There is still a broad variety of systems of technical requirements for buildings in the various European countries, despite the existence of the Construction Products Directive of the European Union and the development of Euro Codes. The goals and topics are quite similar, and most countries call their regulations `performance based,¿ but a detailed study reveals considerable variety of functional requirements, performance requirements, and specifications, with inconsistency within the requirements of some countries. This paper is based on the findings of a comparative analysis of building regulations for housing in eight European countries, carried out on behalf of the Dutch Ministry of Housing and intended to locate the Dutch Building Decree within the spectrum of regulations in other European countries. The project makes a detailed comparison of systems of building control, the formulation of the requirements, and the contents of selected subjects. This paper focuses on the conclusions of the analysis of the fire safety requirements. Comparisons proved particularly difficult due to differences in the structure, description, and content of the requirements, which may reflect the long history of the regulation of fire safety. It identifies several differences in levels of requirements and strategies which may be significant in practice and illustrates many impediments to the harmonisation of the description of fire safety strategies.@en

There is still a broad variety of systems of technical requirements for buildings in the various European countries, despite the existence of the Construction products Directive of the European Union and the development of Euro Codes. The goals and mayor subjects are quite similar, and most countries call their regulations `performance based¿. A more detailed look at the formulation and content of the sets of requirements, however shows quite fundamental differences. This paper presents the results and conclusions of a comparative study of the building regulations in Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Germany, the Netherland, Norway and Sweden. The aim of the study was to place the Dutch building Decree within the spectrum of the regulations of the other European countries. The systems and formulations of the requirements and the content of some subjects of requirements (for houses) have been compared in detail. In this paper we describe: stairways and ramps, fire safety, noise, daylight, accessibility and dimensions of habitable space and habitable room. Because of the variety in formulation (different interpretations of the performance approach) adequate comparisons of the actual level of requirements were sometimes quite difficult. The abstract formulations of functions and parts of buildings in the Dutch Building Decree are in this respect unique. The conclusion of the study was that the difference in systems of formulation of the building regulations in the European countries forms a mayor barrier for further harmonisation.@en

Building regulations provide a solid base for safe, healthy, energy efficient, environment friendly and comfortable buildings. To be sure that the requirements are met in designs and in construction, an appropriate system of building control is indispensable. In the Netherlands some recent striking accidents with buildings have put the importance of the quality of building control high on the agenda. The task of technical checks and inspection lies traditionally in the hands of the local authorities. Several investigations into the performance of local building control have shown that the quality is beyond acceptable. Besides the effectiveness of the control system, also the efficiency of permit procedures and actions of plan checking and site inspection has been an important drive to search for alternative policies. A comparative study of building regulations and systems of building control in eight European countries has shown a broad variety of organization models with a severe role for the private parties. Self-control by architects and technical advisors is about to be introduced in the Netherlands. This paper presents an assessment guideline for the certification of this process and discusses the chances of this alternative as a contribution to effective and efficient building control.@en

Most West-European countries call their regulations `performance based¿ and the goals and major subjects are quite similar. A more detailed look at the formulation and content of the sets of requirements, however shows quite fundamental differences. The existence of the Construction Products Directive of the European Union and the development of Euro Codes did not have much impact on the harmonization of the technical building regulations at the level of buildings until now. Research into the differences in formulations is a first and important step towards better mutual understanding of national sets of building regulations which is essential to start a discussion of the possibilities of further harmonisation of the systems of the various countries. This paper presents the results and conclusions of a comparative study of the building regulations in Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. The systems and formulations of the requirements and the contents of some subjects of requirements (for houses) have been compared in detail: stairways and ramps, fire safety, noise, daylight, accessibility and dimensions of habitable space and habitable room. We concluded that the broad spectrum of different systems forms a major barrier for further harmonisation of building regulations in Europe and even so a barrier for the realisation of an internal European Market.@en