News Article
All Change in August!
Posted Tuesday 13 May, 2008 | Permalink
This August the new British Standard for Lightning Protection, the BS EN 62305 will become fully operational throughout the UK, replacing the soon to be obsolete BS 6651 standard. This new standard will fundamentally alter the way that lightning protection is understood, planned and implemented. Literally thousands of operatives, apprentices and consultants will have to possess some, if not full comprehension of this standard. It is going to change how the industry operates, from when lightning specialists are subcontracted in, to what structures need to be protected. We need to ensure that everyone understands the repercussions of not preparing for and acknowledging the importance of this new standard.
What has changed?
The new documentation is a staggering five times the size of its predecessor and has taken over 20 years and literally 100’s of lightning protection experts from 28 different countries to write. It includes new deep-seated changes to the approach and extension of risk assessment and from this August onwards, all clients, major contractors and employers will be required to have documented proof of BS EN 62305 accreditation from all sub-contractors.
What happens next!
ATLAS – Association of Technical Lightning and Access Specialists have spent the last eighteen months preparing for this fundamental change in our industry. It is imperative that everyone involved in construction is both aware of and understands the implications of this important new standard. This point is highlighted by John Sherlock, the Chairman of the ATLAS Lightning Conductor Technical Committee, who has been representing the UK at IEC and CENELEC level. He is also a member of the BSI Technical Committee that has produced the new BS EN 62305.
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"While this new, true European Standard is an amazing achievement for international cooperation and technical convergence, ATLAS has some justifiable concerns; on the one hand, for the first time ever, we have the foundation for a globally accepted lightning protection standard that meets today’s needs. On the other, we must ensure that this culmination of such a vast amount of hard work carried out by technical bodies throughout the world over a 25 year period does not fall by the wayside because it cannot be understood by the actual installer. We all recognise how vitally important it is that everyone gets to grips with the practical changes as quickly as possible.” - John Sherlock, Chairman ATLAS Lightning Conductor Technical Committee
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ATLAS firmly believes only by raising awareness and recognising the importance of the BS EN 62305 now can the chaos predicted be avoided. Its proactive approach has thus far ensured that all ATLAS members have had exclusive access to training workshops, designed to make their transition to the new standard as easy as possible - thus cementing their place at the forefront of the industry. This is illustrated by ATLAS member John Ashmore of Protectis Limited, who really believes that the ATLAS workshops were of great benefit to his company.
As a matter of urgency, all new lightning protection apprentices must be taught the new standard and have it explained to them comprehensively. Surely, it would be nothing short of negligent to let the old, soon to be obsolete standard continue to be taught while offering little or no insight into its superior replacement. This appeal is reinforced by long standing ATLAS member and workshop co-ordinator Mike Henshaw, who is adamant that something has to be done to ensure that apprentices start getting trained immediately in the new standard.
"The new standard is so complex that even after 25 years in the industry I had to dedicate many months of my time to developing an understanding of the new standard in order to take it all in. So please tell me how can we expect new apprentices to cope with its demanding terminology and applications if we are not teaching it in our training colleges? As established professionals in the industry, we need to get the next generation prepared now. It would be a travesty not to do so!" - Mike Henshaw, Workshop co-ordinator
How does BSEN 62305 work?
The new standard deals with all aspects of a structure’s protection. Its 475 pages are split into four sections:
- General Principles
- Risk Management
- Physical Damage to Structures and Life Hazard
- Electrical and Electronic Structures
The sheer increase in the new standard’s size reflects the staggering amount of additions that have been made, ensuring that lightning protection is carried out to the safest and highest standard. The biggest challenge practitioners now face is the application of the new lightning risk assessment which has gone from a 9 page guidance (including illustrations) in the old BS 6651 standard to a 153 page document in the new BS EN 62305 standard. This is because the new risk assessment requires significant additional information to ensure the whole structure is adequately considered. This includes not only the structure but also the services, telecommunications and the power lines which supply it. In the electronic age we now live in, this is vital.
Who will be affected?
The increased size of the risk assessment has made it a far more complex and labour intensive document. This is best illustrated by the fact that several ATLAS member companies are designing and building their own software to increase the efficiency of this new risk assessment process. Consequently, it could be argued that one of the most dramatic effects upon the wider construction industry is that lightning protection specialists will need to be involved at a much earlier stage in the tendering process. Until now lightning protection had often been an afterthought, only installed after the structure was completed. Now however, lightning specialists will have to be fully involved much sooner. This highlights the need for engineers outside lightning protection to be aware of the implications that the BS EN 62305 will have on the whole industry: as engineers and consultants will need to be aware of the stage in which to get the lightning specialists involved. Therefore it is imperative that even they have a basic understanding of the new standard.
