Steel fire protection standards: ShNK, GOST, SP, EN, UL

Fire protection standards: why they matter

Fire protection of steel and timber structures and cable runs is not “box-ticking paintwork” but an engineering measure that must achieve the specific fire resistance rating set by the regulations. Designers, technical supervisors and contractors in Uzbekistan have to work with documents from several systems at once: the national ShNK and KMK norms (ShNK — Uzbekistan’s Urban Planning Norms and Rules; KMK — Building Norms and Rules), interstate GOST standards, Russian GOST R national standards and codes of practice (SP) and, on projects with foreign participation, European EN and American UL/ASTM standards. This section brings together the key documents of each system, the logic behind them and how they differ.

Why regulations differ from country to country

The physics of fire is the same everywhere, but the regulatory systems developed independently. This has led to several fundamental differences:

Different assessment methods. In the CIS countries, fire protection for steel has historically been characterised by “fire protection efficiency” — the time it takes a standard specimen to heat up to 500 °C. In Europe and the USA, what is assessed is the contribution of the fire protection to the fire resistance of the structural member, taking into account the section massivity and the critical temperature of the steel, and the results are presented as thickness tables.
Different roles for certification. In the EU, a product is placed on the market through a European Technical Assessment (ETA) and CE marking; in the USA, through a listing by a testing organisation (for example, UL) with a specific design number; in the CIS countries, through a certificate of conformity and a test report under the national method.
Different temperature regimes. The standard (cellulosic) time–temperature curve is almost identical in all systems, but oil and gas facilities use hydrocarbon regimes, which are defined in different documents in Europe and the USA.
Different levels of detail. Some regulations set only the required fire resistance of the building, while others explicitly restrict the types of fire protection (for example, in Russia, load-bearing steel elements with a reduced metal thickness of less than 5.8 mm in buildings with degrees of fire resistance I–II require constructive (non-reactive) or combined fire protection).

How to read a requirement: R, E, I and their combinations

The fire resistance rating of a building element is expressed as the time in minutes from the start of a standard fire test until one of the limit states is reached. The designations are the same in the GOST and EN systems:

Designation	Limit state	Where it applies
R	Loss of load-bearing capacity (collapse or unacceptable deformation)	Columns, beams, trusses, bracing
E	Loss of integrity (formation of through cracks or openings through which combustion products or flames pass)	Separating elements, penetration seals, doors
I	Loss of insulation (unacceptable temperature rise on the unexposed surface)	Walls, floors, fire-separating elements

The designation R 90 means that a load-bearing element must retain its load-bearing capacity for at least 90 minutes of a standard fire. REI 60 means that a floor must carry its load, remain intact and not overheat on the unexposed side for 60 minutes. EI 45 means that a non-load-bearing partition or the closure of an opening must retain its integrity and insulation for 45 minutes. In the European classification, additional symbols (W, M, C, S, etc.) are added to these letters, while in American practice the result is expressed as an hourly rating (1 h, 2 h, 3 h) for a specific design.

It is important not to confuse the fire resistance rating of a structural element with the classification of a fire protection product. A test report stating “fire protection efficiency group 4” under the Russian method describes how the coating performs on a standard specimen, but does not in itself prove that a column in the design will achieve R 60: that requires a calculation or a thickness selection for the specific section and conditions.

Cellulosic and hydrocarbon fire regimes

In most buildings, the design fire involves the burning of solid materials: furniture, finishes and stored goods. For these, all systems use the standard (cellulosic) temperature regime, close to the ISO 834 curve: the furnace temperature rises logarithmically and reaches about 945 °C at around 60 minutes. The interstate standard GOST 30247.0 and EN 1363-1 describe it with the same formula.

When spilled petroleum products and gas burn, the temperature rises much faster. For such facilities, hydrocarbon regimes are used: in Europe, the hydrocarbon curve to EN 1363-2 (reaching a plateau of about 1100 °C); in the USA, testing to UL 1709 and ASTM E1529, reaching approximately 1093 °C (2000 °F) within the first 5 minutes. For jet fires of pressurised gas there is a separate test method, ISO 22899-1. The same thickness of fire protection gives a considerably shorter fire resistance period under a hydrocarbon regime, so selecting it from “cellulosic” tables for oil refineries, gas plants and chemical facilities is unacceptable.

Temperature regimes and test set-ups are covered in detail on the “How fire protection tests are carried out” page.

How the standards are applied on projects in Uzbekistan

The basic fire safety requirements for buildings in Uzbekistan are set by the urban planning norms ShNK 2.01.02-04 “Fire Safety of Buildings and Structures” and by the Technical Regulation on Requirements for Fire Safety and Firefighting Equipment, approved by Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 536 of 28.09.2022. These documents define the degree of fire resistance of a building and the required fire resistance ratings of its elements. For fire resistance test methods, ShNK refers to the 30247 series of standards, adopted in Uzbekistan as RST Uz (Republic Standards of Uzbekistan).

In practice, a design is usually developed as follows:

the functional fire hazard class, the degree of fire resistance and the required fire resistance ratings are determined under ShNK (for example, R 90 for columns in a building with degree of fire resistance II);
for steel structures, the reduced metal thickness of each section is determined and, if its inherent fire resistance is insufficient, a type of fire protection is selected;
the coating thickness is selected from test reports and technical data obtained by a recognised method (in Uzbekistan, to the national standard O’z DSt 2313:2011; in practice also by procedures based on GOST R 53295 or EN 13381, less often by UL methods);
the conformity confirmation documents required by Uzbek legislation are submitted for the fire protection products; the facility as a whole undergoes expert review and is inspected by the fire safety authorities of the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES).

On projects with a foreign client or EPC contractor, specifications often call for European or American evidence (ETA, UL listing, testing to UL 1709 for hydrocarbon fire). Local requirements still apply in this case: the project must comply both with ShNK and with the client’s specification.

Comparison of regulatory systems

Region	Key documents	Method for steel fire protection	Result	How the product is approved
Uzbekistan	Law No. ZRU-226 “On Fire Safety”, ShNK 2.01.02-04, Technical Regulation (Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 536 of 28.09.2022)	References to the 30247 series methods; O’z DSt 2313:2011; in practice also test reports to GOST R 53295 or to foreign methods	Fire resistance rating R/REI/EI, min	Conformity confirmation under the legislation of the Republic of Uzbekistan, MES supervision
Russia	Federal Law No. 123-FZ, SP 2.13130.2020, GOST 30247.0/.1	GOST R 53295-2009 (efficiency groups 1–7)	R/REI/EI, min; fire protection efficiency group	Certificate of conformity with the requirements of 123-FZ
European Union	EN 13501-2, EN 1363-1/-2, EN 13381-4/-8/-9	Multi-temperature analysis to EN 13381	Class R/REI/EI 15…240+; thickness tables	ETA to EAD 350402-00-1106 + CE marking (for intumescent coatings)
USA	IBC, NFPA, UL 263 / ASTM E119, UL 1709, ASTM E1529	Testing of a specific assembly (design)	Hourly rating (1–4 h)	Listing by a testing organisation with a design number
Middle East	UAE Fire and Life Safety Code, SBC 201/801 (Saudi Arabia), Qatar Civil Defence (QCDD) requirements	Testing to methods recognised by the local authorities: in Qatar, laboratories and bodies on the Civil Defence (QCDD) list; in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, in line with the codes and Civil Defence requirements	Hours or EN classes, depending on the test document	Civil Defence approval, certification by a recognised body

What to check in fire protection documents

Which method the tests were carried out to and which temperature regime was used.
Which sections (reduced metal thickness or section factor A/V, Hp/A) and critical temperatures the thickness table covers.
Which complete system was tested: primer, fire protection layer, topcoat. Changing the primer or topcoat may take the system outside the scope of the tests.
The service conditions for which durability has been confirmed (indoors, under cover, outdoors).
The validity period of the document, and whether the product name on the packaging matches the name in the test report.

Sections by region

The material in this section is for reference only. Before using it in a design, check the current edition of each document against official sources.