Does the Periodic Façade Inspection cover glass?
Yes. BCA's PFI guidelines list broken glass infill panels in curtain walls, cracked or missing window glass, cracked glass balustrades and damaged sealant among the defects inspectors look for. The PFI applies to buildings more than 13 m high and at least 20 years old, every seven years. Each façade type is classified as Safe, Require Repair or Unsafe, and BCA's guidelines say the inspector should report unsafe conditions to BCA and the owner immediately.
From the RRD Field Guide, checked against the sources cited in Tempered Glass Breakage and Glass Railings in Singapore: Nickel Sulphide, Heat-Soak Testing and BCA Barrier Rules. General information, not advice for your project.
The fuller picture
Tempered glass can shatter without impact, months or years after installation, when a tiny nickel sulphide inclusion expands inside the glass. Heat-soak testing to EN 14179-1 reduces but does not eliminate this risk. In Singapore, BCA's acceptable solution requires glass in barriers to be laminated, barriers to be at least 1.0 m high, and tempered glass at height 2.4 m or more to be protected.
More questions on this topic
- Why did my tempered glass shatter when nobody touched it?
- Does heat-soak testing make tempered glass safe?
- Must glass balustrades in Singapore be laminated?
- How high must a balcony railing be in Singapore?
- Is laminated glass the same as tempered glass?
- Who is responsible for a cracked glass balustrade in a condo?