October 10, 2012 - The International Firestop Council (IFC) and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) have teamed up for a public service video to help educate the building construction industry on the dangers of using ineffective firestop sealing materials and improper installation techniques in wall, ceiling and floor penetrations and joints. Available for streaming at the IFC's website, www.firestop.org, the "Close Enough, Is Not Good Enough: A Demonstration of Proper Vs. Improper Firestopping" video outlines the proper systems, materials and methods for sealing wall, ceiling and floor penetrations and joints for optimum passive containment of smoke and flame during building fires. The video, which depicts a full-scale room fire at UL's Illinois test facility, visually compares non-compliant firestop systems performance to compliant firestop penetration and joint systems in accordance with ASTM E814 (UL-1479) and ASTM E1966 (UL-2079), respectively.

IFC (The International Firestop Council)

UL (Underwriters Laboratories)

July 17, 2012 - Looking for a firestopping solution? Hilti has introduced the Firestop Block CFS-BL, featuring an innovative "Grid-Tech" component and improved formula which allows for larger opening, greater annular space and improved performance under fire conditions, it says. The pre-compressed block is suitable for wall or floor applications with fire ratings from 1-4 hours of different through penetrations. 

HILTI