BWF members such as yourselves frequently use our Member and Technical Helplines for assistance on a wide range of Employment, Health and Safety, Pay and Technical issues. We’re putting up a frequently asked question every Tuesday in order to help members and illustrate the type of advice we are able to provide. If you have any questions that you would like to see featured, we would be happy to assist. This question and many others like it can be found in our Question Centre. If you want further advice on any of the issues, don’t hesitate to ring the helpline or browse our extensive publications library, which includes our Fact Cards and guidance on installing timber windows. In addition to this, we can also help you gain a number of certifications and accreditations, including ISO9001, ISO14001, FSC or PEFC Chain of Custody, Window Energy Ratings, BS6375 Parts 1 & 2, BS7950, PAS23 and PAS24, through our Total Support Services This week: Why Do Specifiers Ask For Certification? When a joinery manufacturer receives an enquiry to supply windows for larger developments, public sector developments or projects that are trying to reach a particular level of the Code for Sustainable Homes, it is likely that the enquiry will contain a specification that refers to performance levels in accordance with a set of standards. Often the specification will also require third party certification to these standards. If, for example, a development is to be registered under the Secured by Design Scheme operated by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO the windows will need to have third party certification for general design and performance, such as the BWF TWA Scheme which includes the BSI Kitemark to BS 644, and certification for enhanced security, for example the BSI Kitemark to BS 7950.
While many of the larger joinery businesses already have certification in place, the prospect of the certification process can appear to be a daunting and costly procedure to a smaller company. However, the certification process is not something that a window manufacturer will need to necessarily take on alone. The various certification schemes will allow cascaded test evidence. This means that a company that has developed a window design and has achieved third party certification can make this design available to other manufacturers by way of profiles or tooling and fabrication instructions, and can pass their original test evidence down to these manufacturers who can then apply for third party certification without the need for repeating the original testing.
There will still be a requirement for them to demonstrate compliance with a factory production control system and to undertake some testing, to prove the windows they produce match the performance of the windows originally tested by the system provider, but they would not need to undertake the level of testing that would be necessary if they pursued certification independently. The model of system supplier and fabricator is one used frequently in the plastic and aluminium window industries. This is one reason why joinery manufacturers have got the impression that organizations such as FENSA or the BFRC do not ‘support’ timber window producers and are only interested in companies who produce windows in other materials. It is not that timber window producers are not supported it is just that fabricators of plastic or aluminium window systems have test evidence made available to them, by the system provider, along with thermal models, which can be used for U-values and Energy Ratings.