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open to public use, whereas sports governing bodies, such as IAAF (athletics), FIFA (soccer), IRB (rugby), ITF (tennis) and FIH (hockey), define the requirements for higher-level par- ticipation in their own sports. In most cases the standards should be complementary.
Which standards have been published?
Three standards were published in 2007 and 2008: indoor surfaces for multi-sports use; synthetic surfaces for outdoor sports areas; and synthetic turf and needle-punch surfaces for outdoor use. The existing British Standard for multi-use sports surfaces (BS 7044) was then withdrawn.
The standard for indoor sports surfaces (BS EN 14904) relates to surfaces for multi-sports use and not single-sport facilities such as in- door tennis courts. This covers indoor surface systems, i.e. it includes both the supporting and upper layers whether prefabricated, pro- duced in-situ or a combination of the two. The standard for synthetic surfaces for out- door sports areas (BS EN 14877) focuses on polymeric (rubberised) surfaces, for three spe- cific uses: athletics, tennis and multi-sports. The standard for synthetic turf (BS EN 15330) relates just to surfaces for outdoor use, and is split into several sections, with dif- ferent requirements for hockey, football, rugby, tennis and multi-sports use. The standard is aimed at grassroots sport; each of the inter- national sports governing bodies separately specifies its own requirements for high-level competitive play, as necessary.
The European Standards are generally more comprehensive than the British Standard they
each of the international sports governing bodies specifies its own surface requirements for high-level competitive play
It’s vItal to the UK maRKetPlaCe that Changes to the eURoPean standaRds and adoPted RegUlatIons shoUld not exClUde the PRodUCts that aRe CURRently Used and aCCePted WIthIn the UK
replaced, and are more representative of the types of sports surfaces now commonly used, compared to the range of products available when BS 7044 was first introduced.
What changes will be made? Work to update the standards for synthetic surfaces and synthetic turf is nearing comple- tion and the revised standards should be published later this year or early in 2013. As well as including various corrections and editorial amendments, the new versions will put greater emphasis on the need for site testing, to help ensure the quality of installation – not just the quality of the prod- ucts themselves. There is also a proposal to create a new standard for synthetic turf when used indoors.
Work to update the standard for indoor surfaces will take longer to complete, and is not likely to be published before mid-2013. The scope of this standard is being expand- ed so that it will embrace a wider range of surfaces in the future, and therefore more products will be required to comply. There is also an important discussion taking place within CEN about which chemicals and substances can be used in the manufacture of indoor flooring; while not
outdoor surfacing had been excluded from the regulations, but this is currently being reviewed
specifically aimed at sports surfaces there are potentially significant implications for manufacturers and suppliers of indoor sports floors in the UK.
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What are the Construction Products Regulations and do they apply? The Construction Products Regulations (which replaced the existing Construction Products Directive in March 2011), aim to “ensure the free movement of all construc- tion products within the EU by harmonising national laws with respect to the essential requirements applicable to these products in terms of health and safety”.
The simplest way to comply with the regulations is through CE Marking. This is a declaration by the manufacturer that a prod- uct meets certain safety requirements, usually a set of essential characteristics that each product must satisfy and which are identified in the relevant harmonised standard. Outdoor sport surfacing has, until now, been excluded from the regulations, but this ‘opt out’ is currently being reviewed. The regu- lations will, however, apply to indoor sport surfaces from July 2013
onwards.These key issues will be discussed when the BSI Technical Committee meets later this month. It’s vital to the UK marketplace that the changes to the European Standards and the regulations that will be adopted should not exclude the products that are currently used and accepted within the UK. To achieve this, the input of the UK within the process has been very important and the sports facility industry continues to be actively represented by a number of members of SAPCA. l
Issue 2 2012 © cybertrek 2012
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