1.2 What’s changed
Major technical changes#
As well as more minor changes to Chapters 3.1, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 5.4, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.10, 9.2, 9.3, 9.5, 10.1, 10.2 the following major technical changes have been made to this edition of the Standards:
- changes to chapter 3.3 more info on durability of timber
- new chapter 4.6 on engineered fill - building on the department for transport highways specification requirements
- chapter 5.1 - small changes to cover cold bridging / radon maps updates
- chapter 5.2 - changes to contaminants and DPMs
- chapter 5.4 - small changes for podiums
- chapter 6.1 - overhaul of whole chapter including new drawings
- chapter 6.2 - changes relating to timber frame expansion and contraction and permissible gaps under openings
- chapter 6.3 - updates to masonry walls and fire resistance
- chapter 6.4 - timber and concrete upper floors - additional guidance on joist spacing and clearance
- chapter 6.6 - updates to fire precautions, design of steps, guarding and balustrades, structural design
- chapter 7.1 - additional guidance covering balcony drainage edge design and upstands to podium decks and flat roofs
- chapter 7.2 - extensive overhaul providing better guidance on durability, roof ventilation strategies and aligning more closely with BS 5250. Details for roof integrated solar panels and roof cassette systems have been expanded
- chapter 8.1 to 8.3 - rewritten and rearranged, now chapters 8.1 to 8.6. containing new guidance on heat pumps, solar PV, solar collectors, weephole locations in relation to gas meter boxes and inclusion of 29 Technical guidance notes.
3D models#
3D models can be accessed directly within Standards Plus, the online version of the Standards, by clicking on the embedded icons. They can also be viewed on the NHBC 3D Viewer app, which hosts a library of the 3D models to view on iOS and Android devices.
Last updated: 2nd January 2024