The nine requirements of the document
| Section | Risk addressed |
|---|---|
| SUA 1 | Falls: slipperiness, level changes, stairs, ramps, glazing cleaning |
| SUA 2 | Impact or entrapment with fixed and operable elements |
| SUA 3 | Being trapped in enclosed spaces |
| SUA 4 | Inadequate lighting, including emergency lighting |
| SUA 5 | High-occupancy situations in stands |
| SUA 6 | Drowning in swimming pools |
| SUA 7 | Moving vehicles in car parks |
| SUA 8 | Lightning action and the need for protection |
| SUA 9 | Accessibility |
Two blocks concentrate most design decisions and have their own article: fall safety, which governs the geometry of stairs, ramps and protective barriers, and the accessibility of requirement SUA 9, with its accessible routes, lifts and facilities. Both condition the geometry from preliminary design and do not admit late adjustment.
The key variable: building use
As in the rest of the CTE, requirements are modulated by use. The same staircase admits different geometries in a single-family house and in a public assembly building; the slip-resistance class required of a floor depends on location and slope; accessible provisions grow with the size and character of the building. The practical consequence is that the DB-SUA is not satisfied with a catalogue of standard details: each design needs its own reading of the tables.
On top of this state-level baseline sits regional and municipal accessibility regulation, frequently stricter. The design rule is always to apply the most restrictive condition and to document in the report which regulation governs each decision, because each territory's technical services check their own first.
Where it hits the budget
The cost of the DB-SUA is spread across three fronts. The first is geometry: stairs with code-compliant treads and risers, ramps with their maximum slopes and landings, guardrail heights and strengths. Direct extra cost is low here, but the opportunity cost in floor area can be high, because an accessible ramp or a properly sized core consumes sellable square metres.
The second is equipment: accessible lifts, adapted toilets with their technical aids, controls at regulation height, floors with the required slip-resistance class, signage. The third is glazing and protection: glazing with the required impact performance and barriers at every relevant level change.
As an indicative order of magnitude, the whole can sit between 2 and 5 % of the PEM (presupuesto de ejecución material, the direct construction cost) in multi-family residential, with the accessible lift as the dominant item in mid-sized buildings. The item-by-item reading is developed in the article on the cost of CTE compliance.
Application errors worth avoiding
The first is designing accessibility as a final add-on. Accessible routes condition the position of cores, clear widths and slopes; incorporating them late forces chain redesigns.
The second is forgetting that requirement SUA 9 also reaches common areas and provisions: accessible parking spaces, accessible dwellings where applicable, controls and signage. The scope is checked across the whole building and not only the dwellings.
The third is neglecting slip resistance: the floor's class is a performance that is specified, purchased and verified, not a happy accident of the chosen finish. The class required depends on where the floor sits and must appear in the design.
The fourth is treating evacuation and accessibility separately: both share routes, and elements such as the refuge areas of the DB-SI only work if coordinated with the accessible routes of the DB-SUA. The coordination is resolved on the plan, not in the report.
Note: percentages and orders of magnitude are indicative and vary with building type, region and market conditions. The reference in force is the consolidated version of the DB-SUA published on the official CTE portal.