Top 5 Passive Fire Risks Found in Commercial Fit-Outs (And How to Prevent Them)
May 16, 2025
Commercial fit-outs are where creativity meets functionality—but without the right safeguards, they can also become fire’s perfect playground. While alarms and sprinklers grab the headlines, it’s the hidden barriers—fire-rated walls, doors and seals—that quietly hold flames at bay. Overlooking these passive fire protection not only puts lives at risk but can land you on the wrong side of the National Construction Code (NCC).
In this article, we’ll uncover the top five passive fire hazards lurking in Australian commercial fit-outs—from unsealed service penetrations to misaligned fire doors—and show you exactly how to plug the gaps. Armed with these practical tips, you’ll boost occupant safety, protect your assets, and sleep easy knowing your space meets all the right standards.
Every service penetration—electrical conduits, plumbing pipes or HVAC ducts—can become a fire gateway if it isn’t sealed with the right firestop materials, undermining your fire-rated barriers in minutes. Next, let’s examine how open cable trays and overloaded service pathways can turn your fit-out into a rapid fire corridor.
Compartmentation Integrity
Fire-rated walls and ceilings divide a building into compartments that slow fire spread. An unsealed penetration is like leaving the door ajar, instantly eroding your compartment’s rating.
Smoke Control
Even if flames are slowed, toxic smoke can still snake through gaps, posing a severe inhalation risk well before flames arrive.
Regulatory Compliance
Under the National Construction Code (NCC), all service penetrations must achieve the same fire-resistance level (FRL) as the surrounding element. Non-compliance can lead to hefty fines—and, more importantly, compromised safety.
Electrical Conduit Clusters
Multiple small conduits grouped together without proper fire collars or foam filler.
Plumbing Pipes
Water, gas and waste pipes often pass through the same opening, yet each needs a specific firestop solution.
Data and Communications
Low-density foam or generic silicone might be used to “tidy up” around data cables, but these materials won’t resist fire or smoke.
HVAC Duct Transitions
Flexible duct connections without approved fire-rated collars can defeat the ceiling’s fire rating.
Every service penetration must be sealed to restore your fire-rated barrier. Follow these steps to get it right:
Choose a third-party certified product (e.g. ABPC-listed) matched to the service type:
Cable trays and service shafts are the arteries of modern commercial fit-outs—carrying power, data and control cables to every corner of your workspace. But when left open or congested beyond capacity, they can become super-highways for fire and smoke, rapidly spreading flames from one zone to the next. Now that we’ve covered service routes, consider how non-compliant ceiling tiles and grid modifications can silently compromise your compartmentation.
Unrestricted Airflow
Open trays act like chimneys, drawing hot gases and flames upward or laterally without the barrier of a fire-rated enclosure.
Combustible Load
PVC-jacketed cables, loose packing materials and debris on trays add fuel. In a fire scenario, each metre of cable can release significant heat.
Rapid Flame Propagation
Once ignited, a cluster of cables can transmit fire at speeds exceeding 1 m/s, jeopardising adjacent floors or rooms in moments.
AS/NZS 3000 (Wiring Rules)
Mandates segregation of power and data cables and limits on bundling and tray loading to help contain faults and fires.
National Construction Code (NCC)Requires that penetrations and enclosures maintain fire resistance levels; open trays must not compromise compartment walls or ceilings.
State Building Regulations
In Queensland, for example, the Queensland Building Fire Safety Regulation 2017 specifies additional inspection requirements for service shafts in high-rise commercial buildings, while in Victoria the Building Regulations 2018 mandate annual fire-safety audits for specified non-residential uses.
Electricity (Safety) Regulations
In several states, additional licencing and inspection regimes apply to high-risk installations, including congested service paths.
A suspended ceiling isn’t just a cosmetic cover-up for ductwork and wiring—it’s a critical part of your building’s fire compartmentation. When ceiling tiles or grids aren’t fire-rated, or when they’re cut, altered or re-arranged without proper approvals, you can inadvertently turn a passive barrier into an express lane for flames and smoke. With ceilings accounted for, the next weak link is selecting materials for wall and floor upgrades—because not all finishes carry a fire-resistance stamp.
Maintaining Fire Ratings
Ceiling tiles and their supporting grid must match the fire-resistance level (FRL) of the surrounding structure. Gaps, incompatible materials or untested products can reduce a 60-minute ceiling to a 15-minute barrier.
Smoke Sealing
Even small voids around tiles or at cut-outs for fixtures allow smoke to travel between floors, undermining safe evacuation and hampering firefighter visibility.
Structural Integrity
Overloading the grid with heavy luminaires or unsanctioned services can distort frames, creating gaps at intersections where fire can pass through.
These standards outline test methods and classifications for the combustibility and fire performance of ceiling materials. Only use tiles and accessories classified to meet or exceed your required FRL.
Requires that all ceiling assemblies in commercial buildings demonstrate compliance with tested systems. Any modifications—such as cutting for downlights or speakers—must be covered by the manufacturer’s fire-stop details.
Tiles and grid components come with specific spacing, suspension heights and accessory lists. Ignoring these details often voids warranties and compliance certificates.
Upgrading walls or floors during a commercial fit-out often involves selecting finishes that look great and perform well under everyday use. But if those materials aren’t tested or rated for fire performance, they can seriously undermine your passive protection strategy—turning what should be a robust barrier into a vulnerable weak point. Finally, we’ll explore why poor coordination between trades often unravels even the best-laid passive fire-protection plans.
Many decorative laminates, timber veneers or melamine-faced panels lack any meaningful fire rating and can fuel flame spread.
Standard plasterboard (typically 10 mm or 13 mm thick) offers little fire resistance compared to fire-rated variants (e.g., 13 mm Type A or 16 mm fireboard).
Cheap vinyl rolls or foam underlays can melt or ignite, compromising fire-resistance of the slab below.
Generic glues and silicones not tested to AS 4072.1 can lose integrity in high heat, opening gaps for smoke and fire.
The National Construction Code requires walls and floors to achieve a defined FRL (e.g., 60/60/60). Substituting untested materials can drop that rating dramatically.
Incompatible finishes often release large volumes of smoke or toxic gases when heated—more life-threatening than flames alone.
Using non-compliant materials can void insurance policies and attract penalties under the NCC and local fire safety regulations.
Involve a fire-safety consultant at the design stage to vet all upgrade materials against compartmentation requirements.
Archive test certificates, material data sheets and installation manuals onsite—essential for council inspections or insurance audits.
Ensure your carpenters, tilers and flooring installers understand which products are fire-rated and the consequences of substitutions.
After any upgrades, have a qualified fire-safety inspector verify that no non-compliant materials have slipped into the build.
By insisting on tested, fire-rated products and rigorous installation practices, you’ll keep your wall and floor upgrades from becoming hidden fire hazards—protecting occupants, preserving your compartmentation strategy, and staying fully aligned with Australia’s NCC requirements.
In a busy commercial fit-out, dozens of specialists—from electricians and plumbers to ceiling installers and fire-stop contractors—work side by side. Without clear communication and a shared plan, even the best passive fire protections can fall apart: a later-installed pipe might slice through a fire-rated wall, or ceiling penetrations get reopened by another trade, leaving gaps that fuel flame spread. Before we wrap up, let’s clarify who holds the compliance and liability reins when passive fire protection is on the line.
A perfectly installed fire collar can be undone if a plumber or data cabler cuts through it later—often without anyone noticing.
When one trade rushes ahead of another, penetrations get created before fire-stoppers or sealants are on site, leading to improvised, non-compliant fixes.
“Just a quick change” can mean a new hole in a compartment wall or ceiling, with no updated drawings or approvals to ensure it’s properly sealed.
Require that all passive fire-stop systems be installed and maintained to tested assemblies—so any field modification must follow the original test detail.
Encourages the use of coordinated digital models (BIM) to track every penetration and component, reducing on-site guesswork.
Often mandate multi-trade sign-offs on safety-critical work, including fire-stopping around electrical and mechanical services.
Ensure each subcontractor understands the importance of passive fire safety and the correct installation of sealants, collars and wraps.
Require each completed penetration to be signed off by both the installing trade and the fire-stop supervisor before concealment.
At project closeout, review any fire-stop failures or near-misses—capture lessons learned and update your standard operating procedures for next time.
Understanding who’s on the hook for passive fire protection ensures your fit-out stays safe and compliant. In Australia, responsibilities flow from the building owner through to tradespeople, all under the National Construction Code (NCC) and WHS laws.
Proactively embedding passive fire protection into your fit-out from day one not only keeps occupants safe but also streamlines compliance with the NCC and state regulations. Here’s a step-by-step guide to get it right in an Australian context.
Only list sealants, collars, wraps and boards certified by an NATA-accredited lab and compliant with AS 1530 and AS 3837 for combustibility and spread-of-flame.
Require written approvals for any material changes, referencing the original test report and ensuring equivalent or higher FRL.
Avoid onsite delays by securing complete fire-stop kits (including backer rods, brushes and labels) before rough-in begins.
Track every penetration with its location, service type, required FRL and responsible subcontractor. Update it in real time.
Brief all trades on upcoming penetrations, sealant cure-times and any special installation techniques (e.g., tongue-and-groove ceiling tiles).
Bring together the project manager, fire-stop applicator and key trades every two weeks to inspect concealed works before cover-up.
This person signs off each sealed penetration, ensuring compliance with manufacturer details.
For every penetration, record “before and after” images and checklist items: opening size, sealant type, layer thickness and label placement.
A third-party certifier should verify all passive elements—walls, floors, ceilings—before plastering or ceiling installs conceal them.
Incorporate fire-stop inspections into your building’s preventive maintenance schedule, checking for damage, wear or unauthorised alterations.
Provide yearly or post-project toolbox sessions on passive fire-protection best practices, new NCC amendments and updated product ranges.
By embedding these measures—starting with design, through material selection and tight coordination—you’ll seal out fire risks at every stage, ensure seamless NCC compliance and protect both lives and assets in your next Australian commercial fit-out.
Passive fire protection shouldn’t be the last item on your punch-list—it’s the difference between a fit-out that survives and one that becomes a hazard. By embedding fire-rated design from the start, choosing third-party certified products, and rigorously coordinating trades and inspections, you’ll seal every weak point before it ever sees a flame.
Ready to make your next commercial fit-out truly fire-safe? Reach out today to book a tailored passive fire-safety review with our accredited consultants. Protect your people, your property and your peace of mind.