VOICES | HYWEL DAVIES Transition time The property sector is on the cusp of a tsunami of change with building safety reforms, net zero carbon transition and the renewed focus on damp and mould in social housing. Hywel Davies considers the implications A s you read this column, the Building Safety Regulator is on the brink of coming into operation, along with the reforms under the Building Safety Act. The new register of higher-risk buildings (HRBs) opens on 1 April and all existing HRBs must be registered by 30 September this year. Other new provisions will come into effect later this year that will create new duties for construction and design professionals, accountable persons, building control professionals, and clients in other words, for most UK readers! The Climate Change Act requires our homes and buildings to be net zero carbon by 2050. New homes will not be on the gas grid from 2025 and targets are being put in place for the energy efficiency of the existing rented building stock. We need to upgrade around 27m homes to the requirements of net zero. We have unfinished business from the pandemic and the Awaab Ishak case around effective ventilation of many buildings. Readers know the challenges of balancing energy efficiency and effective ventilation to avoid damp problems and maintain good indoor air quality in our homes. There are challenges for us all on multiple fronts. On 22 March, the new Building Safety Regulator held its inaugural building safety conference. The new regulator presented to around 1,000 delegates on the important changes that will come into effect under the Building Safety Act, starting this month. With registration of higher-risk residential buildings now open, it was a chance for accountable and principle accountable persons to develop their knowledge of what is now required of them and their organisations under the new regime for regulation of higher-risk buildings in occupation. The conference also heard more about the changes due to come into effect later this year, with various new roles and responsibilities for clients, construction and design professionals, accountable persons and building control professionals. It was made clear that the industry needs to step up and take action to prepare for the new regime now, not wait to be told what to do and how to do it. For anyone in any doubt that the new regime means a sea change, on the day of the conference the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) issued a press release reporting on the outcome of a prosecution over a building failure that left a Derbyshire worker with life-changing injuries1. The property owner has been given a community order after a father of two sustained horrific injuries when a wall collapsed on top of him during a barn conversion. Nigel Edwards failed to have a structural assessment of the outbuildings carried out when planning for the project at his home. They were being converted into holiday-let accommodation when the wall collapsed. For those tempted to think that the Building Safety Act is all about high-rise flats, this case and the timing of the news release should make them think again. This case was brought against the client under the Construction Design and Management Regulations. The Building Safety Act extends the duties of clients to all aspects of regulated building work. Those tempted to ignore this do so at their peril. And not just client duties, but designers and contractors too. It is all part of the drive to refocus on safety and quality, not just cost and time. These requirements apply in England, but building safety and net zero are global challenges. Building safety is a major issue in Australia and New Zealand. The ongoing investigation into the Champlain Towers collapse in Florida has global implications for management of older high-rise structures. It is being watched closely by the authorities worldwide. The latest IPCC Assessment Report2 reminds us yet again of the urgency of tackling carbon emissions and the importance of the net zero carbon building standard. We have entered a period of unprecedented change in our industry. There is no time to lose. We have entered a period of unprecedented change in our industry. There is no time to lose DR HYWEL DAVIES is chief technical officer at CIBSE www.cibse.org 16 April 2023 www.cibsejournal.com Day two of the CIBSE Scotland Conference will focus on the Building Safety Act as it applies to Scotland: bit.ly/CJAprHD3 References: 1 Property owner sentenced after builder suffered life-changing injuries, HSE, March 2023 bit.ly/CJApr23HD1 2 AR6 Synthesis Report, IPCC, March 2023 bit.ly/CJApr23HD2