How building asset management can uphold fire safety

Fire Safety Act: Your key questions answered

The Fire Safety Act is a relatively short, but hugely significant, piece of legislation.

It came into force in April 2021 – not without controversy – and will have far-reaching ramifications for organisations in England and Wales responsible for managing fire safety risks.

As with any legislative change, the Act raises pressing questions for those affected. Which is why we’ve created a helpful e-book that spells out: The who, what, where, when, why and how of The Fire Safety Act.

It’s free to download and provides insights into what the Fire Safety Act includes, when the legislation will start taking effect, where new rules are applicable, who will be responsible for taking action, and how those involved can be sure they comply.

Managing digital documentation competently and collaboratively will be essential for carrying out the necessary assessments, reporting to the relevant authorities and organising remediation work. With this in mind, our e-book sets out seven practical steps that will help you get ready to meet compliance requirements quickly and professionally.

What are the specific provisions of the Act?

The Fire Safety Act 2021 amends the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (the FSO) with the aim of improving fire safety in multi-occupancy domestic premises. It includes the following provisions:

• Those responsible for the fire safety of a building will be required to share information about its external walls (including cladding, balconies and windows) with the local fire and rescue service.
• Building owners or managers will have to inspect flat entrance doors annually and lifts on a monthly basis, notifying the local fire and rescue service if there are any faults.
• Building owners or managers are responsible for providing residents in buildings with two or more flats with evacuation and fire safety instructions.

A public register of fire risk assessments will be established.

Let digital building asset management take the strain

The provisions of the Fire Safety Act raise the bar for fire safety, and therefore necessitate the implementation of up-to-date fire risk assessments.

Assessments and resulting remediation work must be conducted by a demonstrably ‘competent person’ so it’s vital that adequate documentation is gathered and stored to provide evidence of due diligence. Digital asset management systems provide a perfect solution for managing such documentation, and keeping the golden thread of building and Health & Safety data intact.

A digital building lifecycle information management platform like Zutec will provide a basis for operational compliance, and make audits a much simpler task. Our user-friendly technology fully  supports compliance with the new fire safety regulations, while improving organisational efficiency and productivity.

Download our free e-book, The who, what, where, when, why and how of Fire Safety Act, for everything you need to know about the new legislation or book a demo today to find out how Zutec can help you improve decision making, guarantee compliance and ensure safety. 

Alternatively you can access the first e-book in our series which looks at the Building Safety Bill and what this means for the build environment.