As of 1 July 2020, certification in NSW will be operating under the requirements of the Building & Development Certifiers Act and Regulation.

This legislation significantly increases the administrative requirements on certifiers, with increases in the requirements for documenting and reporting their processes and large increases in the potential penalties for non-compliance.

As a result, certifiers will be asking for a lot more documentation on projects from now on.

The conflict of interest restrictions have also been significantly increased. A certifier will no longer be able to perform any of the functions of a certifying authority if they have provided ANY advice on how to change the design or construction to comply with the BCA.

It is now necessary to engage a BCA consultant on all projects, even if they are just on-call for advice, as the certifier will no longer able to perform this role.

As BCA consultants we are able to provide the following services:

  • Initial review of the preliminary design to advise the BCA requirements that must be incorporated in the design
  • Preparation of compliance schedules that detail how and where all requirements of the BCA have been demonstrated in the documentation provided
  • BCA advice through the course of the project, which may include the preparation of reports where appropriate
  • Advice on any requirements of the approvals process (which will likely include co-ordination with the certifier)
  • BCA checks of architectural, engineering and services designs at key stages as they are prepared. For engineering and services designs this would not be a peer review process, rather it would be ensuring that specific BCA and legislative requirements are reflected in the design, specification and certification.
  • Active participation in value engineering on the design, including identifying potential performance solutions where savings might be achieved, which was previously not permitted for the certifier
  • Review of the documentation to confirm that it is consistent with the development consent. There may be a need for town planning input in this element as BCA consultants are generally not town planners.
  • Preparation of BCA compliance specifications to address any matter not contained within other documentation
  • Prepare a package for submission with the application for a construction certificate or complying development certificate including co-ordination with the certifier as necessary to have a single application submission
  • On site review of works to ensure that it has been satisfactorily completed prior to calling the certifier for mandatory inspections including co-ordination with the certifier to minimise the risk of a failed inspection
  • Advice during construction to resolve issues identified either by the construction team or the certifier
  • Provision of templates for the certification of each element of the construction works
  • Review of all contractor certification and compliance documentation relating to construction
  • Prepare a package for submission with the application for an occupation certificate including co-ordination with the certifier as necessary to have a single application submission