SETTING THE STANDARD FOR CERTIFICATION AND COMPLIANCE

The Building Safety Act 2022 represents a new era of accountability for the construction industry that will improve the standards of buildings and secure the safety of people within them. Here Marcus Parnham, Commercial Director at Profab Access, discusses how building engineers can follow these principles and ensure a building is fit for purpose and fit for the future, by specifying and installing fire integrity products that have undergone extensive third party testing. The Competence Steering Group’s Setting the Bar report aims to achieve a system of competence standards that all those in life-safety-critical disciplines working on higher-risk buildings should adopt, in line with Dame Judith Hackitt’s Building a Safer Future. For building engineers responsible for the procurement, construction, inspection and maintenance of buildings, these objectives can be achieved by specifying and installing building components that are supplied with comprehensive certification. This will ensure the suitability and safety of a building for its entire lifecycle. Currently, there remain ambiguities regarding guidelines and regulations for the testing of building materials. In relation to fire integrity riser doors in particular, there are disparities between the guidelines outlined in BS EN 1634 Standard and Annex B of Approved Document B2. As a result, some manufacturers may only conduct product assessments via a third party, whilst others may undertake continuous rigorous third party testing to evidence their products are consistently suitable for installation. For those manufacturers who may submit evidence in the form of assessment reports, it is often based on primary testing that may have been conducted many years ago. Providing that a manufacturer states nothing has changed in terms of product materials, specifications and manufacturing techniques, assessments will often be renewed for a further five-year period, without any substantial fire performance tests being completed. The National Construction Products Regulator will have the ability to conduct its own tests of building materials specified in fire critical environments. However, it is the responsibility of the manufacturer to ensure the products they supply are compliant and suitable for the proposed application. The customer also shares this responsibility Building engineers can overcome the significant dissimilarities regarding the regulation of fire integrity riser doors by following the principles of the Setting the Bar report. This means selecting companies who have undergone third party accreditation and whose building products are supplied with comprehensive certification and test reports. By evidencing comprehensive due diligence through the procurement of testing reports, rather than product assessments, building engineers can ensure no assumptions are made regarding the suitability and performance of the materials installed. This subsequently ensures the long term suitability and safety of the building for its entire lifecycle. This also ensures building engineers have fulfilled their duty of care in terms of best practice. The third party testing evidence proves the building product is not only fit for purpose, but goes beyond current requirements to offer the highest possible standards of quality, performance and safety. The certification of a product by an accredited third party via a dedicated testing programme, rather than through product assessments, reassures each professional involved throughout the construction and maintenance stages that it will not fail in the event of a fire. This is because testing provides continued assurance with regard to the product being supplied, whereas product assessments alone do not provide continuous surveillance and assurance of consistency and quality. This is further reflected in third party testers’ involvement throughout the entire construction process. The third party tester will ensure manufacturers implement appropriate measures that maintain manufacturing consistency and that the product tested is a true representative of production. With regard to riser doors, in particular, this extensive testing process will guarantee a manufacturer has gone above the guidance outlined in BS EN 1634 to ensure complete compliance with the legislation defined in Annex B of Approved Document B2. For building engineers to ensure they have taken all reasonable measures to ensure the building is compliant, safe and suitable, they should ensure the third party testing has been undertaken for the complete doorset, including each individual component. This will successfully futureproof the project. First raised in Dame Hackitt’s review, the fire-resistance of a building product should be tested in ‘real-world conditions’, to ensure that all performance figures stated by the manufacturer are factual and represent the final installation. Beyond the testing of the doorset, it is also critical that it is installed into an approved wall construction in a method consistent with the sample originally tested. In practice, the installation process of a riser door poses a number of risks to the overall fire integrity of the construction through variables such as the packer type and intumescent mastic bead application. To overcome this potential gap in compliance, building engineers should work with manufacturers who are taking their commitment to product innovation and the third party testing and certification of these solutions to the highest possible standard. This includes the design and manufacture of high quality steel riser doors that are supplied with adjustable frames that include an integral intumescent strip to provide fire stopping between the wall and frame. The requirement for packers and a dry liners’ reliance on the application of the correct thickness of intumescent mastic bead is eliminated. Importantly the compliance and adequacy of the entire installation is ensured as its fire integrity performance has been sufficiently documented by an independent assessor. As a result, this also subsequently increases the efficiencies of installation and removes any potential margins for error. By considering each individual element that forms part of the entire installation and ensuring the relevant components have undergone necessary testing and certification processes, building engineers can streamline the initial design and specification stages. They can also produce an extensive digital audit trail that documents compliance and product suitability at every stage of the construction process. For further information on Profab Access and its range of riser doors, access panels, and steel doors, call +44(0)1827 719051.

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