Safety Film and Regulation Compliance

Approved Document K

Requirement K4: Protection against impact with glazing

This approved document deals with the following requirement from Part K of Schedule 1 to the Building Regulations 2010

Protection against impact with glazing K4

Glazing, with which people are likely to come into contact whilst moving in or about the building shall:

(a) if broken on impact, break in a way which is unlikely to cause injury; or
(b) resist impact without breaking; or
(c) be shielded or protected from impact.

In the Secretary of State’s view, you can meet requirement K4 if you adopt, in critical locations, one of the following approaches.

a. Measures to limit the risk of cutting and piercing injuries by the use of glazing that is reasonably safe, such that, if breakage did occur, any particles would be relatively harmless.
b. Use of glazing sufficiently robust to ensure that the risk of breakage is low.
c. Steps are taken to limit the risk of contact with the glazing.

Impacts with glazing, particularly glazing in doors and door side panels, and at low level in walls and partitions, can result in cutting and piercing injuries. For doors and door side panels, the risk is greatest for glazing between floor and shoulder level when near to door handles and push plates, especially when normal building movement causes doors to stick. Hands, wrists and arms are particularly vulnerable. An initial impact at between waist and shoulder levels can be followed by a fall through the glazing, resulting in additional injury to the face and body. In walls and partitions, away from doors, the risks relate predominantly to glazing at low level. At that level, children are especially vulnerable.

Glazing in critical locations

For all buildings

5.1Diagram 5.1 shows critical locations in terms of safety.

5.2 In critical locations, comply with one of the following:

a. Ensure that glazing, if it breaks, will break safely (see paragraphs 5.3 and 5.4).
b. Choose glazing that is one of the following:
(i) robust (see paragraph 5.5)
(ii) in small panes (see paragraphs 5.6 and 5.7).
c. Permanently protect glazing (see paragraph 5.8)

Safe breakage
5.3 Safe breakage is defined in BS EN 12600 section 4 and BS 6206 clause 5.3. In an impact test, a breakage is safe if it creates one of the following.

a. A small clear opening only, with detached particles no larger than the specified maximum size.
b. Disintegration, with small detached particles.
c. Broken glazing in separate pieces that are not sharp or pointed.

5.4 A glazing material would be suitable for a critical location if it complies with one of the following.

a. It satisfies the requirements of Class 3 of BS EN 12600 or Class C of BS 6206.
b. It is installed in a door or in a door side panel and has a pane width exceeding 900mm and it satisfies the requirements of Class 2 of BS EN 12600 or Class B of BS 6206.

Robustness
5.5 Some glazing materials such as annealed glass gain strength through thickness; others such as polycarbonates or glass blocks are inherently strong.The maximum dimensions for annealed glass of different thicknesses for use in large areas forming fronts to shops, showrooms, offices, factories and public buildings with four edges supported are shown in Diagram 5.2 (see also paragraph 7.1).

Glazing in small panes

5.6 In the context of this approved document, a ‘small pane’ is an isolated pane or one of a number of panes held in glazing bars, traditional leaded lights or copper lights (see Diagram 5.3).

5.7 Small panes should be provided in accordance with all of the following.

a. In a small annealed glass pane, use glass with a minimum 6mm nominal thickness except in the situation described in b.
b. In traditional leaded or copper lights, when fire resistance is not important, you may use 4mm glass.
c. Use the dimensions and areas shown in Diagram 5.3.

Safety Legislation – Regulation 14

Regulation 14

Every window or other transparent or translucent surface in a wall or partition and every transparent or translucent surface in a door or gate shall, where necessary for reasons of health or safety:

(a) be of safety material or be protected against breakage of the transparent or translucent material; and
(b) be appropriately marked or incorporate features so as, in either case, to make it apparent.

This Workplace Health, Safety and Welfare Approved Code of Practice Regulation 14 and Building Regulation BS6262 make it a legal requirement for all glazing to be impact safe and clearly marked.
Regulation 14 goes on to lay down a range of details of the legal requirements of impact resistance, highlighting the potential of an anti-shatter safety window film and the need for safety manifestations;

1. Every window or glazed area in a wall, partition, door or gate shall be of safety material or be protected against breakage, i.e. it should not break on impact or should break safely.
2. Safety glazing material must meet BS 6206 Class B in doors and side panels over 900mm wide, and Class C in those less than 900mm wide. Low level glazing must meet a minimum of BS 6206 Class C.
3. This entails the use of laminated, toughened or safety-wired glass, or plastic glazing sheet that meet BS 6206, or glass with plastic film applied so that the pane of glass with the film meets BS 6206 Class A or B.

Existing glazing must be appropriately marked or featured so as to make it apparent and thus avoid the risk of collision because it is not properly visible. In particular, large uninterrupted areas of glazing where people might reasonably think they can walk straight through.

“Critical locations”

This is the term given to describe of internal and external walls, doors and partitioning which are of primary concern in terms of glazing safety.

Critical locations on glazing are between the finished floor level and 1500mm (shoulder height) above that level in doors and in side panels which fall within 300mm of either edge of the door.

Between the finished floor level and 800mm (waist height) above that level in the case of walls, partitions and windows.

It is important to note that any part of a glass pane affected must meet the requirements in its entirety and not just in the relevant section.

Glazing Industry Standards

There are many industry standards which can satisfied with the application of window film:

• BS6206 - Impact test to clarify glass safety characteristics
• EN12600 - Impact test to clarify glass safety characteristics
• EN356 - Resistance against Manual Attack
• BS6262 - Code of Practise for safety glazing in Buildings
• Disability Discrimination Act

The following safety films can help obtain the following standards and ratings: