Fire safety and compliance for hotel wallcoverings

Who certifies a hotel wallcovering’s fire performance? The wallcovering manufacturer does, not the installer. Mr Wallcover installs in line with the manufacturer’s system and the applicable regulations, and does not call a wallcovering fire-rated unless that product’s own data says so. This guide explains what that means on a hotel project, what the specification has to settle before anything is ordered, and the papers that come with our package.

Why does a fire classification belong to the build-up, not the paper?

A fire classification, such as a Euroclass under EN 13501-1 (the standard’s own class names, not a claim made here), belongs to the build-up that was tested: the wallcovering, the adhesive and the substrate together. A substitute product or adhesive needs its own evidence. “Contract wallcovering” or “vinyl” on a sample card is not evidence of any classification, and contract vinyl on a wall is not, by itself, a fire certificate.

Is there one class that hotels need?

No. A guest room, a public corridor and a protected stair can have different requirements, and no single class is what “hotels need”. For a hotel, get the current classification document for the exact product, backing and installation method, and have the responsible designer, fire engineer or building-control route accept it. Whether an older British classification satisfies a project is for that responsible professional to decide, not the installer.

What does the installer do?

We install the specified system as the maker sets it out. The adhesive and primer are part of that system and are used as the maker lists them: for Vescom products, Vescom lists the correct ones per product on its adhesives and accessories page, and other makers’ instructions do the same for theirs.

The same rule runs through our material pages: we do not call a family washable, fire-rated or seamless unless that product’s own data says so. Acoustic and environmental performance work the same way as fire: each is evidenced by the exact product’s own documents, accepted by the responsible project professional.

What paperwork comes with the package?

• RAMS. Risk assessments and method statements are issued for every package, and Dorin Burcus personally supervises the site.
• Insurance. Public liability, employers’ liability and professional indemnity details are available on request.
• Contracts. We have experience of JCT contracts as a specialist package contractor, and are registered for VAT and CIS.
• Handover. A room-by-room record of the installed product, colourway, batch and care sheet; spare material from the same batch, kept dry with its batch label and stored as the maker recommends; a note of the limits of matching a later repair; and the aftercare terms. The fire, acoustic and environmental evidence in that pack is the exact product’s own documents.

How does this work in a hotel that stays open?

Most of the hotel work on our record was done in buildings that stayed open. Brown’s Hotel never stopped taking guests across a two-year decorating programme. In an occupied hotel, the permitted working hours, delivery routes, guest routes and daily handover are agreed for each project and written into the scope. Night shifts, out-of-hours and weekend work are offered, including in live hotels. The hotel specification guide covers the sample room, batch control and phasing in more detail.

When does this guide stop being reliable?

It explains who certifies what and how we work to a specified system. It does not certify any product, it is not fire-engineering advice, and it does not replace the review of the responsible designer, fire engineer or building-control route. For a hotel package, send the room types, the floor or phase schedule, occupancy, working hours and the material codes, with the fire requirement each area carries; the hotels and operators page lists what else to include.