In fire, concrete works well - both as an engineering structure, and as a material in its own right. It has the highest fire rating (class AI) under EN 13501-1: 2007 - A1: 2009.
The tragedy of Grenfell is precisely to make all parties involved in the design, construction management and fire safety of the built environment reflect and consider what needs to be changed. We will be putting our fire experience at the disposal of public research, all professional and regulatory agencies to help reduce fire hazards.
In most cases, concrete does not require any additional fire protection due to its fire resistance. It is a non-combustible material (ie, it does not burn), and has a slow heat transfer rate. Concrete ensures that structural integrity remains, fire compartmentation is not compromised and heat protection can be relied upon. Due to the inherent material properties of the concrete, it can be used to minimize the fire risk for the lowest initial cost while requiring the minimum in terms of continuous maintenance. Other materials depend on fire protection, fire safety engineering or rate of combustion loss. This reliance on fire protection, fire safety engineering and combustion rate makes them ruthless from labor faults, future changes as simple as changing lighting fixtures, compliance with management procedures and human behavior .