Guide to Products Critical to Safe Construction published

The new document includes examples and Case Studies to signpost industry Best Practice (such as the Code for Construction Product Information).  

Paul Nash, chair of the CIOB’s Quality Implementation Group, said: “The Public Inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire exposed a construction product regulatory regime that was failing to ensure the products used in buildings, whether separately or as part of a system, were safe.”   

Nash continued: “Following on from the findings of the Building a Safer Future report and the Independent Review of Product Testing and Certification, the Public Inquiry recommended that further action was needed to better regulate the manufacturing, testing and supply of products in the UK.”  

Further, Nash observed: “In February this year, the Government published a Construction Product Reform Green Paper that sets out its proposals to deliver a system that guarantees safe products and that they will be safely used.”

Safety first   

It’s against this backdrop that the CIOB, together with other professional bodies, has developed the Guide to Products Critical to Safe Construction to ensure the buildings created, and the products used in those buildings, are safe for those who use them, both now and in the future.

The Guide to Products Critical to Safe Construction was published in collaboration with the Construction Products Association, the Code for Construction Product Information, the Institution of Structural Engineers and Royal Institute of British Architects.

Duncan Johnson, deputy director for construction products regulation at the Office for Product Safety and Standards, affirmed: “I welcome the collaborative efforts behind this document, which brings together expertise from across the built environment sector to support safe and compliant construction, underpinned by clarity and consistency in product information. It contributes to raising standards and improving safety across the construction industry.”