BCSA opens RQSC – Buildings to non-members

The British Constructional Steelwork Association (BCSA) is throwing open the ability to prove competence to non-members for the first time, as part of a drive to ensure the entire steel construction sector can be ready for the new building safety regime.

BCSA Chief Executive Officer Dr David Moore explains: “The most significant changes to building safety regulation in a generation are being ushered in by the Building Safety Act 2022. One of the main changes is the introduction of new competence requirements for contractors and others, which places fresh onus on the industry’s clients to ask all suppliers to prove their competence and capability.”

To ensure that the constructional steelwork industry is ready to meet these challenges, BCSA has updated, improved and simplified its Register of Qualified Steelwork Contractors (Buildings), RQSC – Buildings, and opened the new scheme up to non-members. BCSA has also revised the 7th edition of the National Structural Steelwork Specification for Building Construction (NSSS) to introduce this new assessment scheme for steelwork contractors to demonstrate their competence and capability in the fabrication of structural steelwork.

Compliance with RQSC – Buildings will prove to clients that a steelwork contractor meets the competence requirements demanded by the new legislation. It will also give clients and insurance companies confidence that by selecting an RQSC – Buildings steelwork contractor they are choosing a company with the right competence, capability, and credentials to safely complete the project.

Published on 3rd April 2023, the revision to the 7th Edition of the NSSS is available free of charge from www.bcsa.org.uk/nsss and compliance with the RQSC – Buildings will become mandatory from 2nd October 2023.