Efficiency in the construction industry is a critical component of successful development. An essential part of achieving this is ensuring the design is approved by the relevant authorities, such as the building certifier and the fire brigade. A building or fire safety code consultant's early engagement can provide essential design advice and justify solutions for relevant authorities to review.
Adapting to the Changing Roles of Building Practitioners
The Building Confidence Report (BCR) and work completed by the Warren Centre have highlighted the need for fire safety engineers to become more holistic by creating effective fire engineering designs and aligning with fire safety code practices. Adapting through early engagement with all key stakeholders allows refinement of the fire strategy at the beginning of a project, saving time and money throughout the project's life cycle.
By committing to an early assessment, it is possible to rectify any deviations from the National Construction Code’s (NCC's) Deemed-to-Satisfy (DTS) provisions with simple design changes rather than developing performance solutions later. To avoid conflict of interest, it is important that building certifiers rely on code consultants to help their design teams achieve compliance with the NCC. The inclusion of fire safety code consulting helps resolve compliance issues through DTS and performance solutions, guiding the project through to successful completion.
Performance-Based and Deemed-to-Satisfy Solutions
To achieve the required compliance level, designs must comply with the performance and governing requirements of the National Construction Code, a collection of technical provisions supporting the design, construction and ongoing performance of buildings (and plumbing/drainage systems) throughout Australia. A performance solution, a DTS solution or a combination of both can satisfy compliance with the performance requirements.
Standard industry practice regularly attempts to achieve compliance through DTS solutions; however, this is not always possible. Compliance with the NCC's prescriptive DTS requirements and associated referenced documents (primarily Australian Standards) frequently limits designers in achieving their vision and goals for a building project.
In these circumstances, consultants can advise on suitable methods to achieve compliance with the DTS provision or recommend a performance solution to achieve compliance with the NCC. By relying on a performance-based approach, designers have options to adapt and, therefore, achieve compliance with the NCC.
Eliminate Obstacles for a Smooth Approval Process
Early advice from consultants can remove roadblocks later in the design and construction stages. Learn how Jensen Hughes’ code consultants can expertly guide the design process to achieve compliant solutions and facilitate a smoother approval process, reducing time delays and enhancing overall cost savings and efficiency.