Avatar photo

Contributor

Author Bio ▼

Adam Bannister is a contributor to IFSEC Global, having been in the role of Editor from 2014 through to November 2019. Adam also had stints as a journalist at cybersecurity publication, The Daily Swig, and as Managing Editor at Dynamis Online Media Group.
August 6, 2015

Download

Whitepaper: Enhancing security, resilience and efficiency across a range of industries

ASFP Members Urged to get Involved in Building Information Modelling (BIM) Development Process

BIMSpeakers from prominent construction associations have advised ASFP members to harness building information modelling (BIM) when incorporating fire protection measures into new buildings.

Addressing members at the ASFP’s AGM at Saddlers’ Hall in London Peter Caplehorn, deputy chief executive and policy director of the Construction Products Association, said BIM was an invaluable tool of collaboration between construction professionals and fire-safety experts.

Building information modelling (BIM) digitally maps the dimensions, layout and functional characteristics of buildings before construction.

“Building Information Modelling is an industry game-changer,” said Caplehorn. “It is not about 3D graphics, it is about data.

“It is about de-risking construction and is therefore about efficiency. BIM is about capturing and using data from the very start of the project to ‘in use’ and beyond.”

Anthony Burd, head of sector for construction at the British Standards Institution (BSI), explained how the process affected passive fire protection manufacturers and contractors.

“BIM is about getting the right information, to the right people at the right time and in the right form,” said Burd. “The operational benefits are that you get what you designed, using products as specified and understand how they should be maintained.”

Burd recommended the Construction Products Association’s guide ‘BIM for the terrified – a guide for manufacturers’; BS 1192:2007 and PAS 1192-2 from BSi; and the Construction Industry Council’s BIM Protocol for further reading.

Build UK

Suzannah Nichol, CEO of the National Specialist Contractors Council (NSCC), discussed the formation of Build UK, a new body emerging from the merger of the NSCC and UK Contractors Group (UKCG).

Bringing together the industry’s largest main contractors and nearly 40 leading trade associations representing over 11,500 specialist contractors, the organisation would represent the entire contracting supply chain, said Nichol, providing a “strong collective voice from the contracting supply chain, offering influential and dynamic leadership, and creating the conditions for supply chains to thrive.”

Reflecting on the growing demand for passive fire protection projected by the organisation’s research, ASFP Vice Chairman Carl Atkinson – speaking on behalf of ASFP Chairman Stuart Holmes – said:

“The PFP market is now showing good signs of recovery combined with an increasing knowledge and awareness of requirements from clients and builders.  We also see more installers becoming qualified and a continued product investment from suppliers.”

Membership growth

ASFP CEO Wilf Butcher noted that membership was growing both in the UK and Ireland, with the ASFP Passive Fire Protection Zone at FIREX International 2015, which was supported by some 17 exhibiting members, was instrumental in raising the organisation’s profile.

“I think it fair to state that this Association has matured into a leading voice on the subject of passive fire protection, within the fire community at large, the breath of the built environment and progressively within the international arena,” he told members.

Reporting that several students had now successfully completed the ASFP’s Passive Fire Protection (PFP) Awareness Training Programme Butcher recommended that it become a core foundation course for anyone seeking an understanding of passive fire protection.

FPA commercial director Howard Passey explained that the scheme, developed in collaboration with CITB and the Fire Protection Association, aims to improve the skills of contractors and improve the knowledge base of those involved in the design, supply, inspection and maintenance of passive fire protection. He provided an overview of the scheme, explaining that it consists of a core module followed by a range of specialist pathway programmes.

Subscribe to the IFSEC Insider weekly newsletters

Enjoy the latest fire and security news, updates and expert opinions sent straight to your inbox with IFSEC Insider's essential weekly newsletters. Subscribe today to make sure you're never left behind by the fast-evolving industry landscape.

Sign up now!

man reading a tablet, probably the IFSEC Global newsletter

Related Topics

Subscribe
Notify of
guest
1 Comment
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
LeoVorostov
May 9, 2016 6:25 pm

The http://contractorsischool.com/contractors-license/general-building-contractors-license.php holders that will potentially be hired for a certain project should
be given say in their modeling phase. They have a great deal of experience in
their field of work and their suggestions can be of great value.