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NSAI has launched a public consultation for the draft I.S. 465 " Assessment, testing and categorisation of damaged buildings incorporating concrete blocks containing certain deleterious materials ".

Public consultation period: From 31st March until the 28th of May inclusive.

The scope of the draft provides:

  1. a protocol for assessing and determining whether a building has been damaged as a result of concrete block deterioration caused by factors including:
    1. moisture movement or ingress,
    2. internal sulphate attack, and/or
    3. excessive quantities of free mica;
  2. a method for establishing the extent of the damages; 
  3. a system enabling the categorisation of buildings based on the extent of the damage;
  4. methods for testing and evaluating findings; and
  5. guidance on remedial works.

This standard is applicable to buildings exhibiting structural damage consistent with defective concrete blocks containing certain deleterious materials. 

This Irish Standard does not replace or alter: 

  1. I.S. EN 771-3 and its referenced testing Standards, 
  2. S.R. 325,
  3. I.S. EN 12620, or
  4. S.R. 16.

Content of the draft: 

This is the 2nd edition of I.S. 465 and will supersede I.S. 465:2018+A1:2020. The draft incorporates learnings from the application of I.S. 465:2018, its amendment in 2020 (I.S. 465:2018+A1:2020), and research, including deliverables arising from Geological Survey Ireland, ’Irish Construction Materials Project: Concrete products’.

This Irish Standard is not intended for conveyancing purposes.

The principle differences between I.S. 465:2018+A1:2020 and this document are:

  • An amendment to the scope to take account of internal sulphate attack.
  • Additional information on iron sulphides, including pyrrhotite, and research in the Introduction.
  • Updated Clause 3 Terms and definitions.
  • Updated Clause 4 regarding the process for assessing, sampling and testing buildings.
  • Added items to take into consideration as part of Clause 5 - Building condition assessment.
  • Updated Clause 6 - Sampling.
  • Full revision of Clause 7 - Testing of samples.
  • Full revision of Clause 8 - Remedial works.
  • Removed Annex C – Guidance on further testing.
  • Removed Annex D - Remedial works.
  • Removed Annex F - Clarification notes issued by the Expert panel on concrete blocks to the Department of Housing Planning and Local Government on 2nd December 2019.

View the draft and submit comments:

All interested parties are invited to comment on the draft I.S. 465 through the NSAI ‘Your Standards, Your Say’ forum: https://www.nsainep.ie/Home/Details/33540

Find out how to use Your Standards, Your Say here - https://www.nsai.ie/standards/your-standards-your-say/

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