Beyond compliance: how product testing is reshaping safety

Mike Vaczi, Technical Director at SOPREMA UK, discusses the changing face of product certification and asks what the future could hold. 

The construction industry stands at a crucial turning point in its approach to building safety and product verification. Recent years have seen unprecedented changes in how we evaluate and certify construction materials, driven by growing awareness of environmental imperatives and the Grenfell Tower tragedy. These shifts have fundamentally altered the responsibilities of manufacturers and specifiers in ensuring building safety and sustainability, and elevated the importance of thorough testing and independent verification.  

Navigating today’s certification landscape demands unprecedented levels of documentation and verification – requiring manufacturers to demonstrate not just compliance, but a comprehensive understanding of how their products perform in real-world applications. 

The complexity of modern construction materials and systems demands robust verification processes. Every component in a building must work in harmony with others while maintaining its performance characteristics throughout its service life. This complexity is multiplied when considering factors such as fire safety, thermal performance and environmental impact. 

Independent certification plays a crucial role in giving specifiers confidence in the products they choose. Industry research highlights that professional confidence in products is intrinsically linked to the availability of comprehensive, third-party verified test data, but among the key findings of the Hackitt Review was a fundamental weakness in product testing and certification. It found that many products and systems were not being properly tested, leading to inappropriate or unsafe materials being used on buildings. 

The importance of independent testing and certification is increasingly recognised by specifiers and is a key aspect of the Building Safety Act’s Golden Thread requirements, which demand accurate, trusted information throughout a building’s lifecycle. 

This becomes even more critical when considering high-risk buildings, which include structures at least 18 metres in height or seven storeys tall containing two or more residential units. For these buildings, the Act establishes stringent requirements for product information and verification, making robust testing and certification not just beneficial but essential for regulatory compliance. 

Product testing and certification 

When it comes to roofing, façade and insulation products, one of the most important elements is ensuring that products undergo testing as a system, with all components installed as they will be on a building. This allows the true fire performance to be established, as the interaction of different materials will influence the penetration and spread of flame. Any changes in the build-up, such as a different substrate or thickness of insulation, can alter how the system performs in the event of a fire. 

Documentation and transparency form another critical aspect of effective certification. The Code for Construction Product Information (CCPI) emphasises the importance of clear, accurate and unambiguous product information. This includes detailed specifications, installation guidelines and performance data that must be regularly updated and readily accessible to all stakeholders in the construction process. 

Equally critical is the competency of those involved in the testing and verification process. The Building Safety Act requires the clear demonstration of competence for all duty holders. This extends to those conducting and overseeing product testing to ensure that the certification process itself maintains the highest standards of professionalism.  

The Gateway process introduced by the Building Safety Act further emphasises the importance of thorough product testing and certification. Gateway 2 requires detailed technical and product safety information before any work can commence on site, making it essential for manufacturers to maintain comprehensive test data and certification documentation. 

SOPREMA, for example, has invested significant time and capital in third-party testing on all products within its appropriate systems. Currently, more than 200 system variations have been tested and passed to BRoofT4, the highest classification of fire performance. This test data has also been certified by the British Board of Agrément. 

For more than 100 years, SOPREMA has participated in the industry’s journey toward more rigorous standards, reflecting a broader recognition that transparency and accountability in construction products are fundamental to achieving both safety and sustainability goals. Successful implementation of these depends on close collaboration between manufacturers, certification bodies and industry stakeholders.  

www.soprema.co.uk