Advice for Building Owners of Multi-storey, Multi-occupied Residential Buildings Since the tragedy at Grenfell Tower, the government’s Building Safety Programme has predominantly focused on identifying and advising on short-term interim and remedial measures for existing high-rise residential buildings with Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) cladding, while developing wider reforms for...
Form EWS1: External Wall Fire Review On 17th December, The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), The Building Societies Association (BSA), and UK Finance have agreed a new industry-wide valuation process which will help people buy and sell homes and re-mortgage in buildings above 18 metres...
Safety Bulletin – Product Recall – Whirlpool Washing Machines Introduction This safety bulletin highlights a new product recall in relation to washing machines manufactured by Whirlpool. Issue Fire risk due to overheating of the door lock mechanism during the washing process. Action by the Office for Product...
Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 1 Report Summary of Recommendations for Property Managers Phil Jones, Technical Director Background Cause and Origin It has now been established that the fire was started by an electrical fault in a large fridge-freezer in the kitchen of Flat 16. The...
Tumble Dryer Fire – Remain Alert! We thought we would share the news of an incident which last week affected Terry Jones, one of Quantum’s Principal Fire Consultants. These are his words: “I received a call from my daughter at around 2pm on Monday. She was...
Advice Note on Use of High Pressure Laminate Panels in External Wall Systems We are republishing this advice in light of the fire in student flats over the weekend. This Advice Note is written for building owners of residential buildings of 18m or more, although the principles may also apply to other...
Do Property Managers Need to Improve Their Fire Safety Knowledge? This was the question which formed the basis of a recent survey we completed. We employ a team of over 40 fire risk assessors, who, in the previous 12 months, completed 4500 nationwide fire risk assessments in commercial and residential...
Advice Note on Use of High Pressure Laminate Panels in External Wall Systems Published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government This Advice Note is written for building owners of residential buildings of 18m or more, although the principles may also apply to other building types. Quantum’s Advice In practice,...
Electric gate firm fined after boy fatally crushed An electric gate company has been fined after a six-year-old boy was fatally crushed whilst playing on a sliding gate installed by the company. Leeds Crown Court was told how, on 31 October 2015, the boy was playing with friends...
Toddler struck on the head by falling plank in ‘horrendous’ incident A self-employed builder, Grzegorz Glowacki, has been handed a suspended prison sentence after a three-year-old girl in a pushchair was hit on the head by a falling timber plank in Brighton. The child sustained life-changing injuries after the piece of...