Main findings of the review
Criterion 7 - Weathertightness compliance
Purpose
To assess the Council's ability to process and inspect weathertightness compliance with particular attention to:
- weathertightness design processing methodology
- the level and detail of consent documentation accepted and approved by the Council
- technical competency of both processing and inspection staff in weathertightness compliance
- the Council's inspection systems and procedures.
Background
Over the last 5 or so years, reports of building failure began to emerge. In response to these concerns, the Government initiated several reviews that collectively found that there had been a systemic failure of the building system. The term 'systemic failure' illustrates that no single cause led to the failure; rather, it was the result of a complex interplay between a number of factors. Some of the key factors involved included:
- standards of design and construction that were set at the minimum level necessary to achieve compliance, providing no margin for error
- a lack of information and capability on the design and construction side
- inadequate review of consent applications and inspections of building work, which meant that specific problems were not being consistently identified and rectified
- capability and capacity issues within the regulatory building control sector, which identified the need for better monitoring of emerging trends within the building control system.
The Building Act 1991 was repealed and replaced by the Building Act 2004, which introduced a more comprehensive regulatory regime for the building control sector. The Acceptable Solution (a prescriptive means of compliance) for meeting Clause E2 External Moisture (weathertightness) of the Building Code was also updated.
Initial review
The initial review identified a number of compliance issues relating to weathertightness, where claddings were failing to meet the requirements of Clauses E2 External Moisture and B2 Durability of the Building Code. Many instances of non-compliance were of a relatively technical nature, rather than being significant omissions or issues that would pose immediate weathertightness problems. Nevertheless, they were still instances of non-compliance with the Building Code.
The Department also found that some consent files did not include documentation on whether manufacturers, installers or applicators had provided producer statements, whether alternative solution cladding systems had been assessed during consent processing, or whether the Council had established weathertightness compliance during its inspections.
| Recommendations to the Council |
Action taken by the Council before the follow-up review |
|
Develop a formal policy and procedures to underpin its checks for weathertightness compliance, which should include:
- information requirements for acceptance of alternative solution cladding systems
- on-site inspection procedures to ensure compliance is achieved during and after construction
- weathertightness consent processing and inspection checklists.
|
The Council had not implemented this recommendation. |
| Ensure adequate time and resources are allocated to processing and inspecting building weathertightness and that all processing and inspections staff are given appropriate levels of practical weathertightness training. |
The Council had not implemented this recommendation. |
| Develop a policy to define the required level of weathertightness detailing in building consent applications and to require designers to provide site-specific construction detailed to this standard, so demonstrating adequate compliance. |
The Council had not implemented this recommendation. |
| Ensure consent applications with inadequate weathertightness detail are rejected or suspended. |
The Council had not implemented this recommendation. |
Follow-up review
The findings of the follow-up review were consistent with the findings of the initial review in 2004. A number of instances of weathertightness non-compliance were identified that were of a technical nature, rather than being significant omissions or issues that would pose immediate weathertightness problems (eg, leaky building syndrome). The Department found that a combination of factors such as using low-risk design features for most buildings in the region, the relatively dry environmental conditions, and the use of treated timber are helping to minimise the risk of weathertightness problems for the Council.
The Department found that the Council had not developed any formal policies or procedures to underpin its consideration of weathertightness compliance issues, to define the required level of weathertightness detailing in consent applications or to ensure consent applications with inadequate weathertightness detail are rejected or suspended. The Department considered that the Council had not implemented the recommendation to allocate adequate time and resources to processing and inspecting building weathertightness, and to give processing and inspection staff appropriate levels of practical weathertightness compliance training.
The Department made a set of further recommendations during the follow-up review.
| Recommendations to the Council |
Response from the Council |
| Implement the recommendation from the 2004 initial review to develop a policy and procedures to underpin its assessment of weathertightness compliance. |
No response provided. |
| Ensure, through adequate training, that all processing and inspection staff are able to develop appropriate levels of practical weathertightness compliance knowledge and skills. |
No response provided. |
| Develop a policy to define the level of weathertightness detail required in building consent applications and ensure applications with inadequate weathertightness detail are rejected or suspended. |
No response |
Conclusion
The Department has released a number of guides to help building consent authorities with weathertightness compliance.9 We strongly encourage the Council to use this information.
There are also a number of training courses in this area that the Council could use. The BRANZ Ltd 
weathertightness training course provides a 2-week comprehensive training programme and the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors also runs training courses in weathertightness compliance. The Council needs to significantly improve its work in this area.