Salus Appointed as Approved Inspector on FLYBE £24 million training academy.

The building, which is being designed and built by Rok includes a 25-classroom academy and will house up to four flight simulators and an apprentice workshop, enabling Flybe to offer training to other airlines and companies. It will be built on a 12-hectare site off Long Lane, Exeter, near the airport industrial estate.
Building work on the scheme is now underway with an expected completion date of next March..
Another great example of us delivering our expertise with value engineering and top quality Building Control.

Building Regulation Changes – October 2010, Parts L, F and J.

Housing and Planning Minister John Healey announced on the 12th March 2010, The Statutory Instrument amending Parts L, F and J of the building regulations (Conservation of fuel and power, Means of ventilation and Combustion appliances and fuel storage systems) was laid today and the regulations take effect from October 2010.
Revisions to the relevant supporting technical guidance (Approved Documents and Compliance Guides) will be made available shortly, together with a summary of responses of last year's consultations on Parts L, F and J.
There will also be changes to the Building Regulations Competent Persons Schemes (CPSs) and minor technical amendments to Part G of the Building Regulations. The Part G and CPS amendments will take effect on 6 April 2010 and Approved Document G will be published today.

Further details are available on our latest news area of our website.

DCLG Confirms introduction of Structural Eurocodes

The DCLG was now formally announced a suite of eurocodes to replace the British Standard versions relating to Structural design. They are intended to remove potential barriers to trade where differing design standards exist. There are ten Eurocodes, made up of 58 parts that are being adopted by all EU Member states.. The corresponding British Standards will be withdrawn on 31st March 2010.
DCLG, also announces proposed changes to the Approved Documents, Parts A (Structure) and C (Site preparation, etc) will be part of their review cycle and is expected to be in 2013..This is to meet their earlier announcement that they will reduce the Building Regulation changes to one every three years and amend Parts normally no more than once every six years.

DCLG issues statement on New Part G.

Tracy Cull, Head of Building Control System Policy at DCLG this week issued a statement to confirm that the New Part G will indeed come into force on the 6th April 2010 despite the fact that the rewording has yet to be resolved with Ministers’ sign off. They therefore acknowledge that there is to be a very short timescale between the publication and the implementation of Part G.

Please remember there are transitional arrangements which permit the use of the current Part G provided the Initial notice has been served and a plan certificate has been issued to cover these elements of works. The works must also commence within 12 months to adopt the current guidance.

Clearly this is unfortunate however the transitional arrangements offer some breathing space if developers act now!

Salus Tech News II - Changes to Code of Practise on Design of buildings.

Legislation in the UK rightly requires buildings to be accessible; March 2009 saw the launch of the latest BS 8300, Design of buildings and their approaches to meet the needs of disabled people – Code of practice, an update of the 2001 version.

Supported by contemporary research, it signals an evolution of thought and approach on inclusive access. It still offers recommended prescriptive solutions in a climate of policy objectives and risk appraisal.

For designers, however, it presents a problem when used alongside Approved Document M which cites the 2001 version (and will do for some while to come): which document takes precedence? The answer may seem obvious: ‘the latest BS’, however, the Approved Document is current and there is no obligation to follow the new standard in order to meet the functional requirements of the Building Regulations.

However, it is a sure thing that there will be changes to the Approved Documents in the next few years.

Building Control Performance Standards

In 2006 the Department of Communities and Local Government, along with the Construction Industry Council and the Association of Corporate Approved Inspectors introduced performance standards which all building control providers must record and monitor.

The data is collected in relation to their performance both in terms of statistical information and by receiving feedback from their clients and the government bodies with whom they have consulted.

Find out more here

CPD Road shows

This year we have presented numerous topical issues relating to Building Regulations and Fire Safety. We recognize that by keeping our new or potential clients informed gives them the edge in an ever changing world of building regulation and associated legislation...If you would like Salus to come and present a CPD topic please contact one of our Regional Offices and we can set a date. Most presentations are at lunchtimes but can be at other times.

Current Topics are:

New BS9999 – Fire Safety, A code of practice that replaces the BB5588 Series and sets an intermediate approach between going beyond Approved Document B before complex fire engineering.

New BS8300 – Deign code of practice to meet the needs of Disabled ..This new british standard updates the principles of the current part M and sets out some new measures that may become part of future changes to the next Part M.

Proposed Changes to Part F and Part L - Following the consultations on these proposed new approved documents, we have highlighted some matters that are being considered for these next new Approved Documents.

We continually encourage CPD as part of our role and feel that by making this a two way process we develop unique relationships that deliver a first class Building Control Approved Inspector service to our clients.

If you would like Salus to come and present a CPD topic please contact one of our Regional Offices and we can set a date. Most presentations are at lunchtimes but can be at other times.