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RECENT EVENTS including the tragedy at Grenfell Tower have brought focus to Building Regulations in the UK . The recent interim report on Building Regulations and Fire Safety by Dame Judith Hackitt has questioned whether existing regulations are fit for purpose .
The Guild of Architectural Ironmongers ( GAI ) submitted 12 recommendations to the Hackitt Review , one of which called for an overhaul of the Approved Document B on Fire Safety as it is currently seen as an overly complicated document .
Approved Documents are intended to give practical guidance about how to comply with Building Regulations . A Building Regulation is described as a ‘ requirement ’ whereas Approved Documents provide ‘ guidance ’ on how to comply .
Part B – fire safety , Part M – access to and use of buildings and Part Q – security , are the Approved Documents for England and Wales that are relevant to the hardware and security industry .
APPROVED DOCUMENT B : FIRE SAFETY
Approved Document B is split into two volumes ; Volume 1 Dwelling houses and Volume 2 Buildings other than dwelling houses .
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Volume 1 includes multiple occupancy and sheltered housing . There is limited detail on hardware but it does include information on fire resistant construction , compartmentation and fire doors .
Volume 2 mentions a number of hardware items including the following :
HINGES
Rising butt hinges are not acceptable to use on a fire door .
SELF- CLOSING DEVICES ON FIRE DOORS
Self-closing devices must be capable of closing the door from any angle and against any latch fitted to the door .
DOOR CLOSING DEVICES
The residential care homes section cites free swing door closers on bedrooms and hold-open devices on circulation spaces as being acceptable .
LOCKING MECHANISMS
Where a door on an escape route has to be secured against entry when the building or part of the building is occupied , the door should only be fitted with a lock or fastening which is readily operated without a key from the side approached by people making their escape .
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ELECTRICALLY POWERED LOCKS
Electrically powered locks should return to the locked position on operation of the fire alarm system , on loss of power or system error or on activation of a manual door release unit ( Type A ) to BS EN 54-11:2001 .
PANIC DEVICES
In places where people assemble , shops and commercial buildings , the doors on the escape routes from rooms with an occupant capacity of more than 60 should not be fitted with lock , latch or bolt fastenings ; alternatively they must be fitted with panic fastenings in accordance with BS EN 1125:1997 .
APPROVED DOCUMENT M : ACCESS TO AND USE OF BUILDINGS
Approved Document M covers the issue of accessibility with a number of
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references to hardware and security :
• Lever handles can be operated with one hand using a closed fist . They must be fitted between 900mm and 1100 mm above floor level .
• On entrances , handles and rails must be warm to touch .
• Visual contrast is important for almost all items from handles to switches , doors and frames to walls .
• Powered entrance doors are required on self-closing doors when it is not possible for a person to open the door from the closed position with a force of less than 30N .
• Reference is frequently made to BS 8300 , the Code of Practice which looks specifically at accessibility and which was revised in February 2017 .
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