TICA welcomes “greater clarity” introduced by BS 5422 revisions

According to the TICA, the revision by the British Standards Institution (BSI) brings “much needed clarity” regarding the minimum reaction to fire standards for pipe and duct insulation.

BS 5422:2023 also includes tables of minimum insulation thickness for pipe and duct insulation applications including refrigeration, air conditioning, heating and domestic hot and cold applications.

A large number of tables covering enhanced insulation thickness and district heating thicknesses have been added to the standard.

More clarity

Chris Ridge (pictured), technical policy manager at the TICA, stated: “The updated standards provide more clarity, while the additional tables afford greater optionality for the specifier. While the number of tables has increased, there has been an attempt to simplify the reading of them. For example, higher thermal conductivity values for materials no longer supplied or rarely used have been removed.”

Ridge continued: “Reaction to fire is now defined within this publication in terms of Euroclass, which yields a more comprehensive and clear definition of the behaviour of materials exposed to fire. It also states a minimum performance of Euroclass C-s3, d2 in dwelling applications and B-s3, d2 in non-dwelling applications. Hopefully, this will serve to reinforce good practice.”

Rethink on tables

That said, Ridge has called for a rethink on the sheer number of low temperature heating and domestic hot water tables included in the new standard, with ten separate tables for low temperature heating services alone.

He added: “This could well prove a challenge for those interpretating specifications. We should also consider that, while the ‘base standard’ tables for heating and hot water services are still included in the new version of the standard, they no longer represent Best Practice from a thermal insulation specification point of view.”

*BS 5422:2023 is available for purchase from the BSI and can be accessed by TICA contracting members via the organisation’s standards portal