EEC of 21
December 1988 on the approximation of the laws, regulations
and administrative provisions of the Member States relating to
construction products (1),
amended by Directive 93/
68/EEC (2), and in particular Article 20(2)(a) thereof,

as

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

Article 3(2) of Directive 89/106/EEC states that in order
to take account of different levels of protection for the
construction works that may prevail at national, regional
or local levels, each essential requirement may give rise
to the establishment of classes in the interpretative docu-
ments. These documents have been published as the
‘Communication of the Commission with regard to the
interpretative documents of Directive 89/106/EEC’ (3).

Paragraph 2.2 of interpretative document No 2 lists a
number of interrelated measures for the satisfaction of
the essential requirement ‘Safety in case of
fire’ that
together contribute to define the fire safety strategy that
can be developed in different ways in Member States.

Paragraph 4.2.1 of interpretative document No 2 justi-
fies the need for different levels of the essential require-
ment as function of the type, use and location of the
construction work, its layout and the availability of the
emergency facilities.

Paragraph 4.3.1.2.2 of interpretative document No 2
identifies the requirements for construction products for
roofs exposed to an external fire.

The different levels of these requirements existing in the
Member States may be expressed in a system of classes
that are not included in interpretative document No 2.

Article 6(3) of Directive 89/106/EEC states that
the
Member States may determine the performance levels to
be observed in their territory only within the classifica-

(1) OJ L 40, 11.2.1989, p. 12.
(2) OJ L 220, 30.8.1993, p. 1.
(3) OJ C 62, 28.2.1994, p. 1.

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ANNEX

PREAMBLE

CEN report CR 1187:2001 and subsequently upgraded versions shall be applied. The upgraded version shall include, inter
alia, new revisions of the CEN report, ENV or the EN version of this standard, building on the results/agreements made at
the special meeting of CEN TC 127 on 16 May 2001.

The classification set out in the table below is based upon the standard contained in CR 1187:2001. That standard
incorporates three distinct test methods that correspond to different fire hazard scenarios. There is no direct correlation
between the test methods and hence no generally acceptable hierarchy of classification between them.

In regulating for the external fire performance of roofs/roof coverings, Member States may select the test/class combina-
tion(s) appropriate to the actual fire hazard(s) on their territory and establish a national hierarchy of classification between
the various tests/classes.

Commission Decision 2000/553/EC (1) establishes a list of roof covering products (and/or materials) which can be
considered to fulfil all of the requirements for the performance characteristics ‘external fire performance’ without the need
for testing, subject to any national provisions on the design and execution of works being fulfilled. Such products/mate-
rials are considered to be Classes BROOF in the table below, without the need for testing.

SYMBOLS

The classifications according to the three test methods are identified as follows:

— CR 1187:2001 test 1: X

— CR 1187:2001 test 2: X

— CR 1187:2001 test 3: X

ROOF

(t1), where t1 = Burning brand alone,
ROOF(t2), where t2 = Burning brand + wind,
ROOF(t3), where t3 = Burning brand + wind + radiation.

: critical external fire spread time

T

E

TP: critical time to fire penetration

CLASSES OF EXTERNAL FIRE PERFORMANCE FOR ROOFS/ROOF COVERINGS (*)

Table

Test method

Class

Classification criteria

CR1187:2001
test 1

BROOF (t1) All of the following conditions must be satisfied:

— external and internal fire spread upwards < 0,700 m,
— external and internal fire spread downwards < 0,600 m,
— maximum burned length external and internal < 0,800 m,
— no burning material (droplets or debris) falling from exposed side,
— no burning/glowing particles penetrating the roof construction,
— no single through opening > 2,5 × 10–5 m2,
— sum of all through openings < 4,5 × 10–3 m2,
— lateral fire spread does not reach the edges of the measurement zone,
— no internal glowing combustion,
— maximum redius of fire spread on ‘horizontal’, roofs, external and internal < 0,200 m.

F

ROOF

(t1) No performance determined

(1) OJ L 235, 19.9.2000, p. 19.

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Test method

Class

Classification criteria

CR1187:2001
test 2

B

ROOF

(t2)

For both test series at 2 m/s and 4 m/s wind speed:
— mean damaged length of the roofing and underlay ≤ 0,550 m,
— maximum damaged length of the roofing and underlay ≤ 0,800 m,

F

ROOF

(t2) No performance determined

CR1187:2001
test 3

B

ROOF

(t3) T

C

ROOF

(t3) T

E

E

≥ 30 min and T

≥ 10 min and T

≥ 30 min

≥ 15 min

P

P

DROOF (t3) TP > 5 min

FROOF (t3) No performance determined

(*) The number of classes is still under review and will be amended as soon as the necessary information is available.