Spec Finish

6 www.thefis.org NEWS The Joint Code of Practice on the Protection from Fire of Construction Sites and Buildings Undergoing Renovation The Joint Code of Practice for Fire Prevention on Construction Sites was first published in 1992 with the objective of preventing fires on construction sites. Now in its 10th edition, the code has been revised and re-issued to ensure it continues to address long-standing risks such as hot work and reflects changes in standards, practice and the more prevalent use of modern materials and construction methods. Excerpt from the Code of Practice: “Every year there are numerous major fires on construction sites and in buildings undergoing refurbishment. All have serious consequences: people are killed and injured; buildings, including those of historic interest, are destroyed. Plant and equipment are damaged, work is held up and completion dates are not met. The objective of this Code is the prevention of fires on construction sites. The majority of fires can be prevented by designing out risks, taking simple precautions and by adopting safe working practices. All parties involved must work together to ensure that adequate detection and prevention measures are incorporated during the design and contract planning stages; and that the work on site is undertaken to the highest standard of fire safety, thereby affording the maximum level of protection to the building and its occupants.” https://tinyurl.com/5n8jpydy BSI identifies product traceability service indicates a safer, better-built environment BSI Identify is an innovative response to Dame Judith Hackitt’s call for the creation of a consistent labelling and traceability system pertaining to a building’s assets, thus providing a clear accountability trail to reduce risk and improve safety. Since BSI’s creation of the service, which provides a consistent approach to the identification of construction products, it’s highlighted a disconnect throughout the building supply chain in relation to a crucial aspect of the construction process: specification. It’s an issue that can be overcome with the provision of unambiguous, persistent product information, which is BSI Identify’s primary asset. The systemnot only supports the industry as it continues to digitise and address critical safety issues, the additional clarity it brings to the origin and composition of materials that make-up buildings is designed to improve the connective function of the entire supply chain. In development since 2015, BSI Identify provides manufacturers with a Universal Persistent IDNumber (UPIN). This is designed to contain a range of basic information which once allocated to a product, allows installers, specifiers and the like immediate access to details such as accreditations, data sheets or user guides via a mobile phone or laptop. With Identify, BSI provides and stores the technology, themanufacturer manages the product information. Hence, via the UPIN, manufacturers can update their product’s data when necessary, ensuring supply chain users canmake decisions based on the very latest information. This provides greater assurance for manufacturers that their products are being used andmaintained correctly. Additionally, the improved traceability Identify offers increases the likelihood of amanufacturer’s product being made specification-safe. This is due to the identification process helping alleviate the practice of specified products being swapped out for cheaper alternatives. Product traceability is a reputational enhancer, providingmanufacturers with a USP and differentiation from competitors. It also aligns adopters to best practice, proving their commitment to high building standards. Such characteristics are essential to instilling trust in a building product provider, helping define them as an industry ‘go-to’ for solutions containing digitally hallmarked and easily accessed data. When product ID services such as BSI Identify become further established as building best practice, there will be fewer hiding places for builders more concerned with the bottom line than constructing to the requisite standard. It’s an outcome that will enhance the emergence of a safer, better-built environment. https://identify.bsigroup.com