Lars Boström, RiSE, at an online webinar, presented progress to finalise the new EU building façade fire test. Building facades with insulation material will make a major contribution to energy savings, with major investments planned with the EU Green Deal “Renovation Wave”. The fire test project was launched in February 2020 (see pinfa Newsletter n°115) and follows the report for the EU in 2018 (pinfa Newsletter n°95) recommending an approach based on the BS8414 and DIN 4102-20 large-scale façade tests, but taking the “alternative method” option with a secondary opening (simulating a window in a façade) and other improvements. The aim is to develop a Harmonised EU test, replacing the dozen different tests currently used in Europe. Current work aims to ensure repeatability, with round-robin tests between different laboratories, and to integrate an option to evaluate the floor-wall junction, and to ensure dialogue with regulators and industry towards acceptance of the new test method. Webinar discussion underlined that façade testing must be part of an overall building safety approach, including flexibility to assess new materials and façade systems (small scale testing plus fire engineering and modelling), training of architects and engineers to ensure appropriate implementation and verification and control of installation and maintenance.
Webinar with Lars Borström 13th October 2020 https://firesafeeurope.eu/webinar-assessment-of-the-fire-performance-of-facades-in-the-future/