BRE 401

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BRE-Building Regulatory Environment Course 401 Student Study Guide

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Workbook Index 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

Introduction Requirements for a building consent application a. Statutory declarations accompanying an application b. Key terms used in an application What are plans and specifications? a. What do plans and specifications include? b. Specification structure c. Specialist input into the plans and specifications d. Inspections by the owner BCA Processes relating to building consent applications a. Regulations 7(2)(b), (c) and (d)(i) – Receiving applications for building consents

Page 3 Page 4 Page 8 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 10 Page 11 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13

b. BCA Accreditations scheme checklist BCA processes (General) a. Allocation of processing Processing and application for building consent a. Satisfied on reasonable grounds Granting and issuing a building consent a. Conditions on a building consent b. Timeframes linked to issuing and granting Inspection of building work a. Performing inspections b. Types of inspections Certifying building work – Code compliance certificates a. Compliance schedules Quality Management Systems (QMS) a. Overview of BCA quality system b. Management and operations c. Policy on quality Managing effective and systematic record keeping processes and associated legislation

Page 14 Page 15 Page 15 Page 23 Page 23 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 36 Page 38 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 42 Page 44

a. Filling an application for building consent b. Recording a unique file number c. Information relevant to an application d. Storing additional information e. Ensuring information is accessible, retrievable, and stored securely Appropriate professional, ethical, social, and cultural practices in all aspects of support work

Page 44 Page 44 Page 44 Page 45

a. Māori responsiveness b. Managing language barriers c. Conflicts of interest

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Introduction This course provides the students with the skills and knowledge to provide support services to meet building regulatory operations and apply relevant parts of a quality management system to support approval processes.

Learning Outcomes At the successful completion of this course, students will be able to: 1. Apply administrative services and maintain accurate records to assist and support building approval processes and compliance in a building regulatory environment 2. Use relevant technical and administrative requirements of a quality management system to provide administrative support services in a building regulatory environment.

This module covers: Day 1: Requirements for a building consent application: • Application and Form 2 of the Building Forms Regulations • What are plans and specifications • BCA Processes for building consent applications Day 2: BCA processes relating to: • Processing building consent applications • Granting and issuing building consents • Inspecting building work • Certifying building work through the issue of a code compliance certificate Day 3: Quality Management systems in BCAs • how they relate to the above BCA processes • Managing effective and systematic record keeping processes and the relevant legislation.

• Appropriate professional, ethical, social, and cultural practices in all aspects of support work.

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Requirements for building consent applications An owner wishing to undertake building work will require a building consent to do that work if it is not contained in Schedule 1 of the Building Act 2004 (Building work exempt from the requirement of a building consent). There is one other area in the Building Act where a building consent is not required and that is section 41 where work is required to be undertaken urgently. In that case a certificate of acceptance must be applied for as soon as practicable after the building work has been completed.

To obtain a building consent the owner will need to apply for a building consent at the BCA that is responsible for the area where the building work will take place. This will usually be a council responsible for its district or city.

Applications for building consents are made on Form 2 of the Building (Forms) Regulations 2004. Form 2 is duplicated below.

Form 2 Application for project information memorandum and/or building consent Section 33 or section 45, Building Act 2004

The building Street address of building: [for structures that do not have a street address, state the nearest street intersection and the distance and direction from that intersection] Legal description of land where building is located: [state legal description as at the date of application and, if the land is proposed to be subdivided, include details of relevant lot numbers and subdivision consent] Building name: Location of building within site/block number: [include nearest street access] Number of levels: [include ground level and any levels below ground] Level/unit number: Area: [total floor area; indicate area affected by the building work if less than the total area] Current, lawfully established, use: [include number of occupants per level and per use if more than 1] Year first constructed:

The owner Name of owner: [include preferred form of address, eg, Mr, Miss, Dr, if an individual] *Contact person: Mailing address: Street address/registered office: Phone number: 0800 550 410

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Daytime: After hours: Facsimile number: Email address: Website: The following evidence of ownership is attached to this application: [copy of record of title, lease, agreement for sale and purchase, or other document showing full name of legal owner(s) of the building]

†Agent †Name of agent: [only required if application is being made on behalf of the owner] *Contact person: Mailing address: Street address/registered office: Phone number: Landline: Mobile: Daytime: After hours: Facsimile number: Email address: Website: Relationship to owner: [state details of the authorisation from the owner to make the application on the owner’s behalf] First point of contact for communications with the council/building consent authority: [state full name, mailing address, phone number(s), facsimile number(s) and email address(es)‡]

Application I request that you issue a †project information memorandum/†project information memorandum and building consent/†building consent for the building work described in this application.

Signature of †owner/†agent on behalf of and with the authority of the owner: Date: space for council use

The project Description of the building work: Will the building work result in a change of use of the building?

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†If Yes, provide details of the new use: Intended life of the building if less than 50 years: . years List building consents previously issued for this project (if any): Estimated value of the building work on which the building levy will be calculated (including goods and services tax): $ [state estimated value as defined in section 7 of the Building Act 2004]

Restricted building work Will the building work include any restricted building work? *Yes/*No *If Yes, provide the following details of all licensed building practitioners who will be involved in carrying out or supervising the restricted building work [If these details are unknown at the time of the application, they must be supplied before the building work begins.]: Licensin Licensed building practitioner number (or registration number if g Nameclass treated as being licensed under section 291 of Act) Note: Continue on another page if necessary.

§Project information memorandum The following matters are involved in the project: †Subdivision †Alterations to land contours †New or altered connections to public utilities †New or altered locations and/or external dimensions of buildings †New or altered access for vehicles †Building work over or adjacent to any road or public place †Disposal of stormwater and wastewater †Building work over any existing drains or sewers or in close proximity to wells or water mains †Other matters known to the applicant that may require authorisations from the territorial authority: [specify]

║Building consent ¶The following plans and specifications are attached to this application: The building work will comply with the building code as follows: Clause Means of compliance Waiver/modification required [list relevant clause [refer to the relevant compliance [state nature of waiver or numbers code] document(s) or detail of alternative of building solution in the plans and specifications] 0800 550 410

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m o d i f i c a t i o n o f b u i l d i n g c o d e r e q u i r e d ]

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║Compliance schedule

†The specified systems for the building are as follows: [specified systems are defined in regulations] †The following specified systems are being altered, added to, or removed in the course of the building work: †There are no specified systems in the building.

†Attachments The following documents are attached to this application: †Plans and specifications [list] †Memoranda from licensed building practitioner(s) who carried out or supervised any design work that is restricted building work †Project information memorandum †Development contribution notice †Certificate attached to project information memorandum

*Delete if the applicant is an individual. †Delete if inapplicable. ‡Contact details must be in New Zealand. §Delete this section if this is an application for a building consent only. ║Delete this section if this is an application for a project information memorandum only. ¶All plans and specifications must meet the minimum requirements set out in the regulations or required by the building consent authority.

As you can see there is a lot of information that is required to be captured in the application form for a building consent. Critical information for the application includes: • • • • • • • •

Description of the building and its address Owners details and legal status of ownership Description of the building work being proposed Locations of the building work (both of a specific site and within a large site if the site is, for example, a school).

Restricted building work Whether or not a PIM is being applied for Compliance schedules/specified systems Any attachments with the application

This is basically the first document that a BCA will see prior to any work starting on a site.

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Statutory declarations that may accompany a building consent application In most cases these days there will be no statutory declaration accompanying a building consent application. However, as some New Zealander’s still have a ‘can do’ or ‘number eight wire’ attitude, Government has allowed owner builders to still undertake restricted building work and allow them to build their own home. Form 2B in the forms regulations is required to accompany the building consent application if and owner proposes to do any of the restricted building work themselves.

There are a few requirements if an owner builder decides to do restricted building work themselves, including: • • • •

Completion of the Form 2B Identification of the restricted building work that the owner is undertaking (and includes any design work, primary structure, external moisture management systems, and any fire safety systems).

Ownership evidence of the owner builder And the statutory declaration from the owner builder and the witnessing of signing the form from a JP, Barrister (not from the coffee cart!), solicitor of the High Court or other person authorized by law to take statutory declarations.

There are also some legal requirements such as a period of 3 years between evoking an owner builder status. This effectively means that an owner builder can only use this declaration after 3 years has passed from a previous declaration.

Key terms used in an application for a building consent (section 7 of the Building Act 2004)

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building work— (a) means work— (i) for, or in connection with, the construction, alteration, demolition, or removal of a building; and (ii) on an allotment that is likely to affect the extent to which an existing building on that allotment complies with the building code; and (b) includes sitework; and (c) includes design work (relating to building work) that is design work of a kind declared by the Governor-General by Order in Council to be restricted building work for the purposes of this Act; and (d) in Part 4, and the definition in this section of supervise, also includes design work (relating to building work) of a kind declared by the Governor-General by Order in Council to be building work for the purposes of Part 4 owner, in relation to land and any buildings on the land,— (a) means the person who— (i) is entitled to the rack rent from the land; or (ii) would be so entitled if the land were let to a tenant at a rack rent; and

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(b) includes—

(i) the owner of the fee simple of the land; and

(ii) for the purposes of sections 32, 44, 92, 96, 97, and 176(c), any person who

has agreed in writing, whether conditionally or unconditionally, to purchase the land or any leasehold estate or interest in the land, or to take a lease of the land, and who is bound by the agreement because the agreement is still in force Owner-builder has the meaning given to it by section 90B Owner-builder exemption means the exemption for owner-builders set out in section 90D

What are plans and specifications?

Plans and specifications are the documents that are provided by the applicant to design, construct and complete the building work. The definition of plans and specifications are contained in section 7 of the Building Act 2004: Plans and specifications— (a) means the drawings, specifications, and other documents according to which a building is proposed to be constructed, altered, demolished, or removed; and (b) includes the proposed procedures for inspection during the construction, alteration, demolition, or removal of a building; and (c) in the case of the construction or alteration of a building, also includes— (i) the intended use of the building; and (ii) the specified systems that the applicant for building consent considers will be required to be included in a compliance schedule required under section 100; and (iii) the proposed inspection, maintenance, and reporting procedures for the purposes of the compliance schedule for those specified systems

What do plans and specifications include?

Plans and specifications show how a building is intended to be constructed, altered, demolished or removed. Most building consent authorities provide guidance on any additional documentation they require with a building consent application (eg, check sheets).

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The Building Act provides for ‘other documents’, along with plans and specifications.

These include: • design calculations (eg, for some specifically engineered design element) • manufacturers’ data • technical opinions or appraisals • codes of practice.

Information in the plans and specifications should be project-specific. General phrases, such as ‘refer to manufacturer’s specification and/or requirements’ or ‘installed in accordance with best trade practice’ are insufficient. Manufacturers’ specifications can change, and views on ‘best trade practice’ vary between practitioners.

References to Standards and acceptable solutions should be specific. References to other industry guides, such as BRANZ publications, should also be specific.

All drawings should contain a drawing number and title, the designer’s and owner’s name and the job address, and be dated for version control.

Drawing conventions should be generally in accordance with AS/NZS 1100 Technical Drawing which includes requirements for: • line types and widths • lettering type and size • symbols for building features and elements • designation of spaces The size and complexity of the project determines the detail needed, and extent of associated structural and building services-related documents.

Specification structure A good project-specific specification has a logical structure to aid in navigation. The default standard classification system for New Zealand is Coordinated Building Information (CBI), recognised by the four digit numbers used to classify each work section (ie, chapter) of the specification.

There should be ‘Preliminaries’ and ‘General’ sections, followed by a series of technical work sections. Each work section or chapter should be laid out in a consistent pattern (such as ‘General’, ‘Products’, ‘Execution’, ‘Selections’), and a consistent clause numbering system should be used.

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Specialist input into the plans and specifications Plans and specifications, especially for large buildings will always include specialist input: This can be: • Engineering design of SED items • Fire reports • Hydraulic plans and calculations and the list can go on……….

Producer Statements (particularly for design or a PS1) will usually always be involved in a large building consent application and sometimes residential applications.

Inspections proposed by the owner The definition of plans and specifications in section 7 of the Building Act also include the proposed procedures for inspections for the construction of a building.

This particular aspect is where the owner can request (usually by negotiation with the BCA) a specialist inspect certain work.

An example of this would be where a Chartered Professional Engineer provide construction monitoring of the structural aspects of the construction and provide those monitoring reports and a Producer Statement- Construction review for the purposes of issuing a code compliance certificate.

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BCA Processes relating to building consent applications There are several processes that you use when accepting an application for a building consent, however section 45 of the Building Act 2004 is the legislative requirement.

45 How to apply for building consent (1) An application for a building consent must— (a) be in the prescribed form; and (b) be accompanied by plans and specifications that are— (i) required by regulations made under section 402; or (ii) if the regulations do not so require, required by a building consent authority; and (ba) if a national multiple-use approval has been issued in relation to some or all of the plans and specifications required under paragraph (b), be accompanied by— (i) a copy of that national multiple-use approval; and (ii) details of any proposed minor customisations; and (c) contain or be accompanied by any other information that the building consent authority reasonably requires; and (d) be accompanied by any fees and charges imposed by the building consent authority under section 219 or 240 (as applicable); and (e) in the case of an application for a building consent that relates to restricted building work, state the name of each licensed building practitioner who, as far as the applicant is aware at the time the application is made, will be involved in carrying out or supervising the restricted building work that is the subject of the application; and (f) if the owner applies for a project information memorandum for the building work under section 32 and the project information memorandum is then issued, be accompanied by— (i) the project information memorandum; and (ii) a development contribution notice under section 36 (if any); and (iii) a certificate issued under section 37 (if any); and (g) be accompanied by either one of the following: (i) if a compliance schedule is required as a result of the building work, a list of all specified systems for the building; or (ii) if an amendment to an existing compliance schedule is required as a result of the building work, a list of all specified systems that are being— (A) altered in the course of the building work: (B) added to the building in the course of the building work: (C) removed from the building in the course of the building work.

(2) If an application for a building consent is accompanied by plans and specifications that contain design work (relating to building work) that is restricted building work, that design work must be carried out or supervised by 1 or more licensed building practitioners who are licensed to carry out or supervise that work.

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(3) The plans and specifications that contain the design work referred to in subsection (2) must be accompanied by a certificate of work— (a) provided by 1 or more licensed building practitioners who carried out or supervised that design work; and (b) that identifies that design work; and (c) that states— (i) that the design work complies with the building code; or (ii) whether waivers or modifications of the building code are required and, if so, what those waivers or modifications are.

(3A) A certificate of work provided under subsection (3) does not, of itself,— (a) create any liability in relation to any matter to which the certificate of work relates; or (b) give rise to any civil liability to the owner that would not otherwise exist if the licensed building practitioner were not required to provide the certificate of work.

(4) An application for an amendment to a building consent must,— (a) in the case of a minor variation, be made in accordance with section 45A; and (b) in all other cases, be made as if it were an application for a building consent, and this section, and sections 48 to 51 apply with any necessary modifications.

(5) The application must be accompanied by a statutory declaration, in the prescribed form, as to owner-builder status— (a) if the building work includes restricted building work to be carried out by the owner-builder; or (b) if any accompanying plans or specifications contain design work that is restricted building work and that has been carried out by the owner-builder.

BCA Accreditation also has requirements to follow when receiving an application for a building consent. These help a BCA comply with the requirements of the Building Act 2004 and provide the BCA with robust procedures to follow. Regulation Regulations 7(2)(b), (c) and (d)(i) – Receiving applications for building consents Receiving and checking of applications for building consents to ensure that they include the relevant information required by the Act and associated regulations, MBIE and other agencies, and to enable a decision Essentially the BCA will set out what information it needs to process a building consent application; they will then produce an application checklist so that they can check whether the information has been provided at time of lodgement. Staff should also check that the application form (Form 2) and LBP memoranda (Form 2A) have been submitted and filled in correctly.

A clear and accurate description of the building work is essential; this is especially so in the case of amendments as it is important to understand the extent of the application.

In the case of amendments, clouds around the amended parts of the plans are helpful.

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Staff and customers alike also need to understand the statutory clock; when does it start and when does it stop. Guidance information should explain this process; systems should be in place to accurately record (date stamp) receipt of applications.

Most BCAs use non-technical staff to vet and receive applications over the counter.

Vetting officers work through a checklist and determine whether information has been provided rather than whether it is technically correct. This can be frustrating for the customer as they believe when it is accepted that it is OK. Then several days / weeks later if they receive an RFI they can become quite disgruntled.

Vetting officers are often under pressure and will take the application in, even if information is missing. Often the applicant will promise to send the information in within the next day or so. There are two problems with this approach. Firstly, officially the application has been accepted and the clock must start. Secondly officers can waste hours of their time phoning the applicant seeking this information when it is not forthcoming.

If an application is accepted when information is missing, this will generate an RFI. RFIs are costly and time consuming to deal with. Think about a BCOs hourly charge out rate ($130- 175 per hour); if you accept the application but tell the customer they will probably get an RFI and that it is going to add $$$ to their processing costs. Do you think the customer would be happy to pay for this or go away and get the information?

A BCA is expected to formally acknowledge the receipt of an application; typically a letter is posted / emailed to the applicant advising of the applications acceptance and what to expect next.

BCA Accreditation scheme checklist The attached link provides the minimum requirement that MBIE has provided as guidance to BCAs on meeting their requirements for applications for building sent under the BCA accreditation regulations. https://www.building.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/building- officials/bca-accreditation/bcachecklist-reg-7-2bcdi.docx

Group Activity 1: Comparison of your BCAs building consent application processes compared to the guidance provided by MBIE and the legislative requirements from section 45 of the Building Act 2004.

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Identify the following

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Does your BCAs application form comply with Form 2 of the Forms regulation 2004?

What (if any) are the differences? Discuss this with your lecturer in the next session.

BCA Processes (General) Regulation 7 of the BCA Accreditation regulations is the ‘bread and butter’ of a BCAs work; it involves performing consenting, inspection and certification functions. The bulk of a BCAs policies, procedures and systems will relate to this regulation.

Regulation 7 (1) simply requires BCAs to have policies and procedures for performing its building control functions. The building control function are contained in Regulation 3 Interpretation.

A BCA needs to provide information to a person who wishes to apply for a building consent and the requirements for this is contained in the following regulation: Regulation 7(2)(a) – Consumer information • providing information to enable customers and applicants to navigate the steps and key requirements of the building consent process, and to make good consent applications Quite simply this regulation requires the BCA to provide guidance information to the consumer; information will include guidance on:• How to apply for a building consent • How an application for a building consent is processed • How building work is inspected • How building work is inspected and certified • How unauthorised building work is assessed • Compliance Schedules and Building Warrant of fitness • Consumer rights • Statutory timeframes • Complaints and disputes processes We have covered how to apply for a building consent previously in sections 1 – 4 of this workbook.

Allocation of processing Once a building consent application has been determined by vetting staff of the BCA to be accepted, the application needs to be allocated to a person with sufficient technical competence to process the application. Allocation to a technically competent person is undertaken under Regulation 7 (2)(d)(iii) of the BCA Accreditation regulations.

A person that makes technical decisions within the BCA will have a competence assessment (usually annually) to determine what kind of application that person can process or inspect.

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Competency of technical people within a BCA is covered under Regulation 10 of the BCA Accreditation regulations.

Whilst vetting the vetting staff will need to apply a categorisation to the building work. MBIE have provided this categorisation system in their guidance the National Competency Assessment System1. This system broadly categorises building work into 6 building complexity levels, Residential 1 – 3 and Commercial 1 – 3. Building complexity levels were derived in 2006 using high risk factors to determine categories; these factors included: • • • • • •

spread of fire purpose groups in the old C documents (refer to change of use regulations) and whether people resided in a building number of stories number of occupants E2/AS1 weathertightness risk score building importance levels

The categories are explained in more detail in the next 6 pages.

1

The NCAS can be found at the following link.

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https://www.building.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/building- officials/competencies/nbca-competencyassessment-system.pdf

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Processing and application for a building consent Once a building consent application has been categorised and allocated to a person with the appropriate technical competency the processing of the application can begin.

Processing an application is simply checking an application to see if it complies with the requirements of the New Zealand Building Code. However, there are some statutory and legal requirements that have to be adhered to.

The BCA must also have policies, procedures and systems for processing consents involving: 1. national multiple-use approvals (s.30A-H) 2. minor variations (s.45A) 3. changes to plans or specifications (s.45(4)) 4. new buildings 5. alterations to existing buildings (s.112) 6. allotments and subdivisions (s.75-77 and s.116A) 7. specified systems (s.102) 8. cable cars 9. swimming pools 10. Alternative Solutions (what do you do when you have a building method or product that is different) 11. amendments 12. staged building work 13. building levy and development contributions 14. making section 112(1) of the Act decisions related to: a. earthquake-prone buildings (refer s 133AT) b. means of escape from fire c. access and facilities for those with disabilities 15. utilising Fire and Emergency New Zealand advice 16. making decisions related to building on land subject to natural hazards 17. making decisions related to building on two or more allotments 18. making decisions about conditions on consents 19. complying with any building methods or product warnings or bans 20. compiling and amending compliance schedules 21. ensuring compliance with other legislation relevant to the consent process such as the Resource Management Act 1991 22. applying the test of being “satisfied on reasonable grounds” in order to grant a consent One of the legal principles that you may have heard of is the term-

“Satisfied on reasonable grounds” Satisfied on reasonable grounds (or SORG) as it is sometimes referred to is a legal term used in several pieces of legislation.

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The Building Act 2004 says that a Building Consent Authority must grant a building consent if it is ‘satisfied on reasonable grounds’ that the provisions of the building code would be met if the building work were properly completed in accordance with the plans and specifications that accompanied the application. Refer to Section 49 of the Building Act 2004.

The term ‘Satisfied on reasonable grounds’ is a legal construct, as is the term ‘beyond all reasonable doubt’, however these terms have different legal meanings.

Satisfied on reasonable grounds allows a technical officer of the BCA to use reasonable judgement to make decisions on building code compliance, whereas beyond all reasonable doubt requires individuals (usually a jury) to exclude all other possibilities to decide on one.

The Building Act 2004 does not include a definition of ‘satisfied on reasonable grounds’. There are, however many court rulings and determinations discussing what is satisfied on reasonable grounds relating to specific cases.

So….. How can a BCO be satisfied on reasonable grounds?

The BCA Accreditation Regulations have several sections that help in making this decision. a) Regulation 7 Performing Building control functions – this requires the BCA to have policies and procedures for processing building consents (and other functions). b) Regulation 9 Allocating work to competent employees – this requires the BCA to allocate work to competent employees. c) Regulation 10 Establishing and assessing the competence of employees – refer to b) above.

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d) Regulation 11 Training employees - refer to b) and c) above.

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The BCA Accreditations Regulations, specifically Regulation 7 (2)(d)(iv), requires the BCA to have policies and procedures for processing an application for building consent to establish whether they comply with the requirements of the Building Act, the Building Code, and any other applicable regulations under the Building Act. Basically, the regulations require a BCO to use your BCAs policies and procedures to process a consent and in 99.9% of all cases this will require a checklist to be completed.

So….. Checklists, what are they?

Checklists, prompt sheets or check sheets are a standard way of processing a building consent application. They come in many different formats, can be electronic or paper based. Checklists can be specific to a particular type of building work or generalised to cater for many types of buildings or building work.

Most checklists are formatted in a way that prompt a BCO, as the processor, to methodically work through the building consent application making decisions as they go on compliance with the New Zealand Building Code and sections of the Building Act. They provide guidance to the BCO processor on where to look for compliance information, technical information and legislative information.

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Most importantly the completed checklist is the technical decision on compliance and is one of the most important records that provides the satisfied on reasonable grounds test referred to in Section 49 of the Building Act 2004.

Regulation 6 (b)(c) and (d) from the BCA Accreditation Regulations requires a BCA to record: • • •

The decisions it makes under the policies, procedures and systems required by the regulations; and The reasons for the decisions; and The outcomes of the decisions.

The processing checklist allows a processor to record the decisions they make, the reasons for the decision (e.g it complies with E2/AS1) and the outcome of the decisions (e.g. a granted building consent).

Below is an example of a page of a standard processing checklist, note that most checklists are multi pages. This particular checklist is 27 pages long and caters for commercial building consents. This one has been filled out by a BCO and contains their reasons for decisions and comments in the right hand side.

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In many situations, BCAs use an electronic processing system (such as ALPHA or GoGets) to process and inspect building work. An electronic system will look slightly different to the above example, but will basically be the same.

What happens if the BCO identifies areas that do not comply with the New Zealand Building Code or the Building Act 2004?

A BCO who processes a consent can request further information if: • • •

The appropriate information has not been provided.

The information provided by the applicant does not comply with the Building Code.

The information provided does not comply with specific aspects of the Building Act 2004: - Information relating to natural hazards - Waivers or modifications of the Building Code - Building over two or more allotments - Specified intended life

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If further information is requested, then the timeframe (of 20 working days) is suspended until that information is received. Note, the timeframe starts again on the receipt of the information , not on checking that the information complies.

In some cases where significant compliance information has not been provided a BCO can refuse the building consent. Where a building consent is refused, the BCA must provide written reasons for the refusal and the refusal must occur within the 20 day time frame.

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Granting and issuing building consents Once a BCAs technical BCO has processed a building consent, and any information that has been requested has been checked and confirmed as compliant, the BCA will go through the process of granting and issuing the building consent.

Granting and issuing a building consent are two separate processes with different legal status.

Granting a building consent is the technical decision under section 49 of the Building Act 2004. Section 49 is duplicated below:

49 Grant of building consent

(1) A building consent authority must grant a building consent if it is satisfied on reasonable grounds that the provisions of the building code would be met if the building work were properly completed in accordance with the plans and specifications that accompanied the application.

(2) However, a building consent authority is not required to grant a building consent until it receives— (a) any charge or fee fixed by it in relation to the consent; and (b) any levy payable under section 53.

Section 49, allows a BCA to refuse to grant a building consent until any charge, fee, or levy has been paid. Payment does not usually occur at the granting stage as this stage is where the BCO has made the technical decision to grant after completing the checklist i.e. the decision under section 49 (1) has been made.

Issuing a building consent The issuing of the building consent is where the Form 5 is printed out and signed, usually invoices are sent out (or paid prior to issuing) and the applicant/s are informed.

Section 51 of the Building Act 2004 covers off the process for issuing a building consent and is duplicated below:

51 Issue of building consent

(1) A building consent must— (a) be issued in the prescribed form; and (b) have attached to it a copy of—

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(i) the project information memorandum (if any) for the building

work to which the building consent relates; and (ii) a development contribution notice under section 36 (if any); and (iii) a certificate issued under section 37 (if any); and (ba) contain confirmation that Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga has been notified under section 39 (if applicable); and (c) if a compliance schedule is required as a result of the building work, state— (i) the specified systems that must be covered by the compliance schedule; and (ii) the performance standards for the specified systems that are required by the building code; and (d) if an amendment to an existing compliance schedule is required as a result of the building work, state— (i) the specified systems that must be covered by the compliance schedule; and (ii) the performance standards for the specified systems that are required by the building code.

(2) The issue of a building consent does not, of itself,— (a) relieve the owner of the building or proposed building to which the building consent relates of any duty or responsibility under any other Act relating to or affecting the building or proposed building; or (b) permit the construction, alteration, demolition, or removal of the building or proposed building if that construction, alteration, demolition, or removal would be in breach of any other Act. (3) If a building consent authority does not, within the time limit for granting the building consent, receive from the territorial authority any document or information required for compliance with subsection (1)(b) or (ba), the building consent authority may grant the building consent despite that subsection.

(4) However, the building consent authority must, on receiving the document or information referred to in subsection (3), provide the owner with the document or information.

Section 51 (3) and (4) only relates to a BCA that is not a territorial authority (eg a private BCA). This will apply to Consentium (Kianga Ora’s consenting arm) and the territorial authority will need to provide certain information, such as development contributions or a certificate issued under section 37 (certificate that a resource consent is required).

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Conditions on a building consent Contrary to popular belief, there are only 5 Building Act 2004 conditions that can be placed on an issued building consent, those are:

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A waiver or modification of the building code has been included, section 67 1. Building consent issued subject to a hazard notification, section72 2. Building consent issued subject to a building constructed over two or more allotments, section 75 3. The condition that authorized agents of the BCA can inspect building work, section 90 4. The building has a specified intended life, section 113.

Regulation 7(2)(d)(v) – Granting, refusing to grant, and issuing building consent As discussed above the granting of the building consent is the date that the BCO has decided to sign off the building consent application; this is the date the clock stops.

The building consent is usually issued when all fees are paid and the document is formally issued.

A BCA must provide reasons for the decision to grant or refuse a building consent. In my view, not enough building consents are refused. Poor quality applications are accepted that are deficient in information which result in multiple RFIs. RFIs clog up the system and can sit on shelves for years.

Applications such as these are accepted because the BCA wants to be customer focused but actually these applications suck up a lot of resource and end up costing the applicant money. If there is a problem processing the application you can bet money on the fact that there will be problems with the building and inspection process.

Is this really being customer focused?

Similarly, BCAs should also ensure that applications once granted are collected in a timely manner. Sometimes applications can sit on the shelf waiting collection for months, even years. Why? Reasons are varied but more often than not it is tied up with waiting for Resource Consent approval.

Timeframes linked to the issue and granting of the building consent Under s.52 a building consent lapses and has no effect if the building work to which it relates does not commence within 12 months of the date of the issue of the building consent or any further time the BCA may allow. Note that an extension of time should be applied for before the building consent lapses.

Under s.93 an owner must apply for a CCC within two years of the date the building consent was granted.

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Inspection of building work The inspection of building work under a building consent is simply to ensure that building work is, or has been done, in accordance with the plans and specifications that accompanied the building consent.

Regulation 7(2)(e) – Planning, performing, and managing inspections • planning, performing and managing inspections, including taking appropriate action where non-compliance with the building consent or Building Code is identified Planning inspections In order for a project to run smoothly inspections need to be planned and scheduled.

The applicant or their agent needs to read the building consent and check conditions and inspection requirements.

Building consent conditions are important; there are five conditions that can be placed on a building consent these relate to sections 67; 73; 75; 90 and 113 (as discussed above).

The applicant needs to know at what stage the BCA will come to inspect the building work and what information is required for an inspection to proceed.

Most BCAs will have a standard list of inspections that they perform which is attached to the building consent when it is issued along with any conditions that are relevant.

The list of inspections should describe the work that will be assessed during inspection.

Under s.90 every building consent is subject to the condition that agents authorised by the BCA for the purposes of this section are entitled, at all times during normal working hours or while building work is being done, to inspect:a) land on which building work is being or is proposed to be carried out; and b) building work that has been or is being carried out on or off the building site; and c) any building In this section, inspection means the taking of all reasonable steps to ensure that building work is being carried out in accordance with a building consent.

The BCO needs to inspect the building work before it is covered up or enclosed; this means scheduling inspections prior to concrete being poured or linings being fixed.

Some inspections will require safe access to be provided to enable these inspections to be performed. For example, the BCO should check the cavity and wrap whilst the scaffolding is up and prior to the cladding being installed.

The applicant is responsible for booking the inspection and providing details of the 0800 550 410

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inspection.

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At the time of the booking the BCA will need to know: • type of inspection • name of LBP / contractor who will attend the inspection • address • time (if appointment times are given) From the BCAs perspective they have a certain amount of capacity; BCOs can typically carry out between 6-8 inspections per day depending on the nature of the inspection and the distance they need to travel between jobs. It is also important that work is allocated to a person with the appropriate competency. For these reasons, bookings are essential.

Builders need to be organised and plan deliveries around inspections. For example it is no use booking concrete on the same day as the inspection is booked. What if the inspection is failed and cannot proceed? What if the BCO is held up on another job and is running late? Some BCAs are days / weeks out for inspections as they simply do not have the capacity to undertake all inspections being requested.

When making a booking is difficult, builders tend to block book inspections. For example they will book the same inspection three days in a row and then they can cancel the ones they don’t need. This type of abuse of the system is really frustrating for the BCA and difficult to manage.

Performing inspections Inspections cannot proceed unless it is safe to do so and the approved building consent plans are on site. The BCO determines site safety prior to commencing an inspection.

Most BCAs will have a checklist for each type of inspection that they undertake. As with processing, these can be electronic or had copy checklist.

It is important the BCA documents how an inspection is recorded and what items need to be recorded. You can imagine if the BCA didn’t have a system in place the standard of recording would be shambolic. The BCO should check, measure and record findings on their checklist to determine that work is in accordance with the building consent.

If the building work is in accordance with the building consent and has been carried out satisfactorily then the BCO will pass the inspection. If not, the BCO will fail the inspection listing the items that require rectification. A re-inspection will generally be required to check the non-compliant items. Whatever the outcome, this needs to be communicated to the owner and recorded appropriately in the system.

If building work is not as per plan, the BCO will need to deal with either a minor variation or amendment. Minor variations can usually be approved on site but amendments must be properly considered in the office as they are more complex.

Depending on the nature of the change work may need to stop.

If building work does not comply with the consent, the BCO may need to consider issuing a notice to fix (NTF). Most BCAs have a formal process for issuing NTFs and tend to do this back in the office to ensure they have the wording of the notice correct.

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Sometimes, work will also be inspected by an engineer. When an engineer is involved in a design the engineer will state whether or not they want to do any construction monitoring.

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Where construction monitoring is required this should be agreed with the BCA up front before the consent is granted so that there is a clear understanding of the expectations of both parties.

When a BCO attends an inspection that has also been attended by the engineer, the engineer should have left site observation records on site for the BCO advising exactly what they have looked at.

Engineers do not have the powers that a BCO has and cannot approve the building work and give permission for concrete to be poured for example.

Types of inspections Common inspections for residential buildings can include: •

pre-pour (before concrete is poured, for example, for piles, footings, slabs, in situ walls or blockwork infill). This will often include siting as well

•

tanking/waterproofing (before back-filling retaining walls, covering membranes on decks or laying tiles in wet areas such as showers)

•

pre-clad (before wrapping the building in building paper or building wrap and installing the cladding)

•

post-clad (before applying coatings to fibre cement or polystyrene systems, possibly including inspections during plastering)

•

pre-line (with insulation installed but before installing internal linings. This inspection may include checking the plumbing installation under pressure test)

•

drainage (before filling in trenches and covering the in-ground pipework).

Pipework should be under test for this inspection. Drainage testing can include smoke, air or water testing

•

final inspection for plumbing, building and drainage work (once the work described in the building consent is complete).

Generally, gas and electrical work is not inspected as it must be done by a licensed professional. On completion of the work they will give the owner a signed energy work certificate. The owner must keep all energy work certificates safe and on site with their other project documentation as they will need to provide that documentation to council to get final sign-off.

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Watch the following videos and read the associated articles: Shoddy building work NZ Herald https://www.nzherald.co.nz/aucklander/news/auckland- council-posts-videos-ofshoddy-building-work/E3IQZ3CLKIJSEBIIWZFVAJX3LY/ Swimming pool inspections https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Mr8p5iY4hg Discuss the concerns raised with your lecturer in the next session.

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Certifying building work – Code Compliance Certificates (CCC) CCCs A CCC is a formal statement issued by the BCA stating that in its opinion all work under the building consent has been satisfactorily completed.

The owner is responsible for applying for the CCC; if they do not obtain a CCC they can have problems selling their property and in extreme cases could have problems claiming insurance for losses as it can be argued by the insurer that work was incomplete.

The issue of all building consents and CCC information is recorded on Land Information Memorandums (LIMs). Most people who purchase a property obtain a LIM. The legal test for issuing a CCC:• Under the BA04 - the BCA must be satisfied on reasonable grounds that the building work complies with the building consent.

• Under the BA91 - the BCA must be satisfied on reasonable grounds that the building work complies with the Building Code.

Before a CCC can be issued the BCA will need to consider whether:• All inspections identified have been carried out and approved • All work is in accordance with the building consent / building code • All conditions of consent have been met (and in some cases advise notes) • Drainage as-built plans; survey certificates; etc have been provided • Development contributions have been paid • All invoices have been paid (e.g. extra or failed inspections) • An energy works certificate has been provided • Any products have been used for which a warning or ban has since been issued (e.g. installing sizalation) • The owner has provided an application requesting the CCC • LBPs have provided memorandums • Engineers have provided PS4s and site observations • All documentation relevant to the issue of a compliance schedule have been provided.

Under s.93 an owner must apply for a CCC within two years of the date the building consent was granted. If they do not apply, the BCA can make a decision of its own accord. In this instance the BCA does not need an application from the owner.

Under s.94 failure to pay development contributions, provide energy works certificates or compliance schedule information or using a product which is the subject of a warning or ban, is an absolute right to refuse the CCC. Other reasons for refusal may need to be justified.

Failure to provide LBP memorandums does not mean that a BCA can refuse to grant a CCC. In most cases, the BCA will have performed inspections of the restricted building work therefore should be able to make an informed decision. A BCA may choose to make a complaint about an LBP who fails to provide their memorandums. If an LBP is refusing to provide a memorandum it will most probably be because there is a dispute 0800 550 410

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between the parties.

Decisions, reasons for decisions and outcomes around the issue of a CCC should be recorded. As with a building consent if a CCC is refused, reasons for the decision to refuse it should be provided to the owner.

If a compliance schedule is required, it must be issued with the CCC. A BCA has 20-working days in which to issue a CCC although it may stop the clock for further information.

Below is a duplicate of the Form 7 the code compliance certificate from the Forms regulations 2004.

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Form 7Code compliance certificate Section 95, Building Act 2004

The building Street address of building: Legal description of land where building is located: Building name: Location of building within site/block number: Level/unit number: Current, lawfully established, use: [include number of occupants per level and per use if more than 1] Year first constructed:

The owner Name of owner: *Contact person: Mailing address: Street address/registered office: Phone number: Landline: Mobile: Daytime: After hours: Facsimile number: Email address: Website: First point of contact for communications with the building consent authority: [state full name, mailing address, phone number(s), facsimile number(s), and email address(es)†]

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Building work Building consent number: Issued by: [name of building consent authority that issued the building consent]

Code compliance The building consent authority named below is satisfied, on reasonable grounds, that— (a)

the building work complies with the building consent; and ‡(b)

the specified systems in the building are capable of performing to the performance standards set out in the building consent.

‡Attachment

‡Compliance schedule Signature: Position: On behalf of: [name of building consent authority] Date: *Delete if the applicant is an individual. †Contact details must be in New Zealand. ‡Delete if inapplicable.

Regulation 7(2)(f) – Code compliance certificates, compliance schedules and notices to fix • granting and issuing code compliance certificates (or otherwise) • issuing compliance schedules where required Regulation 7(2)(f) requires a BCA to have a policy, procedure and system in place for issuing (or otherwise) code compliance certificates (CCCs), including where no application has been received two years after the date a building consent was granted.

It also requires a BCA’s policies, procedures and systems to provide for: • issuing a CCC in compliance with the legal test in s.94 • the issue of any required compliance schedules Compliance schedules / amended compliance schedules A compliance schedule is a document that summarises all of the specified systems that are contained within a building. It will list the make and model of the system; which performance standard it has been designed to comply with and what the maintenance and reporting requirements are. It should also describe where each system is located in a building.

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collated and provided to the BCA. Certificates are required for each of these stages.

This information assists the BCA to prepare the compliance schedule.

A compliance schedule is one of the most important documents that a BCA produces as it is referred to each year by IQPs and continues indefinitely after owner has completed the building. Independently qualified people (IQPs) test the systems to confirm they are still operating effectively and fit for purpose; several IQPs may be involved in this process. IQPs will then issue a Building Warrant of Fitness (BWoF) confirming this. A specified system is a lifesaving feature within a building, so it is important that these features are given the respect and attention they deserve.

An amended compliance schedule is required when new work is carried out on a building that affects a specified system. For example a system is altered, removed or a new system is installed. The original compliance schedule is updated (amended) and reissued.

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