{"id":778515,"date":"2025-03-17T08:45:17","date_gmt":"2025-03-17T08:45:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/?p=778515"},"modified":"2025-03-17T09:05:25","modified_gmt":"2025-03-17T09:05:25","slug":"addressing-flaws-in-the-testing-regime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/addressing-flaws-in-the-testing-regime","title":{"rendered":"The Regs: Addressing flaws in the testing regime"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last month, deputy prime minister Angela Rayner announced that the government was accepting all of the recommendations of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Final Report<\/a>. These included addressing fundamental flaws in the testing and product certification process.<\/span><\/p>\n

Since the Grenfell tragedy in 2017, the government has banned combustible cladding on high-rise buildings and established new regulatory bodies. But substantial reforms are still needed to ensure the safety of construction products, their proper use and adequate oversight.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Failure of the building control certification schemes<\/span><\/h2>\n

Currently, a significant portion of construction products remains unregulated. The Morrell-Day Review estimated that two-thirds of products on the market fall outside existing regulations, leaving an estimated 20-30,000 products unregulated. These can and are being used in new builds and renovations. In fact, many products enter the market based on technical specifications that do not necessarily translate to real-world performance, and are backed by claims or even third-party certificates that are frankly misleading at best.<\/span><\/p>\n

While many factors led to the widespread inclusion of combustible materials on high-rise residential blocks, one of those was the role of organisations certifying products.<\/span><\/p>\n

Last September the prime minister repeated the concerns of inquiry chair Martin Moore-Bick about product claims and the testing regime. Of those who made and sold the rainscreen cladding panels and insulation products, he said: \u2018They engaged in deliberate and sustained strategies to manipulate the testing process, misrepresent test data and mislead the market.\u2019\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

But he also drew specific criticism of \u2018a complete failure on the part of Local Authority Building Control [LABC] over a number of years to take basic steps to ensure that the certificates it issued were technically accurate\u2019.<\/span><\/p>\n

Historically, building inspectors were often inconsistent in their acceptance of products. To address this issue, local authority building inspectors developed a formal system of product certification known as the Type Approval scheme administered by LABC (the member organisation representing local authorities) on behalf of its members.<\/span><\/p>\n

The purpose of the scheme was to assess and verify the compliance of construction products or systems with the Building Regulations and Approved Documents. This was seen as a way to assist building inspectors making decisions on specific products, to promote technical consistency and to make it easier for applicants to demonstrate compliance with the Building Regulations.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, the inquiry found that while the aims were laudable, the certification process fell short of the sort of robust checking expected.<\/span><\/p>\n

The certificate for Kingspan\u2019s K15 insulation product was especially troublesome. It became apparent that the building inspector responsible for the product assessment and certification was selected not for any reasons of technical expertise, but simply due to his proximity to Kingspan\u2019s Pembridge site. The inspector himself was reluctant to undertake the assessment of K15, feeling he lacked the necessary training.<\/span><\/p>\n

When the certificate was produced, it contained the statement that K15 could be considered a material of limited combustibility \u2013 which was simply untrue.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The new regime<\/span><\/h2>\n

The Construction Products Reform Green Paper 2025 proposes addressing this sort of misleading certification through mandatory risk assessments by manufacturers before products are marketed, closing regulatory loopholes and ensuring safety-critical products are subject to additional scrutiny.<\/span><\/p>\n

As a result, third-party certification bodies must in future adhere to rigorous, standardised requirements to ensure transparency and impartiality. The national regulator will oversee the role of conformity assessment bodies through audits, inspections, and whistleblower protections.<\/span><\/p>\n

In future all construction products must feature labelling and safety information that is easily understandable by professionals and consumers alike, improving informed decision-making. Manufacturers must maintain and submit full test data to the regulator, ensuring compliance with safety standards and preventing misleading marketing.<\/span><\/p>\n

The government is also committed to the use of technology to improve transparency, and proposes a centralised database that will provide full access to product test results, certificates of compliance and relevant research, enhancing access to safety data. The Cladding Materials Library at the University of Queensland serves as a model for this approach.<\/span><\/p>\n

We also expect to see the introduction of digital product passports. These will include essential safety and composition details for each product, allowing instant verification and supply chain tracking. Strengthening traceability will enhance accountability and enable early detection of safety concerns.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Green Paper is open for comment until 21 May. Architects are invited to read and respond to the report to shape the future framework for construction products.<\/span><\/p>\n

Geoff Wilkinson is managing director of Wilkinson Constructions Consultants<\/a> and a Class 3G and 3H registered building inspector.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last month, deputy prime minister Angela Rayner announced that the government was accepting all of the recommendations of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Final Report. These included addressing fundamental flaws in the testing and product certification process. Since the Grenfell tragedy in 2017, the government has banned combustible cladding on high-rise buildings and established new regulatory …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":80389,"featured_media":778519,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_oasis_is_in_workflow":0,"_oasis_original":0,"ep_exclude_from_search":false},"categories":[745],"tags":[2746,76153,3311],"yoast_head":"\nThe Regs: Addressing flaws in the testing regime<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Geoff Wilkinson looks at the failures of product certification and the government\u2019s proposals for change\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/addressing-flaws-in-the-testing-regime\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" 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