The Department of Building and Housing has released a synopsis of submissions received on the discussion document Building for the 21st Century: Review of the building Code.
Tuesday, February 13th 2007, 2:23PM
by The Landlord
The department received 265 submissions on the scope and content for the new Building Code from individuals, community organisations and industry professionals.
Submitters supported balancing any new provisions with affordability and cost. They noted that affordability of high-quality durable materials could be a problem, but that often the upfront costs were less than those for ongoing maintenance of lower-quality products.
Builders submitted that the Building Code should stipulate acceptable minimum levels and that market forces were the best determinant of the level of building quality.
The submissions will guide the direction of a second discussion document, which is expected to be available for public comment in the first half of this year.
It will seek public comment on specific performance requirements for buildings, and the transition to a new or revised building code.
The Building Code review is due for completion in November 2007, with changes projected to take effect from 2008.
