December 2025: Major Updates to Construction Materials and Building Standards

December 2025 marks a pivotal month for the construction materials and building sector, with the publication of four significant international standards that address critical aspects of quality, safety, and performance. From advanced testing methods for dust collection systems and structural bolting to comprehensive design guidance for concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) hybrid structures and rigorous performance testing for modern ventilation units, these new standards deliver fresh insights and essential requirements for industry professionals. This article—Part 2 of our December coverage—digs deep into each standard, providing highlights, compliance guidance, technical insights, and direct access to the new documents.

Overview / Introduction

The construction materials and building industry relies on robust international standards to ensure structures are safe, resilient, and efficient. Whether it’s the performance of dust collection systems in industrial environments, the long-term reliability of bolted steel connections, innovative hybrid structure design, or high-performance residential ventilation, standards play a crucial role in supporting quality outcomes and regulatory compliance.

Professionals reading this article will learn about the latest requirements and test methods, practical implementation strategies, and the impact these standards have on business operations, procurement, engineering design, and ongoing compliance.

Detailed Standards Coverage

ISO 16313-1:2025 - Laboratory Test of Dust Collection Systems Utilizing Filter Media with Automatic Online Cleaning – Part 1: System Utilizing Integrated Fans

Laboratory test of dust collection systems utilizing filter media with automatic online cleaning — Part 1: System utilizing integrated fans

This standard defines a unified laboratory test method for assessing the performance of compact dust collectors that use integrated fans and pulse-cleaning filter media. It covers testing both new systems and those after a period of use, simulating real-world operating conditions for small, cartridge- or bag-type dry dust collectors with automated cleaning features.

Scope and Approach

• Applicability: Small dust collectors utilizing cartridge or molded/bag filters with pulse cleaning, excluding mist/fume-specific collectors.
• Test Concept: Uses a 'black box' approach—testing the unit to manufacturer specs, with only test dust and pulse interval adjusted.
• Performance Evaluation: Provides standardized results for pressure drop, airflow rate, energy consumption, and dust emission—but does not rank competitive products' superiority.

Key Requirements & Specifications

• Test Setup: Prescribes both Type 1 and Type 2 arrangements, requiring specific ducting, dust dispersal, airflow, and pressure measurement equipment per ISO 5801.
• Test Dust: Defines criteria and handling for dust used in tests, ensuring realistic and reproducible results.
• Pulse Cleaning: Establishes procedures and timing for break-in, ageing, stabilization, and performance measurement phases.
• Reporting: Specifies detailed documentation of setup, test conditions, dust concentrations, airflow metrics, and pressure drops.

Target Audience

• Manufacturers, quality control teams, compliance officers, plant maintenance managers, and any facility using or specifying compact dust collectors.

Implementation Implications

• Drives comparability and transparency for purchasers and regulators.
• Promotes consistent product claims from suppliers.
• Informs maintenance and replacement decisions.

Notable Changes

• First edition standardizes laboratory testing for compact collectors—previously unharmonized.

Key highlights:

• 'Black box' testing for real-world performance
• Full simulation of dust and filter ageing
• Detailed test setup ensures repeatability

Access the full standard: View ISO 16313-1:2025 on iTeh Standards

ISO 18953:2025 - Steel Structures – Structural Bolting – Test Methods to Determine Loss of Pretension From Faying Surface Coatings

Steel structures — Structural bolting — Test methods to determine loss of pretension from faying surface coatings

IS0 18953:2025 provides test methodologies for measuring how coatings—such as paint, galvanization, duplex or thermal spray systems—on the contact (faying) surfaces of bolted steel joints affect loss of pretension forces in high-strength bolts. This is crucial for ensuring the safety and durability of steel structures over time.

Scope and Application

• Relevance: Applies when coatings are thick enough (typically >100μm) or potentially creep-prone, affecting the clamping force in pre-tensioned joints.
• Exclusions: Does not cover insulation or materials of much lower stiffness than steel within the bolt grip.

Key Test Methods

• Instrumentation: Employs bolt strain gauges, donut load cells, or equivalent technology conforming to ISO/ASTM calibration requirements.
• Test Assemblies: Both single-bolt and multi-bolt configurations; real-world surface prep, coating applications, and curing must be documented and matched to actual use.
• Procedures: Full documentation of pretensioning sequence, bolt sizes, washer configurations, and time-dependent measurements (minimum 14 days).
• Data Output: Pretension loss plotted against log(time), allowing extrapolation to expected service life.

Beneficiaries

• Structural steel fabricators, assembly contractors, project owners, quality control inspectors, certification agencies.

Practical Implications

• Enables accurate assessment of long-term joint performance in bridges, buildings, and critical structures.
• Supports coating system selection and verification for durability.
• Minimizes the risk of unforeseen joint loosening or failure.

Changes From Previous Practices

• Systematizes and harmonizes testing globally where only localized or proprietary methods existed before.

Key highlights:

• Measures effect of surface coatings on bolt tension loss
• Supports long-term extrapolation to determine service-life risks
• Essential for both new construction and retrofits/repairs

Access the full standard: View ISO 18953:2025 on iTeh Standards

ISO/TR 25439:2025 - Design Examples of Concrete-Filled Steel Tubular (CFST) Hybrid Structures in Accordance with ISO 16521

Design examples of concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) hybrid structures in accordance with ISO 16521

ISO/TR 25439:2025 is an invaluable technical report providing worked design examples based on the requirements of ISO 16521 for concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) hybrid structures. This document bridges the gap from principle to practice, offering calculations, design procedures, and real-life sample configurations.

Scope and Content

• Coverage: Examples for trussed CFST structures (three- and four-chord, with or without slabs) and concrete-encased CFST hybrids.
• Loads & Procedures: All major load cases are covered (axial, bending, combined actions). Step-by-step for preliminary design, structural analysis, limit state checks, and protective measures (corrosion, impact, fire).
• Material Matching: Detailed checks for steel tube/concrete compatibility, reinforcement placement, and cross-section requirements.
• Connections and Detailing: Resistance and requirements for joints, fatigue analysis, and void ratio calculation.

Who Should Use This Report

• Structural engineers, designers, engineering educators, building officials, and anyone implementing or teaching hybrid structure design.

Implementation Benefits

• Accelerates design adoption of innovative CFST hybrids.
• Confirms code compliance through direct ISO 16521 referencing.
• Provides a solid foundation for tender documentation, review, and peer comparison.

Unique Contributions

• First global set of CFST example designs correlating directly to ISO 16521
• Serves as a template for both practicing engineers and code reviewers

Key highlights:

• Demonstrates structural design for diverse CFST hybrid applications
• Covers both routine and complex load, connection, and detailing cases
• Supports adoption of cutting-edge composite structure techniques

Access the full standard: View ISO/TR 25439:2025 on iTeh Standards

EN 13141-7:2021+A1:2025 - Ventilation for Buildings – Performance Testing of Components/Products for Residential Ventilation – Part 7: Performance Testing of Ducted Mechanical Supply and Exhaust Ventilation Units (Including Heat Recovery)

Ventilation for buildings – Performance testing of components/products for residential ventilation – Part 7: Performance testing of ducted mechanical supply and exhaust ventilation units (including heat recovery)

This European Standard (with 2025 Amendment 1) prescribes laboratory test methods for assessing aerodynamic, thermal, acoustic, and electrical performance of ducted residential ventilation units—including those with heat recovery. These bidirectional (supply/exhaust) units are critical for energy-efficient, healthy indoor air environments.

Standard Scope

• Applies To: Factory-assembled units with internal fans, air filters, air-to-air heat exchangers or heat pumps, and integrated controls.
• Types of Tests:
  • Aerodynamic testing (leakage, airflow/pressure curves)
  • Thermal efficiency and performance (including cold climate operation)
  • Acoustic output
  • Energy consumption
• Configuration: Addresses both single-unit and multi-assembly modular systems.
• Excludes: Non-ducted units, space and hot water heating, and combustion-driven compression/absorption heat pumps.

Key Requirements and Procedures

• Accurate, repeatable test methods for flow, leakage, pressure, and temperature
• Updated categories for heat exchangers
• Enhanced testing for reference pressure and air volume determination
• Prescription of normalized testing for both standard and low-temperature conditions

Intended Audience

• Equipment manufacturers, HVAC consultants, building designers, energy auditors, regulatory authorities, certification labs.

Practical Impact

• Enables apples-to-apples comparison on efficiency, noise, and air quality performance.
• Supports CE/UKCA and other regional regulatory compliance.
• Encourages integration of high-performance ventilation in new and retrofit residential projects.

Major Changes in 2025 Amendment

• Normalization of test methods and symbols
• Addition of new heat exchanger categories, pressure and flow requirements, and enhanced evaluation for cold climates

Key highlights:

• Comprehensive test methods for all critical performance parameters
• Now covers new product categories and provides clearer compliance pathways
• Essential for manufacturers and specifiers of residential ventilation products

Access the full standard: View EN 13141-7:2021+A1:2025 on iTeh Standards

Industry Impact & Compliance

Business and Project Impacts

• Assurance: New and revised standards drive quality throughout procurement, commissioning, inspection, and operation.
• Regulatory Readiness: International harmonization speeds up product acceptance and site approvals.
• Risk Mitigation: Common testing and reporting eliminate guesswork for clients, authorities, and insurance entities.
• Competitive Advantage: Organizations demonstrating early and consistent compliance gain a reputational and operational edge.

Compliance Strategies

• Assess Scope: Identify which processes, products, and projects fall under each standard.
• Timeline Planning: Standards adopted starting December 2025; organizations should update specifications promptly to maintain compliance.
• Gap Analysis: Review current procedures/testing against new requirements.
• Training & Qualifications: Ensure staff and contractors are conversant with new procedures, measurement tools, and reporting formats.

Benefits of Adoption

• Improved Safety and Performance: Tighter control of design, test, and operational variables reduces defects and failures.
• Simplified Procurement: Standards-based specs streamline vendor selection and acceptance.
• Sustainability and Efficiency: Advanced ventilation and structural systems enhance building sustainability.

Consequences of Non-Compliance

• Delayed Approvals: Non-compliant products or tests could stall market or project entry after December 2025.
• Liability Exposure: Gaps in quality or safety documentation can increase risk in claims and disputes.
• Brand Reputation: Falling behind on standards adoption puts a company at a disadvantage with clients and regulators.

Technical Insights

Technical Requirements Trends

• Data-Driven Testing: Precise, long-term measurements (e.g., pretension loss, dust collection efficacy) are prioritized.
• Comprehensive Reporting: Each standard mandates extensive documentation, traceability, and transparency for auditability.
• Harmonized Calculations: Structural design now benefits from harmonized inputs and outputs, supporting cross-border projects.
• Enhanced Environmental Controls: Ventilation and filtration performance tests are increasingly tied to health and sustainability outcomes.

Best Practices for Implementation

1. Pre-Test Calibration: Verify instrument calibration per ISO or EN requirements before every compliance test.
2. Replicate Field Conditions: Where possible, ensure that laboratory setups or design simulations mirror real-world use, not just ideal conditions.
3. Documentation: Maintain detailed records, as prescribed, including configurations, test conditions, and results for each product/test.
4. Periodic Reassessment: Reevaluate end-of-life and long-term predictions based on real operation data versus initial lab results.
5. Certificates and Declarations: Retain manufacturer and third-party certificates for coatings, components, and testing equipment.

Testing and Certification Considerations

• Third-Party Certification: Particularly for life safety/applicability claims, use recognized and accredited labs for verification.
• Ongoing Training: Technical staff should stay up-to-date with evolving instrumentation, test standards, and analysis software.
• Audit Preparedness: Set up internal systems for quick, transparent retrieval of compliance records.

Conclusion / Next Steps

The December 2025 suite of new standards for construction materials and building provides clear, rigorous guidance across dust collection, structural integrity, hybrid design innovation, and residential environmental performance. Industry organizations, designers, and manufacturers should integrate these standards into their quality programs and procurement frameworks, ensuring ongoing compliance and enhanced market competitiveness.

Recommendations:

• Review and update your organization's relevant specifications, procedures, and training materials to reflect these standards.
• Leverage the detailed design examples and test protocols provided to streamline adoption.
• Encourage your teams to visit iTeh Standards and directly access each full document for deeper technical knowledge.
• Monitor forthcoming updates and related standards to stay at the forefront of international best practices.

Stay ahead—implement the December 2025 construction materials and building standards to drive quality, safety, and performance across your projects.