BSI has launched a new Kitemark for building hardware used in windows and doors, alongside a new scheme that provides installers with independent verification that they supply and install products that meet PAS 24.

The new Kitemark proves window and door hardware has been rigorously tested and will perform as it should.

Andy Butterfield, product certification director of built environment at BSI, said: “Since the inception of Approved Document Q, many hardware suppliers are investing in performance testing of their products on completed windows and doorsets. We’ve launched this Kitemark to help hardware suppliers demonstrate that their products have been independently certified against industry standards.

“Not only will this provide the fenestration supply chain and users of the product with reassurance that the product is safe and reliable, it will enable hardware suppliers to differentiate themselves from other organisations with non-assured products.”

In order to achieve the BSI Kitemark for ‘Building Hardware used in Windows and Doorsets’, organisations need to be independently assessed at BSI’s Centre of Excellence in Hemel Hempstead against a number of standards, including: BS EN 1670, BS 6375, and ISO 9001:2015.

Installers of easily accessible windows and doors are required to provide evidence of compliance of Approved Document Q by installing products that meet the security requirements of PAS 24. This is applicable to new dwellings, and existing buildings that have had a ‘material change of use’ and have become dwellings.

This must be demonstrated via certification or test reports to those who require it, such as Local Authority Building Control, contractors, developers and NHBC. These reports are often owned by a third party and, as a result, are not in the installer’s company name that can create delays in installation.

By assessing an organisation’s capability to provide compliant products instead, this verification scheme enables the installer to achieve a certificate in their company name, verified by BSI that can be handed to those that require compliance evidence.

“It can be hugely challenging for installers to demonstrate compliance using test and certification data sourced from their supply chain, if they haven’t manufactured the product,” Andy Butterfield said. “We’ve developed this scheme with those installers in mind.”