Can fire-rated glass also be security glass?

Fire-rated glazing can also pass additional testing standards to be certified as forced-entry or bullet-resistant glass. Today, systems are available that are fire-rated for up to 120 minutes, offer a Level III bullet-resistance rating and withstand 12+ minute forced entry attacks in compliant doors and frames. For example, Technical Glass Product’s FireLite Plus Forced Entry is a laminated, fire-rated glass certified to meet the most recent forced-entry standards when used in the TGProtect™ FR System.

These multifunctional, fire-rated products and systems allow designers to meet enhanced security goals in areas that are also required by code to defend against fire and other threats to life safety. For example, multifunctional, fire-rated glazing can be used in secure entry vestibules to support safer school design without sacrificing code-compliance.

However, because model codes currently do not address ingress along with egress requirements, it can be difficult to understand how forced-entry rated or ballistic glass can be used within fire-rated glazing systems. For context, security glass and films are often plastic-based and so can burn quickly and intensely. This means they can inhibit the ability of fire-rated components to provide the level of protection their ratings describe in the event of a fire.

As a result, not every bullet-resistant glass or security film may be able to be used within a multifunctional, fire-rated assembly. When designing systems that defend against multiple fire and life safety threats, specifiers are encouraged to choose glazing assemblies that use components known to be compatible or have been tested as a complete system to multiple standards. Doing so ensures ballistic glass and fire-rated glazing components will perform as intended during an emergency.