Need to know

Flood Guide

A guide advising industry on how to reduce damage to new buildings in flood risk areas has been published by Communities and Local Government, Defra and the Environment Agency. The government says that the guide, Improving the Flood Performance of New Buildings: Flood Resilient Construction, is a precursor to new Building Regulations on flood resilience which will be introduced in the future.

Download the guide at:

www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/br/flood_performance.pdf

Smoking stubbed out

The Health Act 2006 comes into force in England this year at 6am on 1 July, requiring virtually all enclosed public places and workplaces in England to be smoke free. Similar smoke free laws were introduced in Wales on 2 April and in Northern Ireland on 30 April. The purpose of the legislation is to protect employees and the public from the effects of passive smoking.

CABE acts on public spaces

The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) has published a report, Living With Risk: Promoting Better Public Space Design,

a study of 10 public space projects across England. CABE warns that streets and public spaces are in danger of becoming bland and standardised due to oversensitivity to risk, arising from a perception of a rampant compensation culture and restrictive interpretations of health and safety regulations.

www.cabe.org.uk

Tolerance questions answered

How much can a steel frame be out of plumb? What are the expected variations of a precast concrete panel? What is required to successfully detail finish materials on masonry? If these are questions that keep you awake at night, you may find relief in the Handbook of Construction Tolerances.

Find an index of this handbook at:

www.researchandmarkets.com/product/4b6bd9/handbook_of_construction_tolerances_2nd

www.brebookshop.co.uk

Concrete guidance

All you need to know about cracking in early-age concrete is contained in Early-Age Thermal Crack Control in Concrete from CIRIA. It shows how to calculate the risk of cracking and ways to reduce the risk, such as mix design, use of insulation and placement of movement joints.

www.ciriabooks.com