Rutland - Knowledge Hub Series: Webinar - If BS 476 is removed from Approved Document B

Without any fanfare, the government made an announcement just before Christmas of real significance to the construction industry – the proposal to axe BS 476 from the updated Approved Document B and replace it in all legislation with its European counterpart, BS EN 1634. It’s a proposal that has significant implications for many supply chains.

In this webinar, we take a look at what lies behind this major move – the history of the two standards and why the government is proposing the change, the implications of the changes for the fire door industry, and the key areas to pay attention to during the period of change to ensure that life safety is maintained.

Hosts: Neil Smith and Ben Bygrave (Rutland UK)
Panelists: Chris Waterman (Public Policy Advisor), Jerry Quayle (Specialist Consultant: Passive fire resistance), Richard Kowalski (Technical Manager, Stairways Group), Russell Day (CEO, ACDM)

Useful links:

[RutlandDoorControls]

💬 In answer to Chris Waterman's idea, 'How in this digital age there should be a quick way to replace BS476 in certification with EN 1634?', our answer to this is "definitely not possible". You cannot elevate BS 476 testing to EN 1634-1. Each application tested to BS 476 requires completely new testing to the European EN 1634, hence the concern from the industry that it will be costing ballpark £10k each test... and the rest, if you include admin and manufacturing costs. And that's for every fire safety product detail affected. Unfortunately, it is not a simple, quick, low-cost 'search and replace' digital world exercise.