COMMERCIAL SAFETY & SECURITY
Building Safety Act updates to the Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order 2005
» ASSA ABLOY OPENING SOLUTIONS UK & Ireland is raising awareness of recent changes made to the Regulatory Reform ( Fire Safety ) Order 2005 ( FSO ) to improve fire safety in buildings , triggered by Section 156 of the Building Safety Act 2022 .
These improvements came into effect on 1st October 2023 , and form Phase 3 of the Home Office ’ s fire safety reform programme , building on Phase 1 ( the Fire Safety Act 2021 ) and Phase 2 ( the Fire Safety ( England ) Regulations 2022 ).
This phase 3 further strengthens fire safety in all FSO regulated premises by increasing requirements in relation to the recording and sharing of fire safety information to create a continual record throughout a building ’ s lifespan .
Other updates include improving cooperation and coordination between responsible persons , ensuring residents have access to comprehensive information about fire safety in their building , and making it easier for enforcement authorities to act against non-compliance .
The Home Office has published three new fire safety guides that are intended to replace the previous guide to making premises safe from fire . The fire risk assessment checklist has also been updated to enable responsible individuals understand and meet the new requirements .
Brian Sofley , Managing Director at ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions , commented : “ We fully support the Building Safety Act , and welcome the new updates to the Fire Safety Order .
“ We are seeing a critical need for the recording and sharing of fire safety information , and a way to record and continuously update vital information about a building throughout its lifespan . “ We should be managing buildings as holistic systems and allowing people to use information to design , construct and operate their buildings safely and effectively .
“ This ‘ golden thread ’ approach is the key to making buildings safer and keeping them safe for the future , as outlined in the Hackitt report . We now have so many digital tools at our disposal such as Building Information Modelling ( BIM ), utilising these will help us record and share information , and keep it up to date to enable greater transparency and safer environments .”
BIM allows building elements such as doorsets to be managed through a single platform - from specification to installation and ongoing inspection . For example , ASSA ABLOY ’ s Openings Studio™ BIM application integrates with design software to create and visualise openings for complete door , frame and hardware schedules and specifications .
This enables seamless extraction of door design intent and all relevant interfaces to assist fabricators to develop complete
door requirements that meet building regulations .
Product information , performance data and budget information are captured within the
BIM design environment .
Through real time , collaborative working , these designs can be validated for compliance , functional performance , and aesthetics plus presented as 3D views that can be fully re-integrated into the overall project design .
Ongoing inspections can also be captured based on the specific details of each door included in the schedule . This report validates if a door has remained compliant , or identifies what elements need to be corrected or replaced to return the product to the standard required , providing full traceability and ownership of all changes at all stages .
Brian adds : “ BIM applications can help to lock in positive behaviours from the very start of a project , and support an increase in trust and confidence that safety is paramount throughout a building ’ s specification , construction and maintenance .
“ Only by working collaboratively will we see a step change in the industry to raise standards - not only in the construction of buildings to make them safer , but also ensuring they are continually assessed and maintained to uphold compliance .”
www . assaabloyopeningsolutions . co . uk / specification
DECEMBER 2023
37 locksmithjournal . co . uk