pinfa webinar: affordable safe housing
pinfa webinar, European Fire Safety Week, discussed the intersects of affordable housing, sustainability and fire safety,
The webinar was opened by Esther Agyeman-Budu, Manager of pinfa at Cefic, and brought together over 120 participants.
Thomas Futterer, pinfa Chairman (Budenheim), summarised the challenges to fire safety posed by climate change, new technologies and materials in buildings (including renewable energy and energy storage), use of sustainable materials in construction (bio-based materials, such as wood, recycled materials, such as end-of-life textile insulation …), urbanisation (densification, renovation) and societal changes (ageing population). Fire safety should be a core criterion in EU housing and renovation, because fire safety contributes to durability and long-term affordability, by reducing fire risks and losses. Flame retardants are key to limiting fire risks, by preventing fires starting. Overheating or shorting in electrical equipment in houses, because of ageing, misuse, dust accumulation or electrical failure, must not lead to a fire in the polymers used in electrical components, wiring, housings and insulation. Flame-retardants also slow fire spread, enabling more time to escape or to extinguish the fire.
Guillermo Rein, Imperial College London, Professor Guillermo Rein, from Imperial College London, spoke about the urgent fire safety challenges emerging from modern societal priorities such as sustainable buildings, climate change, new energy technologies and innovation in construction. He warned that fire safety engineering and standards are often failing to keep pace with these rapid developments. An example is the failure to ensure fire safety of building facades, where evolving construction methods, novel materials, and thermal insulation have resulted in improved performance, but also in an increasing number of façade fires, some with catastrophic consequences. Timber construction offers sustainability advantages but comes with specific and complex fire safety challenges. Climate change, with increasing winds and temperatures, increases fire risks in areas where wildland meets the built environment. Renewable energies, such as PV panels and batteries, also result in new fire risks. These developments demand updated knowledge, revised fire standards, and renewed attention to fire safety engineering. They require reinforcing all layers of fire protection, from prevention and detection to evacuation, compartmentation, suppression, and resilience.
Nick Haughton, Sapphire Balconies Ltd. The company is an innovation leader in balconies worldwide, today proposing all its products as modular, prefabricated units, often in combination with modular façade systems or fully modular construction. There are today concerns with balcony fires as traditional concrete construction of flat balconies has been replaced by other materials and by glide-on construction, in order to reduce on-site labour at height. However, balcony fires are often related to inappropriate use of the balcony by residents (barbecues, storage of flammable materials). The Grenfell fire tragedy has led to significant tightening of fire safety regulations for high-rise buildings, in particular A2-s1, d0 requirement for facades above 11m (3 floors including ground). Tighter obligations for traceability of fire performance of products and installations are implemented (“golden thread”). Modular construction providers need to interface with other products, engage with fire standards development and ensure full testing, compliance and documentation, communicated fully to property managers, architects and construction contractors.
John Fingleton, Irish Green Building Council, noted that nearly 30 000 homes are registered under Ireland’s Home Performance Index, for sustainable and healthy homes, including over 4,000 homes certified. The Index is aligned with EU Taxonomy criteria. Fire safety is required by building regulations in Ireland, and is not an indicator within the Home Performance Index, but it is relevant to indicator requirements on lifecycle cost, lifecycle global warming potential, circular design, VOC emissions, climate risk and consumer information and aftercare.
https://www.europeanfiresafetyalliance.org/european-fire-safety-week/edition-2025/4-11/#session-2b
See pinfa presentation, Thomas Futterer, pinfa Chairman (Budenheim) “Why fire safety is essential in affordable and sustainable housing?“ https://www.pinfa.eu/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/pinfa_EFSW_20251104_presentation_final.pdf
