20 July
Non-conforming products are a significant problem in the building and construction sector. To address this, the Institute has engaged with key stakeholders as part of Construction Product Alliance Group to raise awareness about NCPs within the industry and engage with policy makers and regulators about how to improve surveillance and certification and ultimately reduce the impact of non-conforming industry product.
Ahead of the Building Ministers Forum on 31 July, the group has written to relevant state and territory building/planning ministers and the federal minister for industry. The group proposes a number of actions including establishing a government/industry task force. It also suggests that the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB) undertake a review of the current evidence of suitability criteria in the National Construction Code (NCC) as well as developing guidance material for the use of risk-based assessments to determine the appropriate evidence of suitability under the NCC.
The Building Ministers’ Forum is a body of Commonwealth, State and Territory Ministers responsible for building and plumbing regulation. The Forum oversees the implementation of nationally consistent building and plumbing regulation through the Intergovernmental Agreement for the ABCB.
Special General Meeting
The Institute is holding a Special General Meeting in Canberra later this month to change the Articles and Memorandum to permit the International Area Committee to be known as the International Chapter of the Institute.
The meeting will be held at 10.45am on July 31 at the Institute’s offices at 2a Mugga Way, Barton. You can find full details and a proxy form here.
Gold Medal Tour
This month, 2015 Gold Medallist Peter Stutchbury launches his Gold Medal Tour in Newcastle. In thirty-four years of practice, Peter Stutchbury has mastered the art of creating architecture that speaks of the place it inhabits – buildings that are environmentally sustainable, culturally specific and locally embedded. Peter’s buildings also exhibit deft use of simple, readily available materials to produce sophisticated details that celebrate the intrinsic qualities of locally sourced materials and trades. Peter is strongly committed to advancing Australian architecture through practice, teaching and participation in broad-based professional activities and organisations, including the Institute. The 2015 Gold Medal tour visits each of the capital cities, and concludes with the AS Hook Address, which will be held November 12 in Sydney. Visit the website for more information.
Kind regards,
David Parken.
