BLACKSBURG, South Carolina – Preferred Finishing, Inc. has created Firewall barrier fabric for use in upholstered furniture in three variations to produce "no-fail" upholstery when it comes to passing fire codes, the company said. Firewall K-300 (4.5-5 ounce weight) is a lightweight version of the product which complies with British Standard 5852 and California Technical Bulletin 133, the makers said. Firewall K-500 and Firewall K-700 are heavier versions (9 to 9.5 ounces) and are said to pass the same standards as K 300. K-700 employs a green version of the fire retardant technology. All three products can be double upholstered or laminated to the upholstery fabric. ''Firewall is way superior to any other product on the market,'' said Kyle Bullock, a company spokesman. "We have never had a burn failure for CAL TB 133. With the other products on the market, you would probably get a 40 percent to 70 percent passing rate if you tested 100 pieces of furniture of varying constructions and varying cover fabrics. Most furniture manufacturers limit their CAL TB 133 offerings for this reason. They also often have to use combustion modified urethane foams in addition to a barrier fabric to pass. This reduces the life and comfort of the furniture.'' "Firegard is an active barrier fabric,'' Bullock said. Active means the barrier attempts to extinguish the burning upholstery fabric. A passive barrier merely attempts to keep the flames from igniting the urethane foam. ''The upholstery fabric burns completely away often causing a TB 133 failure from excess smoke or heat,'' Bullock said. ''In 90 percent of the burn tests our customers have done, Firewall extinguishes the upholstery fabric. This greatly reduces the smoke, heat and carbon monoxide given off producing true safety.'' Bullock said that Firewall has ''a great story to tell.'' ''I plan to contact every fire marshal in the country to make them aware,'' he said. ''Firewall is especially suited in the hospitality industry where often, the customer uses COM fabric and wants to be sure it will pass flammability tests,'' said James Garner, a representative of Preferred Finishing. The company said it also offers custom lamination services for combining Firewall Barriers to upholstery fabrics. All Firewall products are available with moisture barrier films and a variety of reinforcing scrims. Preferred Finishing Inc. is the owner and manufacturer of Firewall Barriers. All Firewall products are available in 55 yard rolls and the nominal width is 56 inches. Firewall sell for $5 to $8 a yard. ''The price of our products is not a problem,'' Bullock said. ''We are selling in the same price range as most other products. The cheaper ones only work on a narrow range of constructions.''