Should Combustible Access Exist?

When “Escape” Becomes a Weak Link

A fire escape is only as strong as its weakest component. If the ramp or steps underpinning that escape are combustible, you introduce a critical vulnerability. In a fire, those components aren’t just passive—they can contribute to the spread, or fail early, compromising the entire route.

The Cost Argument Doesn’t Stand Up

“Cheap” is the standard excuse. Under tight budgets, the lowest-price option wins bidding rounds. But when the “cheap” option undermines safety, the cost-benefit is distorted.

Steel and aluminium access systems are not prohibitively expensive. They offer long service lives, durability, resistance to harsh weather—and crucially, no combustion risk. Over several cycles, they outperform combustible alternatives in value and safety.

Temporary Installations, Permanent Consequences

We see combustible access most when projects are short-term—events, exhibitions, site installations. The logic: “If it’s temporary, risk is acceptable.” That logic fails when fire doesn’t care how long something has been in place. A single incident can destroy property, lives, and reputations.

If the escape route includes components that fail early under heat, even momentarily, the impact is fatal.

Reputation, Trust, and Responsibility

People expect fire escapes to work. They don’t expect the path leading to them to be the first element to fail. When organisations specify combustible access, they risk public backlash if something goes wrong.

Choosing the cheaper, riskier path may pass technical inspection—but it might not survive scrutiny in a post-incident investigation. Safety decisions carry liability.

The Bottom Line

Accepting combustible access on fire escape routes is not a defensible position. It undermines safety, weakens user confidence, and opens organisations to risk. Alternatives already exist—non-combustible, reusable, robust—that support both everyday use and emergency demand.

So: should combustible access exist? Not in any serious specification. Escape routes must remain viable under fire conditions. The standard must be: does it protect lives under worst-case conditions? Not: is it compliant enough to pass inspection?

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