In any construction project, having an early idea of likely material specifications is helpful to avoid last minute shocks and surprises. It’s particularly relevant to rooflights and roof windows, though, because designing a healthy building means not taking quoted U-values at face value. The composition of roof glazing units – including overall size, relative areas… Read more
Part K of the Building Regulations defines what requirements must be met in order to prevent injuries due to falls, collisions and impacts. While Part K deals with safety around a variety of building components, if you’re specifying an access rooflight, it will be of particular interest because of its focus on stairs. Stairs can… Read more
When it comes to specifying roof access, there are a lot of things to consider, from how often roof access will be needed, through to the appearance and maintenance requirements of the finished system. Rooflights are an excellent option, thanks to their attractive, space saving design and ease of use. They’re also suitable for a… Read more
LPS 2081 Issue 1:2015 is one of the standards to which windows and other building components must be designed and tested, in order to satisfy the requirements of Building Regulations Part Q. LPS 2081 specifically addresses the ability of building products to resist casual intruders who attempt ‘stealth’ attacks to gain entry. These types of… Read more
To meet the requirements of Building Regulations Part Q, rooflights need to be designed, manufactured and tested to one of the following standards: PAS 24:2012 STS 202 Issue 3:2011 LPS 1175 Issue 7:2010 security rating 1 LPS 2081 Issue 1:2015 security rating A PAS 24:2012 is referenced as being the preferred standard. Part Q states… Read more
LPS 2081 Issue 1 : 2015 security rating A is the latest standard to be published; this standard is similar to LPS1175 but specifically addresses resistance to opportunist intruders attempting ‘stealth’ attacks to gain entry, which are often carried out in residential areas. What are stealth attacks? Stealth is where the burglar wants to avoid… Read more
LPS Loss Prevention Standards are issued by the Loss Prevention Certification Board, an independent third-party service provided by the Building Research Establishment (BRE). LPS 1175 and security performance LPS 1175 Issue 7 : 2010 security rating 1 sets out the testing procedures needed to meet enhanced security performance requirements of building components, strong points, security… Read more
The technical specification involves a variation of tests carried out to one of six resistance classes, which equate to different lengths of attack and types of tools. BR1 and BR2 address the level of attack normally associated with casual or opportunist burglars, being loosely based on low risk domestic properties. BR3 and BR4 address the… Read more
STS stands for Security Technical Specification and the issue was published under the ‘Certisecure’ brand by Warrington Certification Ltd. STS204 Issue 3 : 2012 defines the requirements for windows tested in accordance with PAS 24 : 2012 and BS 6375. STS204 and security performance STS 204 Issue 3 : 2012 covers both the security criteria… Read more
PAS 24 : 2012, published by the British Standards Institute, provides a method for testing and assessing the enhanced security performance requirements of external doorsets and windows in the UK. The 2012 version supersedes PAS 24 : 2007+A2 : 2011 and BS 7950 : 1997. Approved Document Q – Security in Dwellings PAS 24 :… Read more
How secure are rooflights? One of the questions we often get asked when architects and their clients are looking to specify glass rooflights for a project is ‘how secure are the rooflights?’ Of course, this is not a simple question to answer, as it will depend on a wide range of factors including the materials… Read more
So far we have summarised the recent changes to Building Regulations Part Q and examined which standard tests are most relevant for fixed glass rooflights, but what about opening rooflights – how do these stand up during an attack test? Are opening rooflights secure? Opening rooflights are sometimes considered less secure than fixed because of… Read more
