Warringtonfire reveals plans to open £20m fire safety facility

Situated at Birchwood Park, the 101,000 sq ft building is set to open in 2025 with the capability of tripling the company’s testing capacity.

Warringtonfire is a global fire testing, inspection, and certification service operating across 20 offices worldwide.

The firm has announced that it will relocate its fire resistance testing from its existing facility off Holmesfield Road in Warrington to the new test site at Birchwood Park. This move represents an almost 80% increase in size.

Project manager Arcadis and principal contractor Tilbury Douglas are already on site building the facility, which will see the creation of eight fire resistance testing furnaces.

There will be three horizontal and three vertical furnaces designed to evaluate the fire performance of different products or assemblies, as well as two indicative furnaces to provide a focused testing method to quantify the ability of a material or assembly to withstand exposure to high temperatures.

In terms of sustainability, plans include a number of measures to reduce energy use, maintain air quality, and minimise potential environmental impacts. These measures include built-in recycling systems, energy-efficient fans, and smoke and odour capture and treatment.

The £20m facility will house a 200-strong team, which will be one of the world’s largest teams of fire technical experts. Over 50 new jobs will be created, with a commitment to training and upskilling new and existing employees.

Warringtonfire’s existing facility off Holmesfield Road will continue to operate at full capacity while the new facility is under construction, before being partly converted to create a centre of excellence for reaction to fire testing.

TP Bennett Architects and Hoare Lea designed the project.

Jason Dodds, vice president of Warringtonfire, said: “Our new fire testing facility in Warrington is a major investment in the region and a statement of our ambition for the business…

“The new facility will significantly improve Warringtonfire’s testing offering for our customers, providing a faster and wider-ranging service, as well as expanded access to technical excellence delivered by the foremost experts in the fields of fire testing and certification”, he continued.

“It will solidify our position as the go-to partner for fire testing and related services and broaden our ability to serve customers across the value chain.

“Using best-in-class building design and new technology, we will also be able to greatly improve our environmental footprint, which is incredibly important to us as a company and is becoming increasingly important for our customers.”