Wired-glass use to be reviewed in building code

A federal department responsible for the country’s building code has formed a task force to review upcoming changes to the use of wired glass, which is set to lose its safety designation at month’s end.

Wired glass, which is widely used in schools, hospitals and office buildings throughout Canada, has been linked to hundreds of injuries — some serious — due to its low impact resistance.

Andre Laroche, manager of regulatory solutions with Codes Canada — a department in the National Research Council that is responsible for the country’s building code — said the task force will review the new standards when they are published, which is expected by the end of February.

The Canadian General Standards Board — a federal organization that develops standards for government, industry and consumers — is set to remove wired glass from its national building standards, saying it isn’t safe.

Laroche said the federal building code will take its cue from the new standard, but it might not make it into the code until 2020, its next scheduled publishing date. He said the national building code is only used for new builds and extensive renovations, and the change wouldn’t be enforceable until the provincial building codes adopted them into legislation. “There is always a lag between the publication of the code and the enforceable measures of the code,” Laroche said.

Wired glass was only intended to be used as a fire barrier when it entered the standard in 1990, Laroche said. During a fire, regular glass can break and explode due to the intense heat. The wires prevent glass from falling away upon breakage, thereby slowing the spread of a blaze.