We’re proud that all of our fire curtains are built by us at our manufacturing plants in the United Kingdom. But how are they made?
Advanced Materials
The most important element of a fire curtain is the fire fabric. Ours is woven by Coopers specialists, in our manufacturing UK plants.
After the fabric is woven, we proceed to a coating treatment. We apply technically advanced coatings developed by our own chemical engineers, designed to meet and even exceed the highest standards of safety. We’re able to give each curtain a rating, based on the amount of time it will be resistant to fire.
The next most important, but equally crucial element, is the deployment mechanism and housing.
Flawless Function
Automatic fire curtains are similar to the metal roller shutters you might see at the front of some shops after closing time. Like these shutters, a fire curtain descends vertically as it unrolls from a housing at the top. Automatic fire curtains use a motorised deployment and retraction system that can be integrated with the fire alarm in a building.
They can also be deployed separately by remote control. All of our controls are made by us;provenance is important to us as it ensures that we achieve the highest quality and reliability.
Unlike a shutter, a fire curtain is flexible and compact – so it can be precisely fitted within a space, providing better compartmentation and reducing impact on aesthetics. Also, there are fail safes built into the design – so that if there’s a power cut or the motor should fail, gravity will pull the curtain into position.
Applications
Fire curtains are ideal for both small spaces and for large, open-plan areas. When fire curtains are factored into the design stage of a building, they can be recessed into walls and ceilings, making them all but invisible.
Even retrofitted curtains can be made to fit in perfectly with their surroundings, and we specialise in the manufacture and installation of fire curtains for historic and heritage buildings.
A Long History of Fire Curtain Design
Coopers can be traced back to 1874 – when we were a manufacturer of blinds and curtains, serving architects and designers with custom solutions.
In the mid-1970s, Andrew Cooper was challenged by a pioneering architect to find a non-invasive method of safely controlling hot smoke. Cooper set about applying five generations of family engineering knowledge, to develop the first automatic smoke curtain. The system he developed became Coopers’ patented Gravity Fail Safe System – the benchmark system used worldwide.
Since then, we’ve remained true to our origins and continue to work closely with leading architects to develop high performance fire safety systems.
Our products exist to ensure the safety of all inhabitants, to protect buildings and to reduce the impact of fires if they do happen. Speak to our team today about improving fire safety and how we can help safeguard your business from fire.
