About Retrotec
Retrotec manufactures blower doors (or door fans) that are used in over 40 countries to measure the leakage rate of buildings, houses, rooms, ductwork and other enclosures. Plug the leakage results into Retrotec's Windows software to calculate energy loss, ventilation rates, smoke control and fire suppressant loss rates according to the following standards:
Enclosure Integrity Tests using:
- NFPA 2001
- ISO 14520
Energy Loss Tests using:
- EN13829
- British CIBSE TM23
- Canadian CGSB 149.10
- American ASTM E779
- Europe CEN/TC
- Japanese standard
- Dutch NEN 2686
- SuperE
- Title 24
Smoke and Refuge using:
- PFEER
- 1994 Uniform Building Code Section 905
Enclosure Integrity Testing includes retention time calculations for all clean agent fire suppressants such as: FM-200, INERGEN, Argon, Argonite, FE-227, FE13, CO2, Nitrogen, NAF S III, Novec 1230. It also includes relief vent calculations and a test method for measuring relief vent capacity in place.
Energy Loss testing is used for measuring losses in large commercial buildings & residences where mandatory testing is required to fulfill the criteria of certain jurisdictional standards. Residential homes in Canada are tested to fulfill R-2000 requirements while exisitng housing stock is tested for Energuide ratings using the CGSB standard. Canada has exported its R-2000 technology abroad under the SuperE label where a special SuperE program performs the needed test there.
Smoke control testing is performed under the 1994 Uniform Building Code Section 905 where maximum leakage levels are specified. Retrotec door fans are capable of measuring the leakage of an entire floor of almost any building, giving the designer useful quality control information to calculate the transmission rate of smoke or pollutants from one floor to the next. Individual floors can be isolated and measured so that the leakage area of each floor or component is known.
PFEER is the Protection for Fire and Emergency Evacuation Refuge intended for use on oil platforms where a safe haven must be free of smoke and toxic fumes in the event of a mishap. This is enforced by Lloyds of London shipping standards.
Retrotec Air Current Testers are used as air movement detectors in a variety of applications but mostly to find leaks in the above applications so the requirements of these standards can be met.
Our President: Colin Genge
Colin Genge is the CEO and owner of Retrotec Ltd. Founded in 1980, Retrotec designs and builds blower-door fan systems, precision pressure gauges and analytical software.
Mr. Genge has played a major role in the development of door-fan energy standards, including Canada’s CGSB 149 and ASTM E-779. He developed the NFPA12A and 2001 Enclosure Integrity Procedure in 1988 to set standards for clean agent fire suppressants in high value enclosures. He is regarded as the world’s leading expert in the containment of gaseous fire suppressants and has had a 20 year relationship with all of the major fire suppressant manufacturers (such as 3M, Tyco, DuPont, Kidde, Chemetron, Fike, Ansul, Kidde-Fenwal and Siemens) who regularly rely on his expertise. His fire testing procedures are currently used in over 60 countries.
Mr. Genge has conducted extensive research on testing methods for high rise buildings, and has personally tested hundreds of the world’s most exotic high value facilities, including the Space Shuttle launch pad, military installations and the sophisticated computer rooms for international corporations and Government entities.
