Elevating Highway Standards: BBA Celebrates Recent HAPAS Certifications

The British Board of Agrément’s (BBA) Highways Authority Product Approval Scheme (HAPAS) is highly regarded within the industry, known for its rigorous and thorough certification process. Amongst recent certifications achieved, the BBA has seen an increase in highway products that fall under HAPAS, marking their exceptional quality and performance. 

HAPAS was established by National Highways to ensure that products used on England’s Strategic Road Network (SRN), comprising motorways and A roads, meet stringent performance and safety criteria. The cornerstone of these standards is the Manual of Contracts for Highways Works (MCHW), considered the definitive guide for professionals in the sector. Within the MCHW, the Specification for Highways Works (SHW) section sets out the requirements for materials used in new developments, repairs, and maintenance. Many local authorities across the UK use the MCHW standards when specifying products and often require HAPAS certification on projects outside of the MCHW scope. The BBA uses these specifications to thoroughly assess and certify products, ensuring they are fit for purpose in their intended applications.  

The BBA’s certification process often involves System Installation Performance Trials (SIPT), where products are installed on live sites and audited over periods of up to two years to ensure sustained performance and reliability.  

Products frequently certified under the HAPAS scheme include crack-sealing materials, high-friction surfaces, and thin surfacing systems. High Friction Surfacing certification also requires at least one registered installer to be assessed under the BBA’s High Friction Surfacing Scheme. This meticulous approach underscores the BBA’s dedication to quality and safety. The BBA actively participates in specialist working groups to ensure it remains up to date with standards and to contribute to the development of technical specifications, underscoring its expertise in the highway sector.  

Recent HAPAS certificates awarded include: 

• Jobling Purser’s Armaflex SMA 10 Surf 40/60 Thin Surface Course System, a thin surfacing system for highways made from stone mastic asphalt for use as a surface course on new and maintenance road construction. 

• The recently certified Daltex Coldgrip Type 1 by Derbyshire Aggregates Ltd is a polyurethane-based high-friction surfacing system for use on bituminous highways. The product is a cold applied, thermoset system designed to provide the user with high skid resistance. 

• Ironwork reinstatement systems, the IKO Pacopatch by IKO, used for the installation and reinstatement of ironwork, up to and including Class D400 of BS EN 124-1: 2015, in footways also gained certification. The product can be used on footpaths, cycle-tracks and carriageways excluding hard strips, hard shoulders, central reserve crossovers of motorways and all-purpose trunk roads, where rapid construction is required. 

• Meon Limited gained certification for its crack sealing for highways, Ultracrack Overbanding, a methyl methacrylate (MMA) resin-based overbanding system used to seal and repair cracks, fretted joints and reinstatement joints up to 5mm wide in non-porous bituminous and concrete highways. 

HAPAS certifications ensure that products meet the highest standards of performance and safety for England’s Strategic Road Network. The BBA’s rigorous assessment process, accredited by UKAS, ensures the reliability and quality of certified products and continues to uphold the BBA as a leading authority in construction and highway safety. 

Click here for a full list of new BBA certifications

For certification details, please search MyBBA