Product and Practice Accreditation (2)

British Board of Agré ment (BBA) ~ an approvals authority

established in 1966, known then as the Agré ment Board. It was
based on the French Government's system of product approval. In
1982 it was renamed. Accredited by UKAS and a UK representative
in EOTA.

The BBA's UK premises are at the BRE in Garston, near Watford, a

convenient location for access to the BRE's research and testing
facilities. It is an independent organisation with the purpose of
impartially assessing materials, systems, practices, new market
products and existing products being used in a new or innovative
way. The objective is to evaluate these where an existing British
Standard, Eurostandard or similar quality benchmark does not
exist. Agré ment certification is a quality assurance standard for
products and innovations not covered by a CE mark and/or a BS
kitemark. Once established, an agré ment certificate may be used to
attain CE marking or for development into a new BS.

Agré ment certificates are only issued after rigorous testing and
critical analysis criteria are satisfied, relative to intended
application and fitness for purpose. Where new materials, products,
components, installation processes and installations are proposed,
an agré ment certificate may be regarded as sufficiently
authoritative for proof of Building Regulations compliance.

The Construction Industry Research and Information Association

(CIRIA) ~ established in 1960 as the Civil Engineering Research
Council (CERC) with the objective of financing research with money
raised from industry. In 1967 it was renamed, thereafter as a non-
profit making company owned by other companies, universities,
government departments and various other public sector
organisations. All subscriptions and fee income is invested into
seminars, training and research.

Main areas of activity:

• Research † industry wide covering construction and the
environment.
• Publications † a catalogue of over 600 titles.
• Training † short courses, seminars and conferences.
• Networks † support processes at training events, seminars and
workshops.
• Information services † newsletters, bulletins and a biannual
magazine.

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