The latest criticism of timber frame construction by an architect and the chairman of the London Fire Authority was misleading, the UK Timber Frame Association has said.
The criticism by architect Sam Webb appeared in RIBA Journal and questioned the findings of a 1999 BRE study into timber frame fire safety. A subsequent BBC London news report broadcast last week, which used imagery of the Great Fire of London, interviewed Fire Authority chairman Brian Coleman, who said he personally would like to see high rise timber buildings banned.
UKTFA chairman Geoff Arnold said the coverage was the latest example of negative and inaccurate commentary from BBC London.
He said the report had also confused the situation by linking fires in high rise concrete structures (Lakanal House) to fires in timber frame.
Mr Arnold said Mr Webb’s original article was extremely misleading and confused many issues, including the installation of PVCu windows and cladding.
He said the BRE’s TF2000 timber frame project was successful in assessing a multi-storey timber frame property’s ability to withstand the 60-minute fire compartment test. And he said a further cavity fire which occurred at the test site was properly investigated by a Chiltern Fire report in 2003.
“It should be noted that the Chiltern Fire report statistics showed that 0.07% of fires start in the cavity wall and of the eight fires identified and investigated by Chiltern Fire, the majority were caused by trades people not using tools, such as blow lamps, correctly,” said Mr Arnold.
Mr Arnold said Mr Coleman, as chairman of the London Fire Authority, would find it beneficial to engage the UKTFA proactively to “better understand” how timber frame buildings react to fire.
For more on this story see the next issue of TTJ.
