British standard test method for the fire performance of facades: revision is now published

7 May 2020

The British Standards Institution (BSI) has revised its test method for the fire performance of external cladding systems (BS 8414 Fire performance of external cladding systems).

The purpose of the large-scale façade test method is to provide data that enables the evaluation of the fire performance of the cladding components tested as a system.

The standard is split into two parts:

• Part 1: Test method for non-loadbearing external cladding systems applied to the masonry face of a building
• Part 2: Test method for non-loadbearing external cladding systems fixed to and supported by a structural steel frame

Large scale tests are regularly applied by our industry as an important aspect to validate the fire safety of facade systems considering the interaction between the different elements. BS 8414 is considered as a reference beyond UK and, together with the German standard DIN 4120-20, is the basis of the on-going development of a European assessment method.

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