Industry Standard Update 134

IGEM/G/5 Edition 3 with amendments April 2023 and April 2026 Gas in multi-occupancy buildings

Date issued: 13 May 2026

This Industry Standard Update provides an overview of the recently published revised Industry Standard IGEM/G/5 Edition 3 with amendments April 2023 and April 2026 Gas in multi-occupancy buildings and highlights areas of significant change that the revision has introduced.

Introduction

During April 2026, IGEM published a revision to IGEM/G/5 Edition 3 with amendments April 2023 Gas in multi-occupancy buildings(1). IGEM/G/5 Edition 3 with amendments April 2023 and April 2026(2) (Communication 1911) supersedes Edition 3 (April 2023 – Communication 1874), which is now obsolete.

The following is a brief overview of the amendments made to IGEM/G/5 Edition 3 (April 2026).

General

Notes throughout the document regarding ‘other building services’ have been updated to include, but are not limited to, a building’s lightning protection system, electrical cables, water pipes, sewage pipes, IT and TV communication cables. 

A new clause has been added to a number of sections: it states that external metallic pipework that does not act as an extraneous-conductive part shall not be cross-bonded to the building’s lightning protection system. This is now found in clauses 7.1.5, 9.4.2.3.6, and 12.1.4.

The main changes made in the update are additional information included in Section 14 – Electrical safety. These changes are designed to highlight possible issues relating to the application of Protective Multiple Earthing (PME) within multi-occupancy buildings, whereby an active fault on a PME service may result in a current travelling across parallel paths via the building’s earthing and bonding arrangements, including metallic gas pipework. 

Accordingly, there is now a requirement that a new or replacement Emergency Control Valve (ECV) shall include an electrical insulation joint. This requirement is not retrospective.

Summary

This Industry Standard Update is only a brief overview of the information contained in the amended standard. Registered businesses should be aware that they have a responsibility to ensure that they are fully apprised of all the requirements of the whole published standard and its practical application.

Bibliography

• IGEM/G/5 Edition with amendments April 2023 Gas in multi-occupancy buildings (Communication 1874)

• IGEM/G/5 Edition 3 with amendments April 2023 and April 2026 Gas in multi-occupancy buildings (Communication 1911)