Managing director of Swiftclean Building Services Gary Nicholls has welcomed recent changes to the B&ES Steering Committee's TR/19.

Managing director of Swiftclean Building Services Gary Nicholls has welcomed recent changes to the Building and Engineering Services Association (B&ES) Steering Committee's TR/19. The new TR/19 classifications grade (Second Edition 2013) guidance document: Internal Cleanliness of Ventilation Systems, brings TR/19 in line with both BSEN: 15780, published in 2011, and BSRIA's BG49/2013 Commissioning of Air Systems guidance document.

Mr Nicholls said: "We now have a framework which classifies ventilation ductwork systems according to their use and sets out clearly the standard of cleanliness which they must meet at the start of their working life. For the first time TR/19 spells out the requirement to hand over a ventilation system in a clean condition prior to commissioning. This is essential as in the past we have seen too many systems which evidently had too much mileage on the clock in terms of hygiene from the outset - something we would not accept in any more visible part of a building."

The new classifications grade ventilation systems as high, medium or low. For example, high classification is for operating theatres or laboratories; medium systems for hotels and schools; and low classification for rooms with intermittent occupancy. 

Mr Nicholls continued: “Keeping in mind the purpose of the system, and how often it will need to be inspected and cleaned during its working lifetime, will also help designers to bear in mind that they must incorporate and install inspection doors which will aid ongoing maintenance – and therefore system efficiency – from the earliest stages of the design process. Installers too, will now understand from TR/19 the condition in which they must hand over a new system for commissioning.”