§ Mr. Lathamasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will make a statement on the achievements and publications since 11 June 1984 of the structural integrity division of the Building Research Establishment; and what is its current programme of work.
§ Mr. John PattenSince 11 June 1984 the structural integrity division of the Building Research Establishment has been engaged mainly on continuing investigations, but with the addition of a major new programme of investigations of large panel system dwellings in collaboration with other divisions throughout the establishment. There have been 43 publications, of which 13 were concerned with system built dwellings, 17 with the performance and durability of masonry, three with the disposal of radioactive waste, five with the principles of codification and control, three with durability of cement based products and two with use of colliery spoil to backfill limestone mines.
The integrity investigations continue to assess the implications of structural failures and developments in design and construction but, in addition, there has been an emphasis on investigation of the implications for dwellings of deterioration or poor quality of construction. Since June 1984, 10 investigations have been completed, arising from actual or potential deterioration or poor quality construction, including five types of prefabricated reinforced concrete housing.
The current programme of work includes 17 integrity investigations of various sizes, arising from failures, 142W structural deterioration, innovations and new requirements. The programme also includes the necessary research drawing where appropriate on other parts of the establishment, and response to inquiries and issues arising from publications.
§ Mr. Lathamasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will make a statement on the work since June 1984 of the visitors panel of the Building Research Establishment; and whether he will list the current members of the panel.
§ Mr. John PattenThe panel's work has greatly assisted the director BRE in assessing and monitoring the quality of the establishment's research. The two annual reports so far submitted have made a valuable contribution to my Department's thinking on the establishment's future.
Members of the panel are:
- Dr. R. E. Rowe CSE
- Professor R. W. K. Honeycombe FRS
- K. Newman BSc MICE
- D. Quinian BSc
- P. A. Green BSc FICE
- D. W. Lazenby DIC FICE FIStruct.E
- C. Izzard FCIBS
- Professor V. B. Torrance
- D. Lush
- Professor P. Gray FRS
- Dr. W. A. Allen CBE FRIBA
- Sir Kenneth Holland CBE QFSM
- Dr. D. S. Belford
- Professor T. Markus
- Dr. W. W. L. Chan