Introducing the new NHBC Standards 2016

By Paul Cribbens, NHBC Standards Manager

 

For nearly 80 years, the NHBC Standards have provided the house-building industry with trusted technical guidance. They have been consistently developed, reviewed and revised, ensuring that the technical content, and publication format, keeps pace with innovation and changes in practice.

The new 2016 edition of the Standards maintains this tradition by offering the most complete set of technical information yet, published in a user-friendly, up-to-date format. The Standards will continue to support the industry in the delivery of high quality new homes as production levels continue to increase across the country.

Last year, more than 145,000 new homes were registered in the UK, with NHBC reporting that volumes so far this year are showing an increase on the successful year in 2014.

 

Working with industry

By working closely with house-builders and industry professionals to develop the content, the NHBC Standards are highly regarded by the industry as a practical, authoritative and accessible source of technical information. Setting clear and balanced technical benchmarks, and providing detailed guidance on how to achieve them, the Standards have always been the cornerstone of NHBC’s standard-raising activities.

This autumn, hard copies of the new edition of the NHBC Standards will be delivered to registered builders, housing associations and industry professionals nationwide. Prior to this, Standards Plus – the online version of the Standards document – will be made freely available to all visitors to the NHBC website (www.nhbc.co.uk). Both versions have undergone extensive design revisions, changing the look and feel of the Standards for the first time in over two decades.

The Standards will become effective for every NHBC Registered home whose foundations are begun on or after the 1st January 2016 and will apply throughout the UK unless otherwise stated. The revised version now includes:

• a completely new design – including front cover and chapter dividers
• greater use of technology to deliver technical information
• consolidation of the design, materials and siteworks sections
• more logical sequencing of content
• revision of all illustrations into a consistent and modern style.

 

Although there will be fewer pages, aside from the removal of outdated content and the inclusion of Chapter 5.4 ‘Waterproofing of basements and other below-ground structures’, the technical content remains broadly the same as the current edition. However, there are a few additions which provide new guidance for:

• the positioning of wall ties at the top of gable walls
• protective coatings to steelwork
• liquid applied roofing membranes
• fixings for coping stones on gable walls
• ventilation ductwork

 

Spotlight on basements

In terms of content and as the major change in the new set of Standards, Chapter 5.4 ‘Waterproofing of basements and other below ground structures’ forms a key component of NHBC’s long-running campaign to address serious issues with basements. In 2013, NHBC launched this campaign highlighting significant problems with the design and construction of basements. Between 2005 and 2013, claims related to waterproofing below ground cost NHBC in the region of £21 million and affected around 890 homes.

This new Chapter introduces meaningful benchmarks and supporting technical guidance for a range of situations where the structure is required to resist the ingress of water from the ground and other sources, where ‘normal’ waterproofing arrangements are not considered appropriate.

Although the Standards have contained guidance for basements for many years (Chapter 5.1 ‘Substructure and ground bearing floors’), with increased use, predictions about heavier rainfall in the future and rising water tables, we believe that the time is right to expand on this guidance and ensure that the waterproofing of below ground structures is sufficiently robust to meet the high demands placed upon it.

 

Design requirements

Chapter 5.4 explains where waterproofing may be required, and where the new Chapter applies. Structures requiring waterproofing range from those where the external ground levels have been raised around the perimeter to within 150mm of the internal floor finish, to deep basements where there may be several levels below ground, and include any other structure near to or below ground level where waterproofing may be required.

Robust design should be undertaken by suitably qualified waterproofing experts, and be suitable for the specific ground and building conditions. The design should:

• be undertaken by a suitably qualified specialist who has obtained the Property Care Association ‘Certified Surveyor in Structural Waterproofing’ qualification
• be appropriate to the level of risk – where waterproofing is to a part of the structure forming a space where ‘Grade 3 protection’ is required (habitable accommodation) and more than 600mm of ground is being retained, a combined system comprising two types of waterproofing should be used
• consider the likely ground conditions – where the waterproofing is to more than 15% of the perimeter of the building or more than 600mm high, an appropriate investigation of the ground conditions should be undertaken.

In summary, the NHBC Standards 2016 will provide the builders who are constructing the nation’s homes with the very best practical advice and guidance. We would urge people within the industry – whether they are technical directors, construction managers, architects, designers or site managers – to familiarise themselves with the new layout and the updated content.

NHBC’s Technical Helpline is there for people to use should they have any queries as they adopt these new Standards. Contact Standards and Technical if you have any queries on 01908 747384 technical@nhbc.co.uk

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