THE FINISHES and Interiors Sector (FIS) – working in partnership with the Steel Construction Institute (SCI) – has just launched a Specifiers’ Guide to Light Gauge Steel Framing Systems (SFS) External Wall Systems to help specifiers understand the granular details involved in the design process and the production of a specification.
The Specifiers’ Guide to SFS External Wall Systems was produced by the FIS SFS Working Group made up of manufacturers and installers of SFS external wall systems in conjunction with the SCI, the latter providing an independent source of information and engineering expertise in steel construction.
The document is intended to guide architects, engineers, designers and installers through the stages in designing, selecting and specifying steel-framed systems to form the external envelope for steel and concrete-framed buildings.
FIS CEO Iain McIlwee stated: “This is the second specialist guide that the FIS has produced in partnership with the Steel Construction Institute and demonstrates the strength of collaboration, producing guidance to ensure that accurate and detailed specifications can be written such that external walling systems can be procured and installed to meet the required specification.”
Commenting on the guide, Colin Kennedy (chair of the FIS SFS Working Group and managing director of FIS member company Veitchi Interiors) added: “Specifying SFS external wall systems requires considerable thought and design, even before a specification can be written. This is because the specification should be developed alongside the engineering design rather than a simple output from a list of attributes and parameters in order to cover the three light steel external wall systems and the six current variants of SFS.”
Andrew Way, associate director at the SCI, observed: “In order to achieve the correct specification, a considerable amount of information is required about the intended use of the product and the desired performance characteristics. This was the learning curve for me and the key lesson that this new guide addresses in that the SFS should be fully engineered specifically for the building. Most importantly, determining a building’s location, its proximity to other buildings and how that building is designed to accommodate movement will all be essential detail that has to be gathered before the system can be specified.”
Colin Kennedy continued: “The construction industry is rightly under the microscope to ensure that the lessons from the terrible tragedy at Grenfell Tower are learned. This starts with ensuring that the specification is clear, compliant and written by those who are competent. Systems must be installed by those who can demonstrate they have the skills, knowledge, experience and behaviour to be considered competent.”
The guide includes 23 questions relating to ‘critical building information’, a further 15 questions to check that they are all addressed, a list of ten questions on risk and how to avoid them and a further ten questions on writing a smart specification to ensure that a safe, compliant and complete specification can be written. All of which is crucial to ensure that the specification is not open to misinterpretation and that any alternatives can be assessed and checked as being equal before approving them.
The guide sits alongside other FIS Best Practice guidance relating to SFS:
Design and Installation of Light Steel External Wall Systems
Recommendations for the Safe Ingress of Plasterboard
These guides work well when they are included in proposals and project plans to demonstrate how to best approach a project and are an excellent introduction to new members of the team as well as any trainees and apprentices.
*Download the Specifiers’ Guide to SFS External Wall Systems online at https://www.thefis.org/membership-hub/publications/specifiers-guides/light-guage-external-wall-systems/