On Friday, September 13th, PIB Risk Management hosted a highly anticipated virtual webinar on the Building Safety Act, led by our esteemed construction expert, Paul Lennon (Head of Strategy). This informative session was designed to provide a thorough understanding of the Construction (Design and Management) (CDM) Regulations and how they integrate with the Building Safety Act to ensure safety and … Read More
Latest Work-Related Fatal Injury Statistics Published
The HSE has published the statistics for work-related fatal injuries for the period from April 2023 to March 2024. The total number of work-related fatalities for this period was 138; this is a slight increase of 3 fatalities from the previous period of 2022-2023. Overall, the statistics continue to follow trends from previous years, with the number of fatalities broadly … Read More
Green Wall Guidance
The Fire Protection Association has released a new set of guidelines, ‘Green and Living Walls as External Cladding: A Joint Guide to Managing Risk.’ As the title suggests, the guidance focusses on the risks associated with using plants as exterior cladding on the walls of buildings. In particular, the guidance considers the risks associated with fire, escape of water, and … Read More
Plans to Tackle Lithium Battery Fires Included in King’s Speech
A new bill that includes proposals to manage the risk of e-bike battery fires has been announced in the King’s Speech in July. The Product Safety and Metrology Bill is intended to support businesses and protect consumers through product regulation. It particularly aims to manage new technologies such as AI and deal with existing challenges associated with new technologies, such … Read More
Making Sprinklers Mandatory For New Care Homes
In 2023, we reported on a Government consultation covering proposals to introduce a requirement for all new care homes in England to be fitted with sprinkler systems. The consultation concluded last year, and following an announcement on 2nd September, the Government has now published amendments to Approved Document B: Fire Safety to introduce those changes. Most building work being carried … Read More
The Grenfell Tower Inquiry – What Next
The Grenfell Tower Inquiry published its final report on 4th September. This Phase 2 report is a substantial document of over 1500 pages split into 7 volumes, 14 parts, and 113 chapters. The report makes over 50 recommendations covering a wide range of areas. In this article, we look at some of the key recommendations of the report. One key … Read More
Re-visiting Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans for High Rise Buildings
Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (or PEEPs) are used to ensure that those who may need assistance can evacuate safely in an emergency, for example, persons with limited mobility, vision, or hearing. These are often used in situations such as healthcare premises, hotels, and residential educational establishments where people with restricted mobility may be present. In 2021, following on from the … Read More
Fire Safety in Mass Timber Buildings
Arup, a services firm that provides design and engineering advice, has released a guide on the fire-safe design of mass timber buildings. The guide provides in-depth detail on the fire safety considerations of using load-bearing mass timber construction. The document is aimed at fire safety engineers involved in designing and building mass timber buildings and seeks to answer a range … Read More
Road Haulage Association Publishes Direct Vision Standard Guidance
The RHA (Road Haulage Association) has published a set of guidelines produced by Loughborough University to help firms operating heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) in London understand new Direct Vision Standard (DVS) specifications brought in by Transport for London. HGVs with a gross vehicle weight of over 12 tonnes are required to hold a HGV Safety Permit before entering and operating … Read More
UK Workers at Risk from Pipeline Danger
Linewatch, a high pressure oil and gas pipeline safety awareness group, has released an infringement report for data collected throughout 2023. Linewatch focuses on preventing pipeline accidents by raising awareness and encouraging safe working practices. The report focuses on the number and cause of ‘infringements’ reported by members of Linewatch. Linewatch defines infringements broadly and includes anything from people working … Read More