The introduction of the UK’s own UKCA mark has continued to be a vexed issue for fasteners and fixings. Along with other building products, they fall under the Construction Products Regulations (CPR). UKCA replaces the European CE mark, which indicates that products for sale conform with all necessary safety, technical, and performance requirements.

In December the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), which is responsible for products which fall under the CPR, issued new advice. This advice differed markedly from the previous advice, and from the arrangements for non-CPR products managed by other government departments. The good news is that CE will continue to be recognised on CPR products until the end of June 2025. This removes any shorter-term concerns about availability of products which meet regulations.

From 1^st July 2025 products will have to be UKCA marked to comply with CPR. However, and it’s a big however, existing test results from a non-UK laboratory, the majority of those used for CE testing, are no longer considered acceptable to obtain the UKCA mark. This means that in spite of there being no technical differences between CE and UKCA technical requirements, almost all products which fall under CPR and require UKCA will need to be re-tested in the UK at significant additional cost. An additional serious concern is that with the limited test facilities available in the UK, and the long lead times for Far East sourced product, it will be very challenging to ensure that by the end of June 2025, all stock being sold to end users is UKCA marked.

Demand has remained subdued with slowing new house building only being partly offset by a more robust commercial market. In the critical RM&I sector, low consumer confidence seems to be filtering through as reduced demand. Overall sales remain flat in value with the volume deficit being offset with higher prices. Landed costs from Far East suppliers are fairly stable which is expected to reflect in more stable prices moving through 2023.