Last week saw the publication of The Independent Review of the Construction Product Testing Regime which was announced by government in April 2021 and was led by Paul Morrell OBE and Anneliese Day KC.
The purpose of the Review was to
- to identify any potential weaknesses in the system and
- to make recommendations for improvement.
It undertook a critical assessment of the system for testing and certifying construction products and how the system could be strengthened to provide confidence that construction products are safe and perform as labelled and marked.
It is a wide ranging report and recognises contributions from FIS. Key points to draw out include:
- Concerns remain over fragmentation and there is a greater focus required on how products work within systems and understanding responsibility
- Recommendatons around the definition of “safety critical products”, to include; Fire resisting construction (eg in compartment walls), including glazing, Class A1 material for shaft construction, Fire doors and doorsets, door closers, Cavity barriers, Fire resisting ceilings, Fire-stopping
- Regulations to be tightened to ensure all products have a “general safety requirement” and are embraced by the Construction Products Regulation, requiring them to report consistently on essential characteristics through adoption of the Declaration of Performance process.
- The need to strengthen enforcement and importance of getting behind the Code for Construction Products Information
- The call for a Standard to support assessment of performance to augment testing and scope
The report also touches on the suggestion of licensing for main contractors to help improve the safety culture. We are not expecting a formal response from Government to the recommendations, but they will inform the Building Safety Regulator as they develop the regulatory and enforcement landscape over the coming months.
You can view all the documents relating to the independent review led by Paul Morrell OBE and Anneliese Day KC here. FIS is currently working on an executive summary for members.