WATER SYSTEM MANAGEMENT
Removable flow regulator cartridges enable routine maintenance.
to check that products won’t leak and waste water. Surprisingly, not all products sold
have been appropriately tested, so it is worth checking that products have been tested to conform with the Water Fittings Regulations. The regulations give two routes to demonstrate that a water fitting is of an appropriate quality or standard: 1 It conforms to an appropriate British Standard, or some other national specification which provides an equivalent level of protection and performance, or
2 It conforms to a specification approved by the regulator.
Approval by a UK certification body A simple way to be sure of compliance is to check if the water fitting has been approved by a certification body. There are a number of approval schemes operating in the UK. It is not just the plumbing fittings which must comply, but also the design and installation. The regulations stipulate this as needing to be ‘suitable for the circumstances used’. It is vitally important that all involved – whether the designer, installer, or building manager, are competent. Only installers with the appropriate qualifications, regulatory knowledge, and competence, should be used to install and maintain water installations. WaterSafe is the national register of approved contractors in the UK, supported by all the UK water companies and the drinking water quality regulators. Approved contractors on its register are all trained in the Water Fittings Regulations. However, only approved plumbers are approved for all types of plumbing work.
26 Health Estate Journal March 2023
Legal duty to notify the water company For most types of plumbing work, installers have a legal duty to notify the local water company before they start work, which can lead to delays, as water companies have 10 days to give consent. Approved contractors can carry out some work without advanced notification. A certificate of compliance issued by an approved contractor also provides a defence from prosecution if the work is later found not to comply, provided the work was within their scope of approval. In summary, water is a precious
resource, and there is a duty on us all to reduce water usage to save money and reduce our environmental impact, without compromising compliance and water safety. Healthcare building owners and operators can take a leading role in this by: n Selecting suitable, compliant fittings that are also water-efficient.
n Using a suitably qualified, competent installer to install fittings correctly.
n Making sure that the whole water system is compliant, and that any water efficiency changes do not have unintended consequences.
n Fixing leaks promptly. n Helping users reduce their water use – for example making toilet dual buttons clear, and controlling urinal flushing.
References 1
Waterwise UK Water Efficiency Strategy to 2030.
www.waterwise.org.uk/ strategy2030/
2 Dual Flush –WRAS share findings of survey. WRAS press release. www.
wrasapprovals.co.uk/news/articles/dual- flush/
Paul Millard
Paul Millard, the organisation’s Technical manager, joined Water Regs UK (formerly WRAS) in August 2012, where he provides technical liaison and support both to the water industry and other external organisations. Before this he worked for Anglian Water, where he was Water Regulations manager responsible for the company’s enforcement of the Water Fittings Regulations. With over 30 years’ water industry experience, his early career at Cambridge Water saw him involved in a range of activities, including network management, leakage, and customer complaints. For the last 20 years he has focused on the Water Fittings Regulations, providing technical expertise and guidance on their enforcement and interpretation, with involvement in national standards, where he provides water industry representation.
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
