The Grenfell inquiry’s fire safety expert has said the advice given by specialist fire engineers during the design stage of the tower block’s refurbishment, amounted to professional negligence.
Exova was employed to put together the fire strategy for the refurbishment of the Grenfell Tower, this included comments on how the construction changes may impact on the building’s fire safety performance.
In two written reports assessing the changes and their affect on external fire spread, Exova stated “proposed changes will have no adverse effect on the building in relation to external fire spread” but would be “confirmed in a future issue of this report”. These comments were made despite Exova not making an assessment of the cladding proposals.
Dr Barbara Lane, fire safety expert for the inquiry, who put together a report assessing the performance of Exova, said:
“Critically, Exova fails to identify that overcladding the entire building is a part of the definition of the refurbishment works in their report, but of more grave concern is they still go on to provide their advice that this part of the works would have no adverse effect.
“Yet the records show the staff at Exova had never analysed the external wall construction proposals and so were not in any position to make this statement. Therefore, I conclude this was very serious evidence of professional negligence, from my perspective as a practicing fire engineer.”
When asked at the inquiry if her position with regard to these comments had changed after hearing evidence from Exova employees, she said no.
Representatives of the firm have previously told the inquiry that Exova was not part of the process of selecting the cladding, the choice of materials used, nor was it responsible for designing, installing, or approving the system.
They maintain that after the lead contractor (Rydon) was appointed in March 2014, it chose not to appoint Exova nor did it ask Exova to update the advice that it had given previously, before the cladding system had been chosen.
By Patrick Mooney, Editor