of the TSS but, given recent reports about an inability to obtain permits based upon an interpretation in Part 4A, 4.1 Fire Resistance (Informative section, not mandatory) by an authority, it would seem they had little to do with the final wording of it. Of course, safety of life (where applicable) must be the primary goal of any official body involved with writing a new standard but, once it has been written and accepted, it’s imperative that it is then made the standard. It must be national, it must be mandatory and it must be written so that it can be read and applied uniformly and consistently. Otherwise it simply cannot be termed a ‘standard’. Nobody is advocating lowering safety standards, just consistent application of the ones already in place.
THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAIL Each section of the 2015 TSS has a Normative and Informative provision. The Normative provision is mandatory to comply with the standard and the Informative is provided as guidance only. Without naming the authority or state involved in currently blocking the use of some temporary structures, the TSS is being interpreted in such a way that fire tests are being requested for every individual colour and colour combination for a specific material type. The word that has been interpreted in this instance is contained within the Informative (i.e. guidance only) Section Part 4A, 4.1 Fire Resistance. The word that has substantial implications for all manufacturers and purchasers of coloured coated fabrics is ‘used’ as in: ‘the material used…’ Multiple owners of coloured structures have been instructed to obtain both AS1530.2 and AS1530.3 certificates (at a cost of approximately $1460) for each colour. Using this interpretation to the extreme, however, this situation could get worse if authorities interpret the directions to mean that the tests be performed upon the actual material from which the structure has been fabricated (also known as ‘batch testing’), which would require owners to retain spare fabric in each colour, as each structure is purchased or, alternatively, remove sections of each colour from each structure.
THE DANGERS OF MAKING COMPLIANCE TOO HARD OR TOO EXPENSIVE Unfortunately, there are unscrupulous operators who can and will cut corners, opting to play the odds in regards to becoming ‘compliant’. Many industries lack any ‘true’ control or authentication of the presented fire certificates to the materials. C Chris Arkell is technical and operations manager at Innova International.
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SIZE IS NO PROBLEM Darling Downs Tarpaulins are geared to cope with those very large jobs like green houses, shade houses, shade sails, dam liners and bulk storage covers.
Issue Three 2017 CONNECTIONS
10/11/17 25/11/14 8:18 9:00 AM