Checkmate Fire Solutions Ltd

Operating within the critical sector for specialist passive fire protection, Checkmate Fire Solutions Ltd. has established a leading reputation for delivering cost effective fire compliance services to a broad base of clients
Check and mate

Operating within the critical sector for specialist passive fire protection, Checkmate Fire Solutions Ltd. has established a leading reputation for delivering cost effective fire compliance services to a broad base of clients

Having begun operations in 1989 as Checkmate Passive Fire Protection, Checkmate Fire Solutions Ltd today works to further expand its established customer base, while continuing to support its existing clients. The company has earned a leading position as a wholly owned business that works specifically with passive fire solutions, with a large part of its turnover consisting of repeat business from prestigious organisations and blue chip companies. These include AVIVA, Great Ormond Street Hospital, The National Archives and University College London.

Checkmate Fire Solutions is today headed up by Chief Executive Officer, Mark Williams and Chief Marketing Officer, Pat Murphy, following a management buyout in December 2016 that saw the pair acquire the existing share in the business belonging to the then majority stake owner, Alan Oliver, who remains with the company as a leading passive fire consultant. Commenting on the vision of both himself and Pat in the wake of the acquisition, Mark said: “Pat and I have both worked at Checkmate for over 17 years and are focused on continuing the company’s strong growth and commitment to providing top class services to our wide-ranging client base across the UK and internationally.”

In the months following the takeover Mark, Pat and the rest of the Checkmate Fire Solutions team have continued to deliver a comprehensive package of passive fire protection services and expertise, while preparing to further grow the business over the coming months and years. “Part of the reasoning behind the management buyout was to allow some of our senior partners to retire from the business, which we did in 2016. Our business plan for the future is to do more of the same of what the company has become highly regarded for doing in terms of passive fire protection,” Pat elaborates. “Over the last four years we have grown from a business with a turnover of about £4 million to a turnover of between £8 million and £10 million, we are looking to maintain that growth over the coming years and further build on that momentum.”

With offices located in both West Yorkshire and Essex within the UK and additional agencies within Dubai and Bahrain, Checkmate Fire Solutions is well placed to deliver a comprehensive portfolio of passive fire solutions. These are comprised of fire stopping and acoustic sealing; intumescent paint and boards; dry lined walls and ceilings; air sealing; fire door installation; fire door remediation; and fire rated glazing. The company is also the sole distributor and installer for Alufire fire resistant glazing in the UK and Ireland and can now offer fire rated glazed doors and partitions to an ever-growing list of service offerings. “Alufire is a fire resistant glazed product, which means that we can replace compartment walls with glazing with very little loss of performance in slowing the spread of fire,” Pat explains. “This is increasingly important to architects that are looking to incorporate more and more light into the design of structures. With Alufire we can achieve up to two hours integrity, insulation and radiation and the system has been fully tested as a complete assembly, meaning that it has been subjected to fire and burned to destruction. We are unaware of any other similar products on the market that are subjected to this level of testing to evaluate their effectiveness.”

All of these products and services are provided by a core of highly trained and motivated staff that is fully trained in the deployment of these solutions and in understanding the critical nature of passive fire protection. Checkmate Fire Solutions also holds several industry standards, which allow it to demonstrate a full understanding of the issues surrounding passive fire protection and the levels of regulation that relate to the field. “Checkmate Fire Solutions are registered in all three of the Building Research Establishment’s (BRE) core passive installer schemes, comprised of LPS 1197, which relates to the inspection of fire doors; LPS 1271, regulating the installation of new fire doors; and LPS 1531 that relates to passive fire protection and covers most forms of protection in this field,” Pat says. “The BRE approval process involves a whole series of rigorous on-going checks and audits and it is because of this assessment process that the LPCB approval mark is recognised worldwide as a badge of quality for passive fire protection installation.”

With a comprehensive understanding of passive fire protection applications that is supported by globally recognised certification and approval, Checkmate Fire Solutions is also able to deliver free seminars to both current and existing clients to spread awareness of the importance of fire prevention, while supporting its ambition to expand in the market for passive fire solutions. “We have recently introduced a new marketing department, which is focused on getting our message to potential customers who have not heard about us yet, as well as reinforcing our brand,” Pat concludes. “We are also interested in looking at other areas of the market, where we feel our products and services would be most beneficial as well as into other regions.”

Checkmate Fire Solutions Ltd

Services: Passive fire solutions supplier