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In these newsletters, we cover the latest building industry news, trends, and tips. In this particular issue, we touch on new inspection templates, improvements to compliance schedules and what they mean for you, and a new process to help with complex projects.
Building trends
The introduction of the last of the new H1 insulation requirements by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment on May 1 2023 recently resulted in QLDC receiving over 200 building consent applications in May. This is only the second time in the last three years our Building Services team has received 200 or more consent applications in a single month.
The sudden influx has resulted in our Processing team being put under significant pressure trying to work through the backlog of consents. Unfortunately, limited contractor resource means applicants should expect temporary delays in their building consents being processed and issued. We appreciate your patience while our team works hard to return processing timeframes back to our usual average of 12 to 13 working days.
Inspection timeframes are also being put under pressure due to consistently high inspection numbers and the limited contractor resource. We’re often asked why we don’t simply employ more inspectors, so we don’t have to rely heavily on contractors. The answer is despite regular advertising over the last five years, we have been unsuccessful in attracting even one experienced and qualified building inspector from outside the district in that time, with potential applicants often citing the cost of housing as a barrier. Instead, we train people from scratch, usually people already living here, and assist them through the required qualifications. And that process accounts for a lot of a new inspector’s time during their first two years with QLDC. To sum this particular issue up, there’s no easy or quick solution in sight!
Chris English
QLDC Building Services Manager
New inspection templates
We have been updating our mobile inspection platform, and as part of the update we have changed and consolidated our inspections. All the new inspection templates are now implemented and used on site. A short description of all inspection types can be found here: Site Inspection Description and the full content of our templates can be accessed through our website: QLDC Building Inspections.
Your building consent lists all the inspections required for your specific project under “Inspections and General Information”. Please use these inspection names when contacting us to book inspections.
Please note: If your building consent has been issued prior to September 2022, the inspection names listed on your issued building consent will not match our new inspection types. However, our knowledgeable booking team is aware of this and will be able to assist you in finding the correct inspections required. An overview of the changes can be found in our Transition to new inspection types document.
BWoF : Missed inspection and maintenance procedures
QLDC is following new guidance given by MBIE for Building Warrant of Fitness (BWoF), missed inspection and maintenance procedures. We accept a completed BWoF Report and Declaration (B-RaD) and Specified System Report and Declaration (S-RaD) when a BWoF is due, but cannot be supplied and displayed because inspection, maintenance and reporting (IMR) procedures were missed. The new forms can be accessed through the MBIE website at MBIE missed inspection and maintenance procedure declaration forms.
These still do not give the building owner a BWoF, but they provide information on the current state of the building. QLDC will review these forms on a case-by-case basis and, if required, will follow the normal process in relation to issuing a Notice to Fix (NTF) if appropriate.
It’s important to note the supply and display of a B-RaD does not change any responsibilities an owner has under the Act, including the offence provisions under section 108 and breaches under section 164. For more information head to our website or visit the MBIE website at MBIE - Inspection and maintenance of specified systems.
If you have any questions, please contact us via email building@qldc.govt.nz or phone on 03 450 0369.
Learn more about the compliance schedule
A compliance schedule is a document issued by Council that lists the specified systems within a building (for example, automatic fire sprinklers, fire alarms, lifts, air conditioning systems) and the performance standards for those systems. The compliance schedule also states how the systems will be monitored and maintained to ensure they are performing in accordance with the performance standard, to make sure the building is safe and healthy for people to enter, occupy or work in.
In 2022, MBIE released a case-study ‘exemplar’ compliance schedule. This aimed to provide the industry with a best-practice document to act as a template that councils could use, which will satisfy the current legislation if completed appropriately with building-specific information about all the installed specified systems. You can view the MBIE document here.
Since then, QLDC and all other councils have been trying to raise the quality and specificity of their compliance schedules. We began by undertaking a review of the existing compliance schedules on some of our own buildings, such as Memorial Hall and the Wānaka Recreation Centre, to bring them up to a standard more in line with the MBIE exemplar. Across our district, we have over 800 existing compliance schedules, and this remains an ongoing project to work with building owners to improve the standard and content of these existing compliance schedules.
If you are applying for a building consent that requires a new or altered compliance schedule, we aim to work with the applicant at building consent and code compliance certificate stage, to ensure we are creating a building-specific document. The document contains clear and useful information for both the building owner and the Independent Qualified Persons (IQPs) who will be carrying out checks on the systems over the life of the building.
The applicant will be required to provide full information on all specified systems within the building. This includes:
- Performance standards to which the specified systems will be installed – this is now included in the Form 2 under Appendix A.
- Inspection maintenance and reporting procedures to be listed on the compliance schedule.
- Certification confirming the systems have been installed correctly, as per the construction documentation requirements listed on your building consent.
- As built plans showing the layout of the specified systems where required.
If your building consent includes new or altered specified systems, we will include a draft compliance schedule with your issued building consent. There will also be a requirement for a specified systems inspection to be undertaken to ensure all systems are completed and commissioned, and that any discrepancies from the draft compliance schedule are picked up. The template for the specified systems inspection can be found here. The final version of the compliance schedule will be collated to be issued with the code compliance certificate.
More information on the compliance schedule process can be found on QLDC’s website here.
New process for a Pre Construction Meeting
We have introduced a process for a Pre Construction Meeting for complex projects, which will be used to establish an inspection regime to match the planned build process. This allows multiple inspections of the same inspection type to be scheduled and completed, avoiding large numbers of in progress inspections that can make it difficult to sort and confirm all the areas that have been inspected. This will also help everyone stay on track managing the building process. The sample below shows how a job can be split up. Each inspection type can be completed as each stage is completed. Once all the stages have a pass, the job is complete.
Example of a commercial multi-unit alteration.
The Pre Construction Meeting should be scheduled before any inspection starts on site and is required for complex residential or commercial projects, e.g., projects with three or more buildings or household units on site, buildings with three or more levels or a footprint of over 700m2. The meeting is held with the project manager or the person who will be overseeing the project and can be booked with an email to building@qldc.govt.nz or by calling 03 450 0369.
The outcome of the meeting will be recorded in your inspections folder and communicated to you in an email. The requirement for this meeting will be outlined in your issued building consent documentation under “Inspections and General Information” and will be listed as the first inspection to complete. However, you don’t need to have a Pre Construction Meeting listed on your building consent in order to be able to book this.
If you believe your project might benefit from a complex structure, please get in touch with QLDC via email or on the phone.
To view previous issues, please visit: https://www.qldc.govt.nz/services/building-services/additional-information/brace-yourself-building-services-newsletter
If there is a topic that you would like to see covered, please let us know by emailing: chris.english@qldc.govt.nz
