Question 1

What is a shaft wall and when is it required?

Accepted Answer

A shaft wall is a fire-rated partition system designed for installation from one face only: it is the correct specification wherever the wall must be constructed against a void that cannot be accessed from the inside during construction. Lift shafts, services risers and staircase enclosures are the typical applications. A standard metal stud partition must be built from both sides simultaneously, which is impossible inside a lift shaft or above a closed riser. Shaft wall systems solve this by using a proprietary coreboard panel inserted from the accessible face into a steel track framework that is also erected from the accessible face, with the plasterboard layers added to the accessible face only.

Question 2

What fire ratings do shaft wall systems achieve?

Accepted Answer

Shaft wall systems from British Gypsum (Shaftwall), Knauf (Shaft Wall) and Siniat (Shaft Wall) are tested to EI 60, EI 90 and EI 120 under BS EN 1364-1. The required rating for a particular shaft or riser enclosure is determined by the building's fire strategy, the approved document B compliance route and the fire engineer. Lift shafts typically require EI 90 or EI 120 in buildings where the shaft serves multiple storeys. Services risers are rated to the compartmentation requirement of the fire strategy. We confirm the required rating for each shaft wall location before procurement.

Question 3

How does shaft wall installation coordinate with the lift contractor?

Accepted Answer

Lift shaft construction requires careful sequencing between the shaft wall contractor and the lift contractor. The shaft wall framework is typically installed after the lift guide rails are in position (or at least coordinated with the guide rail programme), since the guide rail brackets fix through or adjacent to the shaft wall framework. Where shaft walls are installed before the lift contractor mobilises, provision must be made for the guide rail brackets to be fixed through the completed shaft wall without breaching the fire seal. We coordinate this at pre-construction with the principal contractor, the lift contractor and the structural engineer, and agree the sequencing programme and the penetration firestopping method before the shaft wall programme begins.

Question 4

What is coreboard and how does it work in a shaft wall system?

Accepted Answer

Coreboard is a high-density gypsum panel, wider and denser than standard plasterboard, used as the structural and fire-performance core of a shaft wall system. In a shaft wall installation, the C-H and J-track steel sections are fixed to the structural floor and soffit; the coreboard panels are slid vertically into the track from the accessible face, one panel above another, filling the full height of the shaft face. The plasterboard finish layers are then screwed to the accessible face of the framework and the coreboard, building up the board layers required for the tested EI rating. The coreboard and track together provide the fire resistance from the inaccessible (shaft-side) face; the plasterboard layers complete the assembly from the accessible face.

Shaft Walls in Coventry

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