KCC Builds Korea's First Fire-Resistant Test Building for Fireproofing and Insulation Performance Evaluation

Comprehensive Evaluation of Fire Resistance, Insulation, and Durability of Various Building Materials and Fire-Resistant Structures
Enhancing Reliability of Research Activities as an Internationally Accredited Fire Resistance Testing Institution (KOLAS)

Exterior view of the fire resistance testing building at KCC Central Research Institute.
[Photo by KCC]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] KCC has newly constructed a 'Fire Resistance Testing Building' at its central research institute located in Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do, where it tests and evaluates the fire resistance and insulation performance of various building materials and fire-resistant structures. KCC is the first domestic company to establish a research facility specializing exclusively in testing fire resistance and insulation performance.

The newly constructed Fire Resistance Testing Building has a total floor area of 1,547㎡ (approximately 468 pyeong) and consists of two above-ground floors. It primarily conducts performance evaluations on parts of buildings that require fire resistance performance in the event of a fire. It operates in two zones: a fire resistance testing zone and an insulation testing zone, equipped with systems capable of evaluating various components such as walls, roof panels, beams, and fire doors.

The KCC Central Research Institute’s Fire Resistance Testing Building, equipped with the latest facilities, has vertical furnaces applied to walls and horizontal furnaces applied to roofs, and also operates small furnaces for evaluating the performance of fire-resistant coatings. For insulation performance evaluation, it is equipped with heat transfer rate testing equipment and devices that measure wind pressure resistance and condensation on windows, enabling evaluation of the insulation, fire resistance, and durability performance of the entire building, including insulation materials and window materials’ wind pressure resistance and condensation.

Notably, the newly constructed Fire Resistance Testing Building has been recognized as an internationally accredited testing institution in the fields of fire and fire resistance by the Korea Laboratory Accreditation Scheme (KOLAS) under the National Institute of Technology and Standards, enhancing the reliability of research activities such as product design, analysis evaluation, and quality control.

Interest in fire-resistant structures and related regulations have been established since 2010, and since August 2020, fire-resistant construction for roofs has been legislated, expected to be applied at construction sites from the second half of 2021. Accordingly, the KCC Central Research Institute is actively conducting fire resistance tests on roof structures using inorganic insulation fire-resistant materials and plans to continuously perform extensive fire resistance testing on roof structures as well as walls, beams, and fire doors.

A KCC official stated, "The Fire Resistance Testing Building is significant in that it allows us to fulfill our corporate social responsibility by securing technologies that enhance fire resistance performance," adding, "Through the development of building materials with excellent fire resistance and insulation performance, we expect to secure the golden time to save lives from fires and further promote zero energy buildings, which are eco-friendly buildings that save energy."