Short, sourced explainers on the tests behind the instruments we build. Every post sticks to what the standards and the instruments actually say; product figures quoted in posts are the documented figures from the product pages.
What is the cone calorimeter test?
The bench-scale test that measures how materials really burn - walked through from specimen to report.
ISO 5659-2 vs ASTM E662: two smoke standards, one chamber
Same chamber family, different documents and different markets. What actually differs between the two smoke density methods.
EN 16989: the railway seat fire test, decoded
Complete railway seats are burned as furniture, not materials. What EN 16989 measures and how its indices are used.
Battery thermal runaway test methods, level by level
How UL 9540A and the abuse-test family divide the work of understanding a battery fire before it happens in the field.
What is an NBS smoke density chamber?
The sealed chamber behind aviation and railway smoke limits - how it works and what its numbers mean.
BS 476-7: surface spread of flame classes, explained
Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 - and how Part 7 combines with Part 6 on the road to Class 0.
French NF P 92 and German DIN fire tests: a survivor's guide
The national test families that still appear in specifications long after the Euroclasses arrived - and what each one asks for.