Changes made to Scottish Building Standards

Changes have now been made to sections 2 (Structures), 3 (Fire), 4 (environment), 5 (Safety) and 7 (Sustainability) of the Technical Handbooks and these come into force on 1 October 2015.  Also, the earlier changes made to section 6 (Energy) have now been merged into the latest edition of the Technical Handbooks. The Domestic Handbook can be downloaded here, and the Non-domestic Handbook can be downloaded here.

A copy of the summary of changes to the 2015 Handbooks can be downloaded here. Changes to note in the Domestic Handbook are in section 3.14.6 where guidance on trickle ventilators has been updated and sections added on efficiency.  There has been a minor update to section 4.13.4 looking at the Security of Doors and windows to reflect British Standards and some adjustments in Section 7 in terms of overall CO2 emissions related to silver and gold buildings.  Changes to Section 7 are also reflected in the Non-domestic Handbook. 

The BWF responded to the initial consultation on the changes and we feel that the amendments are unlikely to have any significant detrimental effect on joinery manufacturers or installers. If any BWF member feels that they are likely to be affected by the changes or wishes to discuss the finer details, please call Kevin Underwood on 0844 209 2614 or e-mail Kevin.underwood@bwf.org.uk