In the face of long standing (and justifiable) concerns in relation to the fire safety of modern methods of construction ("MMC") structures, and following the appointment of the Building Research Establishment to review whether the guidance set out in Building Regulations Approved Document B (Fire Safety) is appropriate for MMC, the British Standards Institution has been commissioned by the Government to develop a new Publicly Available Specification ("PAS") for homes built using MMC.
The new PAS will set out the recommended technical standards when building homes using a range of MMC categories, as well as defining quality assurance and compliance processes for the MMC sector. Compliance with the new PAS will hopefully address the concerns funders, insurers and occupants of MMC developments, so that the benefits of MMC, in terms of quality and speed of delivery, can be brought to residential developments.
"The standard will provide essential requirements and guidance for best practice in the residential building sector and much needed assurance for the growing off-site sector." Anthony Burd, BSI