Fire Stopping & Compartmentation · Nationwide
Fire Stopping · Penetration Seals · Compartmentation
Third-party certificated fire stopping for commercial and public-sector buildings across the UK. We seal the service penetrations, linear gaps and voids that let fire and smoke spread between compartments — using tested systems, installed by directly-employed operatives and documented with photographic evidence for your fire safety file.
What we do
Compartmentation only works if every breach in a fire-resisting wall or floor is sealed with a system tested for that exact application — the right product, in the right substrate, around the right services. MGN Group surveys, specifies, installs and documents fire stopping in-house, under BM TRADA Q-Mark certification for fire stopping installation. Fire stopping sits alongside fire doors and cavity barriers as the fabric of a building's fire strategy, and is most often identified in a compartmentation survey or fire risk assessment.
Installation of tested fire stopping systems — batt and mastic, intumescent sealants, collars, wraps, pillows and boards — to reinstate the fire resistance of walls and floors where services and openings pass through them.
View fire stopping installationSealing of pipes, cables, trays, ducts and dampers where they penetrate compartment lines, each specified to a tested detail matched to the substrate, service type and required fire rating.
View penetration sealingFire-resisting seals to linear joints, deflection heads, wall-to-soffit junctions and construction gaps, so compartment walls perform as tested right up to the structure above.
View linear gap sealingFull building compartmentation audit with deficiency reporting and photographic evidence, forming the technical foundation of your fire strategy and remedial programme.
View compartmentation surveysCorrection of missing, damaged or non-compliant fire stopping identified by a survey or fire risk assessment — including making good after M&E works and reinstating compartmentation in occupied buildings.
View remedial worksEvery seal labelled, photographed and logged, with location plans and product data for your fire safety file — plus planned re-inspection programmes so compartmentation stays intact as buildings change.
View documentation & maintenanceWhere we work
One specialist team, mobilised nationally. MGN operates from Cumbernauld, between Glasgow and Edinburgh, and delivers fire stopping and compartmentation works across Scotland, England and Wales.
From our Central Belt base we deliver fire stopping for commercial landlords, housing associations, NHS estates, universities and main contractors across Greater Glasgow, Edinburgh and the Lothians, and throughout Scotland. Edinburgh's stock of listed buildings, converted tenements and Victorian commercial properties calls for careful specification in older building fabric — retrofit compartmentation is a core part of what we do.
We support commercial estates, public-sector bodies and main contractors across England and Wales, from single-building remedials to phased compartmentation programmes across a national portfolio. Works are coordinated centrally, executed locally, and reported to one standard on a single managed contract.
Who we serve
We deliver fire stopping and compartmentation across a wide range of building types and sectors throughout the UK.
Offices, retail and mixed-use — reinstating compartmentation after fit-out and services works.
Fire stopping in live clinical environments to HTM 05-02, with infection-control and out-of-hours working.
Schools, colleges and universities — programmed around term time across large, busy estates.
Compartmentation remediation across social housing blocks, from riser cupboards to flat separating walls.
Fire stopping packages coordinated with M&E and main contractor programmes, with handover documentation.
Planned compartmentation inspection and remedial programmes for FM companies managing large portfolios.
Our credentials
Accreditation means an independent body has verified our processes, training and workmanship — not just our paperwork. Our BM TRADA Q-Mark certification covers fire stopping installation as well as fire doors.
Fire door installation & maintenance
BM TRADA Q-Mark is the UK gold standard for fire door installation and maintenance. Holding this certification means our entire installation process — from specification to sign-off — has been independently assessed and approved. You can verify MGN's registration directly on the BM TRADA scheme website.
Verify our registrationFire door inspection certification
The Fire Door Inspection Scheme (FDIS) is the only nationally recognised scheme for fire door inspection in the UK. Only FDIS-registered inspectors can issue a fire door inspection certificate that carries genuine third-party weight with insurers and enforcing authorities. Most contractors offering fire door inspections are not FDIS registered.
Verify our registrationHealth & safety pre-qualification
CHAS (Contractors Health and Safety Assessment Scheme) is the standard pre-qualification requirement for most public sector procurement across the UK. If your building is NHS, council or publicly funded, MGN's CHAS accreditation means we can be appointed without additional vetting.
Institute of Fire Safety Managers
IFSM membership demonstrates ongoing commitment to professional development and regulatory awareness in fire safety management. It is a signal that MGN's team stays current with legislative changes and best practice — not just at time of certification, but continuously.
Client trust
“MGN completed fire stopping surveys and remediation across three of our Scottish properties. Every installation was fully certified and signed off on schedule. They are our premier provider of passive fire protection services in Scotland.”
Simon Cheltenham
Facilities Director, Forte Hotels
“We manage a large portfolio of properties across Scotland and MGN handles all our passive fire protection work. Their documentation is thorough and every project is compliant from day one. I wouldn't use anyone else.”
Stuart McBride
Portfolio Property Owner, Scotland
“All our contract work in Scotland goes to MGN. Their fire door inspection reports are detailed, their remediation work is fast, and they understand the compliance requirements for our sector inside out.”
Jen Ferguson
Operations Manager, National Fire Protection
“The specification and installation quality from MGN is consistently at the highest standard. They understand the requirements of complex commercial environments and deliver certification documentation that stands up to audit.”
Tina Berry
Project Manager, Commercial Development
The law
Compartmentation is a legal requirement, not a design nicety. Fire-resisting walls and floors must be maintained so they perform in a fire — and every unsealed penetration is a breach. These are the duties MGN helps you meet across the UK:
Requires the responsible person for non-domestic premises in England & Wales to keep fire safety measures — including compartmentation — in efficient working order and good repair (Article 17).
The equivalent duties for premises in Scotland, enforced by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
Set the fire-resistance and compartmentation requirements for new work and alterations in England & Wales (ADB, Requirement B3) and Scotland (Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004, Section 2). Fire stopping must be provided at every junction and service penetration.
The fire-resistance test standards for penetration seals and linear joint seals, and the Association for Specialist Fire Protection guidance our specifications and installations follow.
Unsealed service penetrations are one of the most common defects found in fire risk assessments and compartmentation surveys — and one of the least visible. Most building owners are unaware of the breaches above their ceilings and inside their risers until a survey exposes them.
This summary is not legal advice — your own fire risk assessment sets out the specific duties for your building.
Quick answers
Fire stopping is the sealing of gaps and openings in fire-resisting walls and floors — around pipes, cables, ducts and at joints — using tested materials that restore the fire resistance of the element. Without it, fire and smoke bypass compartment walls through the services running through them. Fire stopping is what makes compartmentation, and therefore your escape routes and fire strategy, actually work.
The only reliable way is a compartmentation survey: a systematic inspection of every fire-resisting line, above ceilings and inside risers, with each breach photographed, located and graded. MGN's surveys give you a prioritised remedial schedule and the evidence your fire risk assessor and insurer will ask for.
Yes — most of our work is in live commercial, healthcare, education and residential buildings. We plan works around occupancy, work out of hours where needed and follow infection-control and permit-to-work procedures on client sites.
Yes. MGN holds BM TRADA Q-Mark certification for fire stopping installation, meaning our processes, training and workmanship are independently audited. Each installation is documented and labelled so compliance can be demonstrated to a fire risk assessor, insurer or enforcing authority.
Yes. MGN delivers fire stopping and compartmentation works to commercial and public-sector clients across Scotland, England and Wales, including phased programmes across multi-site portfolios managed under a single contract.
Whether you need a single riser sealed, an estate-wide compartmentation programme or reinstatement after a refurbishment, we respond within 48 hours with a clear, compliant plan and a fixed-price quotation.