The Code for Construction Product Information (CCPI) and BSI Identify

Both the Code for Construction Product Information (CCPI) and BSI Identify can deliver positive benefits and support to the industry to drive much needed change in relation to raising standards in product information management. Both organisations operate independently and offer useful synergies to manufacturers.

The CCPI will deliver improvements in the way organisations produce and manage product information including ensuring an appropriate culture is in place alongside robust processes. BSI Identify provides manufacturers a way to offer reliable and enduring access to that information for all their users, whether they are direct customers or other actors from across the supply chain.

Background to the CCPI

The Code for Construction Product Information (CCPI) was created to promote an urgent and positive culture and behaviour change in the way the construction product manufacturing industry manages and provides information on their products. The CCPI was initiated by the Construction Product Association (CPA) as a direct response to Dame Judith Hackitt’s review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety set up in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy. To address the findings of her report, the Construction Products Association established its Marketing Integrity Group (CPA MIG) in 2018. A team of marketing and technical experts was brought together, which represented many different types of building materials and experience, as well as representation from government, and some trade bodies.

After an initial Call for Evidence Survey in 2019, it was apparent that change was needed and the MIG set about creating a new Code of Conduct to ensure construction manufacturing organisations provide reliable, accurate information.

CPI Ltd, an independently governed and managed, not for profit organisation has now been established to guard the Code, to independently assess conformance, and to manage and assess product set registrations on an ongoing basis.

How the Code works

The Code for Construction Product Information (CCPI) will help organisations drive higher standards in the presentation of construction product information, prioritising building safety.

Whether written in a brochure, a presentation, on a website or social media, the CCPI will seek to provide assurance that users of product information have the necessary facts when making decisions about specifying or installing their verified products.

There are eleven Clauses of the CCPI (see below for more information) which cover a wide range of matters from responsibility for product information, to accuracy of and clarity of performance claims made, general information and competency. The objective of the Code is that any claim made about a construction product must be substantiated by appropriate, clear, and unambiguous evidence.

The CCPI is built around these five ‘acid tests’ - product information must be Clear, Accurate, Up-to-date, Accessible and Unambiguous.

The aim is that clients, specifiers and users will insist on only working with CCPI compliant products.

The CCPI will help to assure:

Independent and robust assessment, working to help to build greater confidence with the public and external stakeholders and setting the market for UK construction products ahead of others.
Participating companies will benefit fundamentally from organising their systems and processes in relation to product information – supporting compliance with anticipated new regulatory requirements and giving specifiers, clients greater confidence regarding the information provided.
A focus on culture, leadership and ethics, CCPI will build more confidence, and support an environment for healthy challenge with organisations regarding product performance and safety as well as other product claims helping to create greater confidence that the product information is correctly stated.

As the Building Safety Regulator and National Regulator for Construction Products (NRCP) get established, CCPI is an effective way to help the industry demonstrate it is up to the challenge and responding to the issues being raised.

Background to BSI Identify

BSI Identify provides open and enduring access to construction product information to support the safe and effective identification and use of construction products. Its design supports the sector in responding to developments, including regulatory demands as a result of Dame Judith Hackitt’s seminal Independent Review of the Building Regulations and Fire Safety. BSI Identify’s origins are a collaborative research project, part funded by Innovate UK, supporting the digitisation of the Built Environment. The Innovate UK research counted the CPA and BSI, the UK’s National Standards Body, as key partners. The work takes an established, resilient, and ISO standardised approach to digital identification that already underpins supply chain data exchange in several other sectors and provides a solution tailored to the needs of the Built Environment.

How BSI Identify works

BSI Identify is an open networked resource created to improve how the Built Environment sector manages identification, traceability, and information resources for construction products. This central, independent registry uses proven and scalable technology designed to deliver reliable and persistent access to information to support those using construction products throughout the complete asset life cycle. The registry provides construction product manufacturers with a single, central and publicly accessible platform for them to manage and provide access to current and historic product information.

A smart identifier, the BSI Identify UPIN, is created for each product which can be integrated into digital models and workflows. Once integrated it can connect, via the central registry, to information resources such as: datasheets; installation and maintenance guides; recall and availability status; and approved installation requirements.  In doing so, it provides those who design, build, own/operate access to reliable information from the enduring BSI Identify resource.

The UPIN identifier can also be used on physical products or packaging to support onsite users with unambiguous identification and direct access, via a phone or tablet, to this information. BSI Identify is interoperable with current and developing technology including existing approaches to identification and structured product data.

Key features

Central, open, digitally connected and enduring registry freely accessible to all supply chain users
Provides identification, traceability, and access to related information resources
Information resources are managed in one central place by the product manufacturer
Information endures even when the product is retired, or the manufacturer is no longer able to host the information
Digital-ready and able to integrate and connect with existing software
Interoperable approach that works with existing data exchange formats and adds value to existing identification approaches

The whole is greater than the sum of the parts…

Product manufacturers that choose to embrace both CCPI and BSI Identify will be helping to build sector-wide trust in both the quality and reliability of product information and their ability to access it whenever and wherever it is needed.

The CCPI and BSI Identify are working together and, as part of this, have agreed to promote CCPI assessed status for any CCPI assessed products that are part of the BSI Identify persistent registry. This provides manufacturers an additional promotion of their CCPI commitment and will further build user trust of the product information accessible via BSI Identify.

How BSI Identify can support manufacturers to meet CCPI

There are several areas of the CCPI code where manufacturers can utilise BSI Identify to help demonstrate their compliance and deliver an effective and future-proofed approach to the way they manage and provide access to their product information. Manufacturers will have different levels of capability, resources and access to tools to help manage product information. BSI Identify can provide a common and consistent method for manufacturers to utilise as part of their CCPI product information management strategy. For example, the BSI Identify version management capability has been created specifically to support manufacturers, SME manufacturers in particular, to manage how they can easily make previous and historic versions of product information available.

Where a manufacturer utilises elements of the BSI Identify service to satisfy CCPI requirements they must clearly document this as part of their process documentation.

Here are the areas of the CCPI where BSI Identify can support manufacturers:

Clause 2: Have in place a formal version control process for all ‘Product Information'

This clause requires manufacturers to have a clear system for updating information so that stakeholders can check that information they have is the latest version as well the ability to locate previous or superseded information.

BSI Identify includes a document repository with version management feature that allows manufacturers to clearly label current versions along with validity dates and, if needed, previous versions. In addition, as a persistent repository, BSI Identify is ideally placed to provide access to product information relating to previously sold or discontinued products. This feature removes a burden from the manufacturer as they will not need to maintain out of date and historic information on their main website.

Clause 4: Provide valid and demonstrable documentation where claiming compliance to, or achievement of, any Certification, Classification, or Industry Standard

BSI Identify provides the ability to present product certification and compliance details along with further supporting information. As the UK’s NSB, BSI fully understands the important area of compliance and our data structure for capturing certification information includes space for certificate number, certification body, relevant test standards as well as validity periods of any certification.

Clause 6 A Manufacturer must make available on their webpage the descriptive and physical characteristics of the ‘Construction Product’.

As manufacturers are in control of the information about their products on BSI Identify, then the BSI Identify record can be viewed as an extension of the manufacturer website in respect of being a tool to make product information available to stakeholders.

Many of the examples of important descriptive and physical characteristics given in the code are either presented at identify.bsigroup.com as part of the UPIN product record (such as Manufacturer, Product Name, Code/Model/Reference/SKU, Description) or made readily accessible via linked to resources for information such as product data sheets, safety data sheets, and application information where they are made available by the manufacturer.

Clause 8: Publish and make easily accessible, on their webpage clear ‘Product Information’, where applicable, on handling, installation, operation, maintenance, and disposal of Construction Products

As a webpage under the control of the manufacturer, each UPIN product landing page enables easy access to a range of accurate information required to support Handling, Installation, Operation, Maintenance and Disposal.

Clause 10: Ensure technical helpline contact details (telephone and / or email) are visible and accessible on their webpage.

Access to current manufacturer contact information is one click away from every BSI Identify product landing page.

Summary

The Code for Construction Product Information (CCPI) aims to improve the quality and accuracy of product information. Manufactures who wish to conform to the Code may benefit from using BSI Identify and its UPIN product landing page to efficiently present and control clear, accurate, up-to-date, accessible and unambiguous information including that relating to previously sold or discontinued products. In addition, by enabling direct access to information, BSI Identify helps join the dots across the supply chain, so that every product can be unambiguously identified and traced.

Embedding BSI Identify as part of your product information management processes can help ease implementation of CCPI and build a repeatable experience for the sector that can be relied upon by future generations. We would encourage manufacturers who are working through how they implement CCPI to speak to the BSI Identify team to see how they can utilise BSI Identify as part of their product information management process.

Find out more about how BSI Identify can support your business.