The review will look at lessons from the tragedy in terms of potential problems with procurement and all stages of the construction process.
The ICE said: “The independent review will seek to identify and address systemic issues highlighted by the Grenfell Tower fire, which may increase the risk of a serious failure of infrastructure assets and networks in the UK.”
It will be led by former government Chief Construction Advisor Peter Hansford and will complete its review by October.
Issues to be covered include:
- Competency and capability within owners, clients and all tiers of the supply chain, including capabilities to understand and manage whole systems
- Responsibility and accountability for safety at all stages of the assets’ life-cycle
- Inspection and quality assurance regimes during and following construction, operational management and in-service modification, refurbishment and re-fit
- Creation, maintenance and implementation of regulation, guidance and codes & standards
- Assessment and management of system related risks
- The effectiveness of industry efforts to understand and apply lessons from recent catastrophic failures
- The impact of procurement practice, commercial arrangements and changes to professional roles and culture on all of the above.
President of ICE Professor Tim Broyd said: “ICE’s aim with this review is to establish what needs to be done to mitigate the risk of a similar tragedy resulting from the failure of infrastructure assets or networks.
“As the world’s premier civil engineering organisation it is right that we assess whether change is needed to how we procure, design, construct and maintain the UK’s infrastructure.”
Hansford said: “The Grenfell Tower tragedy has quite rightly led to a period of deep reflection amongst civil engineers about what the failings at Grenfell highlight for practices across the construction sector.
“Inevitably the Judicial Inquiry and any criminal investigation may take time to complete. It is important however that the profession moves quickly to capture and implement lessons as quickly as possible”.
