The Building Safety Bill: How it affects you and what is Halspan doing to help?

One of the most eagerly anticipated reforms of recent times, the Building Safety Bill is a key component of what’s been described as “the biggest improvements to building safety in nearly 40 years”. Though not welcomed by everybody, with its associated costs and criminal liability element, Halspan is fully behind the Bill’s impending improvements, driven by our own commitment to safety and quality.

Why is the Building Safety Bill being introduced?

Four years in the making, the Building Safety Bill is being introduced in the wake of 2017’s Grenfell Tower tragedy. One of the UK’s worst modern disasters, Grenfell highlighted the need for building safety reform, prompting the Government to commission a review of the regulatory regime: Dame Judith Hackitt’s Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety, which found the current system to be not fit for purpose.

As well as highlighting the many shortfalls, the Hackitt Review made several recommendations which provide the basis of the new regime now being introduced by the Building Safety Bill – a strengthened regulatory regime for high-rise residential and other in-scope buildings, improving accountability, risk-management and assurance.

How will the Building Safety Bill impact those involved in the design, development, construction and management of in-scope buildings?

Along with other improvements, including the creation of a Building Safety Regulator within the Health and Safety Executive, appointment of ‘Accountable Persons’, amendments to the Defective Premises Act 1972 and better regulation of construction products, the Building Safety Bill will place duties on those who procure, plan, manage and undertake building work.

These ‘dutyholders’, as they’re called, will be required to work together to actively consider and manage building safety risks throughout the commissioning, design and construction process. Additionally, they will need to have systems in place to ensure that building work, including design work, complies with all relevant building regulations.

Raising the bar for the industry

Developed in response to the Building a Safer Future review and aligned with the Building Safety Bill’s proposed reforms, Halspan has developed a new quality assurance scheme, called Halspan® Verified, which will drive compliance, provide peace of mind and, ultimately, improve building safety.

Answering Government’s call for a more joined-up approach to regulatory compliance, in which all the partners in a supply chain take accountability (the so-called ‘golden thread’) for improved building safety, Halspan® Verified ensures that every stage in the door supply chain is compliant – from production, testing and specification to fabrication, installation, inspection and ongoing maintenance.

A first for the industry, Halspan® Verified provides:

• complete system of quality  essential door components, all manufactured to the highest standards and tested together to ensure compliance

• wide choice of door configuration options

• customised specifications

• expert guidance on how to fabricate doors, and install and maintain doorsets and door assemblies correctly, in a way that ensures compliance

• real time verification of fabrication, installation, maintenance and inspection.

Evidence-based reporting and digital record-keeping

One of the new Building Safety Regulator’s proposed responsibilities will be to ensure that new and existing regulations are complied with.

To facilitate this, the Building Safety Bill requires information relating to a building and its construction, including materials, maintenance logs and inspection reports, to be stored digitally.

The simple way to manage fire safety assets and maintain compliance

Developed for use with the Halspan®Verified quality assurance scheme but equally effective as a stand-alone asset management tool, Halspan®Tracker provides a simple way for building owners and facility managers to keep track of crucial door and other fire safety assets and maintain compliance.

How it works:

1. Firstly, a building’s door systems and other fire safety assets are fitted with a unique Halspan® Smart Tag. Ensuring the asset is identifiable throughout its service life.

2. Next, a record of each Smart Tag is created on the Halspan® Tracker online asset management system. This record is updated whenever the item is inspected or maintenance work is carried out, building up a complete picture of the asset’s quality assurance journey, from cradle to grave.

3. Scanning a Smart Tag using the Halspan® Tracker app on a Smartphone or tablet identifies the particular asset and provides access to its quality assurance record.

4. Using the Halspan® Tracker system, all of a building’s fire door quality assurance data can be viewed in one place, making it easy to monitor and maintain compliance.

For building owners, the Halspan® Tracker provides a complete record of inspection and maintenance, helping to ensure compliance and providing peace of mind – while for facility managers, it offers a better way of managing fire safety assets and maintaining compliance.

Competence requirements

Having systems and processes in place is one thing; having the skills necessary to use them is another entirely. To ensure safe and high-quality buildings, the Government wants everyone involved in a project throughout a building’s lifecycle to be competent to do their job properly and in compliance with Building Regulations. The Building Safety Regulator will therefore work to ensure there is an appropriate level of competence across the sector.

Here too, Halspan is playing a part.

Specialist training from industry experts

Specialist training for the door supply chain is available through the Halspan® Tractus training programme, which has been developed specifically for this purpose.

As well as demonstrating how to fabricate doors, and install and maintain doorsets and door assemblies in a way that ensures compliance, the programme offers expert advice on how to specify the right Halspan® Verified products and use Halspan® Tracker, with more exciting news on inspection in the pipeline.

For more information, email info@halspan.com, call +44 (0)3300 563836 or visit www.halspan.com where you can read more about Halspan® Verified, Halspan® Tracker and how else we’re supporting the Government’s welcome reforms of the building safety system.