Caution on desktop assessment amendments that could see their usage increase

摘要

The government consultation seeks to address the concerns around using desktop assessments to test the fire performance of external cladding including systems using aluminium composite materials (ACM). FM Global believes that options proposed by the government to restrict desktop assessments do not address the fundamental issues with the accuracy of the tests and may actually result in a higher number of assessments being carried out. It is FM Global's opinion that if the government proposals are passed, it may send a signal to the industry that desktop assessments for ACM cladding are acceptable and could therefore encourage their usage. However, FM Global says there appears to be nothing in the proposals that would increase the evidence base that the assessments rely on.