In line with Building Safety Month, the inaugural International Building Safety Day (IBSD) launched on 22 May 2024, dedicated to “promoting and celebrating building safety and the benefits it provides to the health and welfare of people worldwide”.
This year marks the first time a day has been set aside for international communities to celebrate the ongoing efforts towards improved building safety. Among other things, its purpose is to highlight the need for safe, sustainable, and resilient buildings; recognise those individuals who have dedicated themselves to ensuring structures are safe to use and built to modern and appropriate codes and standards; challenge those involved in the built environment to improve the level of safety, sustainability, and resilience of new and existing buildings; and celebrate achievements and improvements in building safety across businesses and communities.
As with many global communities, building safety has been of critical importance in the UK, with life safety and fire safety in the built environment at the top of the current regulatory agenda, while also acknowledging innovative solutions to propel the drive towards net zero and sustainability.
As the International Code Council (ICC) explains, IBSD serves as a “poignant reminder to governments, communities, and all stakeholders within the built environment to uphold the importance of building safety”.
Key supporters of IBSD from around the world include the International Fire Safety Standards (IFSS), the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), UL Standards & Engagement, the Consortium of European Building Control (CEBC), FPA Australia, the Alliance of Canadian Building Officials Associations (ACBOA), and more.
Also supporting the day is the International Building Quality Centre (IBQC), with chair Kim Lovegrove stating: “The International Building Quality Centre wholeheartedly backs and endorses IBSD as a means by which the critical importance of safety in the built environments play for the global citizen can be reinforced.
“A constant and relentless vigil must be maintained to ensure that building safety is a forefront preoccupation for all key actors in the building ecology and this annual event can serve as a paramount means by which this vigil can become and remain top of mind.”
The ICC is hopeful that the IBSD will become a permanent feature for construction industries around the world and follow on from the success of Building Safety Month, which has been running for more than 40 years. Falling in May, the campaign theme for Building Safety Month 2024 is ‘Mission Possible’.
As reported by Building Connection Australia, the Managing Director for ICC Oceania, Neil Savery said: “It is vital that Australia remains vigilant in our pursuit of building safety. It is also important that the designs and products used in buildings are up to standard, that construction workers are safe on the job, buildings are properly maintained, and our buildings are safe for all those who live, work, play and learn in them. To ensure this, competent and registered practitioners must be involved in the design, supervision and undertaking of building work.”
More information about IBSD can be found here.