This Part of BS 476 describes procedures for determining the fire resistance of loadbearing elements of building construction when subjected to the heating and pressure conditions specified in BS 476‑20. This Part provides requirements for specimen selection and/or its design and construction, loading and restraint conditions, equipment, procedures and criteria as they apply to loadbearing specimens. The methods are applicable to beams, columns, floors, flat roofs and walls.

The methods described are not applicable to suspended ceilings protecting steel beams which are described in BS 476‑23 (see A.1). Owing to limitations imposed by both the furnaces and their method of control, structures employing water cooling techniques are not capable of being evaluated realistically by these procedures.

The methods described are not applicable to assemblies of elements, e.g. wall/floor combinations, although some guidance is provided in Appendix A for tests of this type (see A.1).