BUILDING REGULATIONS REFORM PROPOSALS
GREATER PARTS T
THAN THE
The Building Regulations are to be revised next year. Hywel Davies takes an in-depth look at the thinking behind the changes, and what they might mean for professionals across the supply chain
here is much talk about legacy today. One legacy of the previous government is that, to give greater certainty to the construction
sector and its supply chain, the Building Regulations only change every three years. The latest round of proposals appeared at the end of January. But what do they contain, and what significance does the package have for services engineers? The government argues that the proposals will deliver on their deregulatory agenda, to the tune of £63m pounds, and will also simplify the Regulations, with two Approved Documents being combined and all of them restyled as they are revised, with more user friendly layout and language. In addition, there are proposals to introduce ‘non-regulatory approaches’, for security, and for public toilets for those with special needs. So the current package of proposals stretches to an ‘easy-to-read summary’, four separate sections and nine impact assessments, which assess the likely costs and benefits of the proposed measures. There is also an example of what the new style Approved Documents will look like, and a table of the principle changes to the
32 CIBSE Journal May 2012
Approved Documents and the Domestic and Non-domestic Services Guides Section one outlines the scope of the consultation, its structure and contents and describes how the consultation fits with current government policies to reduce the burden of regulation on business. It then presents proposals to change various technical aspects of the regulations, including Part A (Structure), to take account of the introduction of the Eurocodes, Parts B (Fire Safety), C (resistance to contaminants and moisture), in particular updating the guidance on radon protection, and consolidating Parts K (Protection from Falling), M (Access) and N (Glazing Safety). Approved Documents (ADs) K and N
will be combined, removing several areas of conflict and confusion, and guidance on stairs, ramps and manifestation will move into the new AD K from AD M. There are also deregulatory proposals to amend the guidance on Access Statements to promote their use where they add value, rather than as a matter of course. Security and provision of ‘Changing Places’ toilets for those with special needs are the subject of non-regulatory (voluntary) proposals, and there is also an amendment of Regulation
www.cibsejournal.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72