Technical Archives

Reaction to fire of wall linings

by Clair Mooney | 26 Sep, 2025 | Technical

Collaborative Reporting for Safer Structures UK (CROSS) has published a report relating to reaction to fire classification of wall lining materials, pointing out the importance of understanding the testing regimes required for materials in different applications and how performance will likely be affected by composite panel constructions. Whilst the technical advice on testing applies to all wall lining products, the reporter here is particularly concerned about the classification of linings in and around freestanding pods which may have been overlooked in the requirements of Building Regulations guidance; Approved Document B due to being considered furniture items, and therefore not assessed for compliance by those responsible for fire safety in the design.

It is also important to understand that freestanding pods can have implications on both passive and active fire protection systems given their function as a room within a larger space.

The full report can be seen here: Reaction to fire of wall linings | CROSS

If members have questions about design, specification, procurement or installation of pods, please either consult our Specifiers Guide to Partitions, or get in touch with our technical team who will be happy to help.

Have Your Say: BS EN ISO 9001 Quality Standard Under Review

by Oscar Venus | 29 Aug, 2025 | Technical

BS EN ISO 9001 (quality management systems, requirements) is currently under review by BSI and has been circulated for public comment.

Members can use the link below to login to the BSI portal or create a free BSI account, download a copy of the draft revised standard and submit comments through the portal.

British Standards Institution – Project

Key proposed updates include:

Changes to requirements
Clearer structure and terminology for improved usability
Clarification of requirements in Annex A (informative)

The consultation is open until 20^th October 2025 and we are encouraging all our members to either comment directly or engage with the FIS team if they have questions about the standard and would like to inform an FIS response.

FIS hosts regular meetings with an organisational capability working group comprised of members who will discuss this review alongside other subjects and members are welcome to get involved with this work.

Please contact jamesparlour@thefis.org or greggreves@thefis.org if you have questions of would like to get involved in any of the above.

Government Updates Guidance on Fire Door Requirements

by Oscar Venus | 28 Aug, 2025 | Technical

The Government has updated its guidance under the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, clarifying expectations around fire doors in residential and multi-occupied buildings.

The revised guidance, published in August, reinforces that fire doors do not necessarily need to be replaced if they met the requirements of Building Regulations at the time of installation and have since been appropriately inspected and maintained.

This update is intended to provide reassurance for building owners, managers, and residents, while underlining the importance of regular checks to ensure that fire doors remain in good working order.

FIS is reminding members that compliance is not just about product selection, but also about inspection, maintenance and record-keeping. Routine checks should be carried out in line with the regulations, and residents provided with clear information on the role of fire doors in maintaining building safety.

You can read the full government guidance

Here

Have Your Say: BSI Consultation on New Standard for Bringing Safe Construction Products to Market

by Oscar Venus | 22 Aug, 2025 | Technical

The British Standards Institution (BSI) is currently developing a new Publicly Available Specification (PAS) code of practice designed to support the safe introduction of construction products to the market.

The new standard – PAS 2000:2026, Construction products – Bringing safe products to market – Code of practice, aims to inform, complement, and align with the government’s forthcoming reforms to construction product regulation, following the recent Green Paper consultation.

This is an important opportunity for the finishes and interiors sector to help shape a standard that will directly impact how products are designed, assessed, and placed on the market.

The draft is now open for public consultation until 8 September 2025. We strongly encourage FIS members to review the standard and share feedback to ensure it reflects the needs and realities of our sector.

You can access the consultation via the BSI Standards Development Portal. Please note you will need to register for a free BSI account to download and comment on the draft.

If you would like to provide comments through FIS as part of a collective response, please get in touch with us by phone or email – we’d be happy to discuss your views.

The FIS Acoustic Verification Scheme is expanding

by Iain McIlwee | 28 Jul, 2025 | Technical

Growing concerns and legal challenges around acoustic performance claims led FIS in 2018 to take positive action and launch an acoustic verification scheme that covered glazed and demountable partitions and acoustic walls. The scheme reviews test data through a third-party verification process (carried out by independent acoustic engineers), performs a series of checks to verify information is accurate and genuine against marketing claims.

Verified Products can be marketed with the FIS Acoustic Verified Certificate and listed as Acoustic Verified on NBS to provide reassurance to specifiers and users. FIS members are poised to add a number of new product lines to the scheme and, as the verification cost is based on batch pricing, FIS is opening up the next round of verifications to all members to ensure that we can offer best value in bringing products into the scheme.

The scheme, developed through the relevant FIS Working Groups, established standard methodology for how tests should be conducted and reported. This means products can be effectively compared and the potential for inaccurate or misleading information from undermining project integrity and responsible manufacturers is limited. In 2024, for similar reasons, the scheme was extended to cover the validation of claims for acoustic pods. Larger meeting room pods are marketed as flexible solutions to provide acoustic privacy. However, ISO 23351-1:2020 states that the pod should not occupy more than 5% of the volume of reverberation test chamber. For most test chambers, this limits the maximum pod size to 11m³, leaving this emerging sector to use inconsistent parameters when making marketing claims.

The classification certificates will indicate to an acoustician that there is deep, verified data behind the classification allowing the acoustician to have a reliable dataset to use within their assessments.

If you are interested in bringing your products into the scheme or adding to your range of already verified products, please email info@thefis.org and we’ll get details of next steps out to you. Any questions call the FIS on 0121 707 0077.

For more details on how you can specify with confidence with the FIS Acoustic Verification Scheme, click here.

Build UK announces key Common Assessment Standard update

by Clair Mooney | 1 Jul, 2025 | Building Safety Act, Technical

Build UK has published an updated version of the Common Assessment Standard, and the Building Safety section is now mandatory for completion by all companies that carry out work under the Building Safety Act. Version 5 also contains updates to the Corporate & Professional Standing; Environmental; and Fairness, Inclusion & Respect sections.

Under the Building Safety Act, anyone appointing individuals or organisations to undertake design or building work has a duty to ensure they are competent. Organisations must demonstrate ‘organisational capability’, and the Common Assessment Standard is being used by a growing list of clients and contractors across the public and private sectors to demonstrate compliance.

Companies will be required to complete the updated question set when they next go through the certification process for the Common Assessment Standard with a Recognised Assessment Body, and a number of Build UK members will be specifying that members of their supply chains must have successfully completed the Building Safety section by 1 October 2025.

Jim Parlour, FIS Head of Technical, said:

“These ongoing changes to the common assessment standard are welcomed by our members who strive for best practice and wish to distinguish themselves. Demonstrating compliance with the now mandatory Building Safety criteria is not without challenges, and FIS have been working with our members to provide direct intervention and guidance over the last few months on approach to this deadline.

Members who are struggling to demonstrate fulfilment of the criteria should contact the FIS for advice and support.”

Demonstrate your organisational capability and meet your legal duties with confidence.

The FIS Quality Framework (Product, Process, People (PPP) helps you manage risk, evidence compliance, and showcase competence. Start strengthening your quality and risk management today.

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