*ARCHIVE* - Weathertightness News - No. 2, Jun 2003

What's inside

1. Design and build it right first time
2. BIA releases proposed changes to treated timber and external moisture management and invites comment from all interested parties
3. Data collection by WHRS to provide useful information about the weathertightness problem
4. WHRS provides leaky homes information for non-English speakers
5. Auckland City Council's solution-driven approach to weathertightness

Design and build it right first time

By Hon Lianne Dalziel, Minister of Commerce

My motto that I have developed as the review of the Building Act has progressed is simple: "Design and Build it Right First Time". Although prompted to expand the review of the Act by the weathertightness issue, I have learned that the problems are more systemic than this one issue would allow.

From the outset I want to pay tribute to the work of the Ministry of Economic Development (MED) and BIA officials, who have worked tirelessly to get us to this point in only six months. We have been able to achieve this because of the support of and input from the industry and other stakeholders. These changes are the most comprehensive that your industry has faced in many years, and I want them to stand the test of time. Your involvement in this process is the only way I can be assured of that result.

We are keeping the performance-based model provided by the 1991 Act. This model encourages and supports innovation. The pendulum had swung too far one way, and it was our challenge to ensure that it didn't swing too far the other way. The changes represent a position of balance. However, there are those who overstate the "innovation" versus "prescription" line, implying that they are opposites. They are not. 'Innovation' cannot be used as an excuse not to meet minimum standards that are prescribed to ensure health, safety and amenity.

The new Act will give much clearer direction on the standards for safety, health and amenity and what is required to achieve them. The performance standards of the Building Code will be more clearly defined. More and better guidance and information will be given to territorial authorities, building certifiers and industry practitioners.

The Act will allow the regulator to warn against and ban buildings designs, practices, systems and products when they are known to have risks of failure. This power would have been useful to deal with the balconies issue that arose last year. The regulator will be able to require the use of Acceptable Solutions in certain circumstances. Again, I think this would have been useful in dealing with the weathertightness issue.

However, we recognise that there needs to be a better process for developing regulations and Approved Documents. It is proposed that the Act will set out the process for developing these documents. It will be clear who needs to be consulted. The costs and benefits of any proposals will have to be identified and consulted on as well. By making them regulations we will be ensuring the scrutiny of Parliament and the Regulations Review Committee.

As I said at the outset, our focus is on ensuring that buildings are designed and built right first time. The changes we have decided on are designed to achieve this. But, because building will never be a risk free activity, there will continue to be cases when buildings fail. Accordingly, we have also provided for better protection for consumers.

One of the key changes proposed is of utmost importance to you - the introduction of licensing for building professionals. I want to reinforce just how critical this is to the package.

The Hunn report into weathertightness identified capability of building practitioners as one of the deficiencies in the building industry. It recommended that national registration of builders and building related trades be explored given concerns about standards.

The Ministry has been talking to stakeholders, including Certified Builders, in developing just how this recommendation should be progressed.

A Building Practitioners Board drawn from the industry will administer the licensing system. This Board will have responsibility for setting the minimum standards for demonstrating current and on-going competence and for making decisions on complaints about building practitioners. The Board will be able to delegate some of these functions to competent bodies, which could include industry bodies.

The legislation provides the statutory framework for licensing but the detail will be in regulations, which will be fully consulted on with the industry. Obviously, there will have to be transitional arrangements put in place, as people upskill and demonstrate ongoing competency. It will be five years before these provisions are fully implemented.

This change should be regarded by building professionals as an exciting opportunity to raise competencies of all members of the profession and to ensure that the 'cowboys' do not retain the foothold they have obtained to the cost of the industry as a whole. Competent builders will thrive in the new regime, because the consumer will have better information about competence and about standards.

The changes we are making have resulted from a robust and widespread consultation process with the public and industry stakeholders. It is my view that we need to maintain the momentum. We will be introducing legislation into the House within the next 2 months to implement the decisions we have made. I will be proposing that the Select Committee that oversees the Bill has a good knowledge of the issues, so that a report back can be made as soon as possible.

There are those who consider that the timeframe for implementation is too long. My response is that it is a systemic problem more than 10 years' in the making and it will take time to resolve it. I am just as determined in terms of the statutory and regulatory framework that if government takes the time to follow its advice to the industry of 'design and build it right first time', then we will have together ensured the durability of the solutions that we have designed and will build together.

BIA releases proposed changes to treated timber and external moisture management and invites comment from all interested parties

On 13 June 2003, the BIA released for public consultation its proposed changes to:

Clause B2 Durability: Acceptable Solution B2/AS1

Clause E2 External Moisture: Clause E2 Acceptable Solution E2/AS1 Verification Method E2/VM1

The proposed changes relating to Clause B2 address issues round the use of treated timber. Those relating to Clause E2 address the management of external moisture in residential buildings.

"Our overriding goal in proposing these changes is to put in place a robust regime that provides the best possible protection for consumers," BIA chief executive Richard Martin said.

"Timber treatment and external moisture management have been identified as important issues in the weathertightness problem - these proposals are important steps in the wider body of work being undertaken by the BIA, other parts of Government and the industry to help resolve that problem."

Mr Martin said the BIA has now begun an eight-week consultation process on the proposed changes.

"That consultation process is very important. The proposed changes are significant and we are encouraging all parts of the industry and other interested people including consumers or consumer groups to participate."

The BIA has also released a cost benefit analysis prepared by the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER). The NZIER analysis jointly considers the impact of the proposed changes to B2 and E2. Comment is also sought on this document.

Once the consultation period closes the BIA will review and consider all comments received and then make its final decisions.

For further information and to view or download the documents detailing the proposed changes, please see: Consulting on

Alternatively, please email your contact details to register@bia.govt.nz or call 0800 242 243 to request hard copies of the documents.

The BIA invites comment on the proposed changes from all interested parties during the eight-week public consultation period, which closes at 5pm on Friday 8 August 2003. Please note that comment must be submitted in writing.

Data collection by WHRS to provide useful information about the weathertightness problem

By David Curry, National Manager, Weathertight Homes Resolution Service

The weathertightness problem has highlighted the need for more information about house construction. Improved information was one of the key factors identified in the recent Government proposals for strengthening the building industry. The Weathertight Homes Resolution Service (WHRS) engages assessors to examine dwellings that may be leaky buildings, and these visits are a good opportunity to collect data.

By early June, 740 applications had been received by the WHRS, covering 1,659 dwellings. Completing assessments of all eligible applications will take some time but eventually this will provide a large enough base for meaningful statistical analysis, as the number of applications continues to grow.

WHRS assessors produce independent reports that are used in the dispute resolution process administered by the WHRS. These reports contain data that could be useful for statistical purposes but, because data collection is not the purpose of the report, it is not recorded in a way that is easily accessible for analysis. So a data summary sheet has been designed for assessors to complete in addition to the report, with options and tick-boxes designed for speedy and consistent collection of data.

The data will be used for WHRS purposes and shared with other government agencies such as the BIA. It will also be available to the public. The WHRS will use the data to monitor its own processes and to analyse the trends and patterns of causes of leaks, the resulting damage, the costs of repairs and the parties involved in the resolution of claims. The data collected will also provide useful information about the performance of different designs and materials, and identify the building elements that are most often involved in leaks and damage. This will ultimately help the government and the building industry to improve home construction and provide the basis for better informing the public.

Data will be collected on the material and design of the roof, walls, framing and windows. This will provide information regarding the performance of certain materials and designs, as well as the performance of certain combinations of materials and designs. Details on the location of leaks and the causes of water entering the house will help identify high-risk areas of house construction and where building practice has been inadequate.

The presence of mould is another data factor, and any verified instances of stachybotrys will be recorded.

The assessor can only estimate remediation costs, because the repair work will not normally be undertaken until after the resolution of the dispute, but the estimates will be recorded as they will be useful for forecasting the likely future costs of the weathertightness problem.

No data collected in this way will enable anyone other than WHRS staff to identify the property or homeowners involved.

The main purpose of the WHRS's data collection is a positive one - to improve our knowledge of the causes of the leaky homes problem and to promote the future building of weathertight homes.

WHRS provides leaky homes information for non-English speakers

In another initiative by the WHRS, a freephone information service in six languages has been set up to provide information about leaky homes to non-English speakers.

WHRS National Manager David Curry said the Service wanted to ensure that everyone living in New Zealand, including newly arrived migrants, were aware of the leaky homes problem and the assistance available from the WHRS.

"We are providing information in a range of languages in response to the demand we have received. It is clear that many non-English speakers are facing problems with leaky homes and we want to ensure they have access to our services."

Each language has a dedicated toll-free number. Callers hear pre-recorded messages about the WHRS and have the opportunity to leave their details so that their queries can be answered. The freephone numbers, accessible at any time, are:

Cantonese Mandarin Korean Maori Samoan Tongan

0800 100 073 0800 100 082 0800 100 055 0800 100 031 0800 100 037 0800 100 067

The 0800 service will run initially as a four-month pilot. Mr Curry said that the number of calls received would be closely monitored and decisions made about its future towards the end of the pilot period.

The new service supplements the 0800 help line that provides advice in English - 0800 116 926. This service operates Monday to Friday from 8.30am - 7.00pm, except on statutory holidays. Homeowners can also access information about the work of the WHRS and issues related to leaky homes on www.dbh.govt.nz

Auckland City Council's solution-driven approach to weathertightness

by Rebecca West, Function Team Leader City Development, Auckland City Council

The advent of leaking buildings was certainly a bleak prospect for enforcers of the Building Code i.e. local councils. None more so than for Auckland City Council with it's combination of urban intensification and high rainfall.

But in terms of managing such a serious issue, the "leaky building syndrome" actually produced some wide-ranging positive outcomes for the Council. The approach taken by Auckland City was action-driven - immediate solutions had to be found - and led to the commencement of a campaign entitled 'reduce your risk'.

Over the past six months a number of operational changes have been made to council practices relating to building consents and inspections. Although some of these changes have meant that Auckland City Council has incurred a level of legal risk, Council felt strongly that the public benefit gained from these changes outweighed any potential liability.

One such significant change was the implementation of practice notes relating to the recommended inclusion of cavity construction.

Apart from adding a cavity, the City's 'reduce your risk' campaign also covered recommendations including:

• less reliance on sealants
• parapet and balcony cappings
• specific flashing design
• selective use of treated timber
• increased detailing on the plans

Interestingly, all of these changes are now being adopted by other territorial authorities, as well as being advocated by manufacturers of building products.

To support the implementation of these changes, several checklists have been developed for in-house use - these assist building consent officers when checking plans for compliance with the New Zealand Building Code, and inspectors when checking as built construction on site.

Auckland City has recently commissioned an independent audit of operational activity associated with weathertightness, covering the start-to-end process from issuing consent through to completion of inspections.

Council has also made a conscious decision to be more proactive in utilising the BIA's determination route, and is progressing more requests around issues that have particular impact on the weathertightness of buildings. In this way, Auckland City can work more effectively with the BIA by highlighting operational queries as they arise.

Legality of BIA Interpretations
Only the courts can issue binding interpretations of the Building Act 1991 and Regulations. Indications and guidelines issued by the Department of Building and Housing, either in Weathertightness News or other communications, are provided with the intention of helping people to understand the legislation. They are, however, offered on a “no-liability” basis, and, in any particular case, those concerned should consult their own legal advisers.

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Editorial enquiries:
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DDI: 04 495 2711 or nielson@bia.govt.nz

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Published by the Department of Building and Housing ISSN 1176-3159. Print run: 11,000