Because fire resistance test reports relate only to the design configuration that was originally tested and because it is impractical to test all potential variations of fire resistant elements for all applications, professional solutions are often necessary to establish whether any variations to the tested product are acceptable. To cater for such situations, we can produce a Product Assessment Report.
A Product Assessment Report (also known as a Global Assessment Report) is a desk based study, applying expert knowledge to the results taken from a series of fire resistance tests of a particular design configuration to either extend the coverage of existing fire testing evidence to enable the development of new designs or design variations without the need for additional testing or conduct a design performance evaluation of an unusual or bespoke construction that may be impractical to test, conducted on a project specific basis (also known as a Job Specific Assessment).
Our team of experts produce Product Assessment Reports of fire resistance performance for Building Regulation compliance based on 35 years of experience and where appropriate, the agreed principles and resolutions of the Fire Test Study Group.
Assessments – External Walls for Buildings
Assessments provide a qualified judgement, based on a large body of testing evidence, constructional drawings, and detailed analysis, on whether a system or configuration will meet the criteria given in BR 135 were that external wall system be tested to BS 8414:2015. The Building Control Alliance (BCA) Technical Guidance Note 18 (first published in 2014) set out four options to show compliance with Section 12 of Approved Document B Volume 2 to the Building Regulations. Option 3 allowed a UK-accredited fire testing laboratory to conduct an assessment based on existing fire test data. This was introduced because the BCA had recognized that, due to the number of variants you can get within any complete system or configuration, it is virtually impossible to cover every aspect through testing.
Assessments allow the extension of the coverage of existing fire test evidence to enable the development of new designs or design variations without the need for additional testing or a design performance evaluation of an unusual or bespoke construction that may be impractical to test, conducted on a project specific basis (also known as a Job Specific Assessment).
Our team of experts produce assessments of external wall fire performance based on existing fire test evidence to BS 8414 and other fire tests, almost 40 years of experience and where appropriate, the agreed principles and resolutions of the Fire Test Study Group. Assessments of external cladding panels are not conducted unless there has been a relevant BS8414 test carried out on the insulation with a relevant cladding panel.
Note: Prior to making any decision on the façade facing and insulation combination to be used, we suggest that you seek guidance from the warranty holder for the building as to the combination they would be prepared to accept.
