Repeat of previous with second paragragh corrected.

I am a civil engineer who for a number of years has been working as a consultant in the small building side of the industry.

Every few years I get asked to prove by calculation the stability of glazed PVC-U structures that fall within the jurisdiction of the building regulations.

I do have a copy of the publication "Guidelines for the Design and Installation of PVC-U Conservatories. This helps on most matters, but unfortunately omits to address the subject of the racking resistance of the structure.

The big anomoly is that the PVC-U is always described as a none structural material, yet it is only the PVC-U of the building that connects the steel reinforcement elements together.

Last time this problem arose for me was in 2002. The only way round it was to instruct some destructive testing on a sample glazed unit.

I am now writing to enquire whether the industry has published further "design guides" that now include the subject of racking or sway resistance of the structure.