industry news
BBA to launch scheme to improve cavity wall assessments
T
he British Board of Agrément (BBA) is to launch its cavity assessment surveillance scheme (CASS) on 1 September with the
aim of improving the assessment of cavity walls on site to in turn improve insulation installation. Research by the BBA found that on its
surveillance visits, cavity wall assessments were often not up to the required standard. It decided that another layer of oversight was necessary to try and ensure the quality of assessments and in turn the compliance of installations. The BBA is introducing a rigorous process to
ensure the competence of assessors. Through a web-based portal, they will have to register through the BBA in order to prove their competence and confirm the systems they are approved to assess on, along with confirming any certification they may hold. Unless the criteria are fulfilled, the BBA will reject the applicant, leaving them without a BBA registration or access to the platform until the application is deemed compliant. When the application is compliant and all the information is available, assessors can then
upload assessments to the website. The BBA will then review the online assessment, a percentage of those found to be suitable will have a surveillance inspection carried out to ensure compliance with the scheme requirements. Geoff Chambers, head of approvals for
property investigations at the BBA said that assessments often neglected to address ventilation issues caused by installations: "We felt that this was an area of the process that didn't have enough oversight. When cavity wall insulation is installed, it can adversely affect the airflow within the cavity. If there are combustion appliances within the property for example, it's incumbent upon the assessor and the installing company to ensure that there's adequate combustion ventilation for each fuel burning appliance.” He added: "Assessors are not always as
diligent as they should be and they don't realise that a combustion appliance requires additional ventilation. If such issues are not identified and addressed prior to the cavity wall installer arriving, customers are likely to turn around and say that they no longer want the job done."
“Assessors are not always as diligent as they should be and they don't realise that a combustion appliance requires additional ventilation”
Geoff Chambers
Moisture Meters for building professionals
‘The 7000 & 7250 meters incorporate a 20-LED bar graph that indicates ‘OK’, ‘WARNING’ or ‘DAMP’ levels making moisture content diagnosis easy’
Welsh private rental sector satisfaction outstrips social
Private sector tenants in Wales are more satisfied than tenants living in the social rented sector. Figures from the Welsh
Government revealed that 90% of those in private rented housing in Wales are satisfied with their homes, compared to 83% living in social housing. Satisfaction rates among English tenants of social housing stand at 88%. The National Survey for Wales
found that 77% of private sector tenants are satisfied with the way their landlord repairs and maintains their homes compared to 69% of social sector tenants. Rents across Wales increased by
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just 0.2% in the year to April 2016, lower than any other region in the UK. The Residential Landlords
Association Cymru argues that this data, while not a reason for complacency, shows the private rented sector is delivering decent homes at an affordable price.
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