2 Mar
Last month I had the opportunity to attend the biennial conference of the New Zealand Institute of Architects in Auckland. Themed In:Situ, the event was curated around ideas of context in all its forms from physical to intellectual, geographical, typological, social and historical.
It was a great opportunity to check in with our closest colleagues, to share learnings and to determine ways to strengthen and maximise our bonds. I am very pleased to tell you that we have begun to draft an MoU with the NZIA. I look forward to updating you soon.
I’m also pleased to tell you about an initiative by Consult Australia to determine the economic cost of poor procurement practices. Last week they launched a report prepared by Deloitte Access Economics which concludes that more efficient procurement by the public sector when engaging consultants such as architects and engineers could reduce project costs by 5.4%, and reduce delays by 7%, as well as increasing project quality. For the whole economy, they conclude this translates to a $5.1b GDP benefit over 15 years – no small improvement. The procurement inefficiencies translating to economic costs the report considers are those familiar to us as architects; such as inadequate/unclear briefing; reluctance to consider innovative solutions, and requiring onerous contract terms to be met, including contracting out of proportionate liability. The report and summary document can be downloaded from Consult Australia’s website.
As previously advised, the 2015 edition of the National Construction Code is now available for free online. The ABCB has developed a suite of resources to assist practitioners with implementing performance based design solutions under the NCC. The resources including a guidance document can be found on the ABCB website.
Kind regards,
David.
