The Building Regulations 1997 - 2019 set out the legal requirements in Ireland for the construction of new buildings (including houses), extensions to existing buildings as well as for material alterations and certain material changes of use to existing buildings. Their aim is to provide for the safety and welfare of people in and about buildings. The Building Regulations are set out in functional terms and are performance based – they do not set limitations on the materials.
The associated Technical Guidance Documents (TGD A - M respectively) provide technical guidance on how to comply with the regulations in practical terms for non-complex buildings. Where works are carried out in accordance with the relevant technical guidance, such works are considered to be, prima facie , in compliance with the relevant regulations.
Part D (Materials and Workmanship) requires that all works should be carried out in a workmanlike manner using “proper materials…which are fit for the use for which they are intended and for the conditions in which they are to be used” to ensure compliance with the Building Regulations and includes materials which comply with an appropriate harmonised standard or European Technical Assessment or comply with an appropriate Irish Standard or Irish Agrément Certificate or with an alternative national technical specification of any State which is a contracting party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area, which provides in use an equivalent level of safety and suitability.
A fundamental review of Part B (Fire Safety) is underway at present and will take note of Fire Safety in Ireland report (published in 2018), and consider common and emerging building trends, developments and events from a global perspective, matters relating to external fire spread, external fire resistance, internal fire resistance, cladding systems, sprinklers, etc. Changes in standards, including fire test standards and technological changes in areas such as materials and systems have necessitated a fundamental analysis of the provisions and assumptions contained in Technical Guidance Document B – Fire Safety.
In this context the Department established a consultative committee in December 2020 to discuss the technical revision of Part B/TGD B prior to documentation going for public consultation later in 2021. The Consultative Committee for the Review of Part B Fire Safety, held its inaugural meeting on 15 December 2020.
In regard to the retrofit programmes, the Programme for Government and the Climate Action Plan set targets to retrofit 500,000 homes to B2 BER or cost optimal equivalent and to install 400,000 heat pumps in existing residential buildings by 2030. All works, including the installation of insulation, must be carried out in compliance with the relevant regulations.
