Uniclass 2015 - April 2020 update

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This is the latest in our quarterly updating programme for Uniclass 2015. It includes updates to five tables.

We aim to minimize changes to existing codes and classifications, but we always take feedback from users into account. Any changes are the result of this input combined with our own ongoing review.

New for this updates

In addition to the PDF revision files detailing the changes to the tables in this update, we have prepared an Excel spreadsheet which also has details of all the changes. Please let us know if this format is helpful in managing the updating of the processes which use Uniclass 2015.

View the change log 

 

Updates to existing tables

Throughout the tables, we have added and amended codes as a result of requests and feedback from users and experts.

In the Spaces/ location table we have added a code for Adult changing rooms to align with codes in the Products table. We have also added a code in the Entities table for Hedges, which can be classified in more detail in the Systems table.

The Products table has a number of additional classifications for items including soil nailing products, stair landing units and components for SCADA systems. Products have also been added as a result of our work with BESA to map to the SFG20 templates. As a result of some feedback, several classifications have been corrected to provide more clarity. In the section for Cladding and lining panels we have had to reuse a code for a product that has been deleted in this update. Carbon steel composite panels are the same product as Carbon steel insulating sandwich panels, so the former has been deleted. The code, Pr_25_71_14_11, has then been used to add Autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) cladding units.

Following feedback from Bond Bryan and Lingwell Consulting we have added a number of new classifications to the Project management table.

Changes to codes and classifications

Our main priority when updating the Uniclass classification tables is to avoid changing existing codes and classifications as far as possible. We add new codes and amend existing classifications in response to feedback, but some feedback causes us to review the existing tables and to identify anomalies. This may lead to us deleting a classification because it is duplicated elsewhere, and we use the revision sheets to point users to the correct location. In other cases, we can see that the groupings of some classifications are incorrect, and so we have to resolve these inconsistencies.

Currently, we are working with the new Water Industry Classification and Hierarchy Standardization (WICHS) group in order to review all aspects of water supply and wastewater management. In the future, this will result in additions to the Complexes, Entities and Spaces/ location tables, but in this update we have reviewed the relevant codes in the Systems table only. We have removed ‘Building and land drainage’ from subgroup classification Ss_50_30 and restricted this subgroup to above-ground systems.

In order to reflect the fact that drainage below ground can be the responsibility of one of many different organizations or private individuals, we have removed the reference to ‘Utilities’ in the subgroup Ss_50_35 and moved all the sections for below-ground systems into this subgroup.

A query from Transport for New South Wales (TfNSW) caused us to look at the classifications for road signal and control systems. This highlighted a number of duplicate codes, which we have removed, and prompted us to amend the systems for traffic control systems.

Full details of these and other changes are detailed in the revision sheets.

Download the tables

 

Continuing input and feedback

Between updates, we liaise regularly with a growing number of individuals and organizations using the tables in order to provide support and evaluate requests for new codes. We are grateful to all the organizations that we have worked with for their input. As we share details of this activity, industry professionals can learn more about who else is using the tables, what purposes they are using them for, the range of changes to expect and the reasons for those changes.

The work of maintaining and enhancing Uniclass 2015 to continually support the needs of those operating in the built environment is an ongoing exercise. We welcome comment and input from all sectors in the construction industry via uniclass2015@theNBS.com.

Changes to published versions

Status and revision information is available alongside each Uniclass 2015 table. Each information sheet (PDF) provides a summary of the changes made, as well as code-by-code details.

Uniclass 2015 is a dynamic classification for the construction industry. If you wish to get in touch, please do so at uniclass2015@theNBS.com.

The text of this page is available for modification and reuse under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 3.0 Unported License and the GNU Free Documentation License (unversioned, with no invariant sections, front-cover texts, or back-cover texts).

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