The Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety will visit nine regional towns to update the local building and construction industries on Building Code of Australia (BCA) matters and amendments to WA’s building laws.

Free seminars are scheduled in Geraldton, Albany, Northam and Kalgoorlie in March, Busselton, Bunbury, Karratha and Broome in May, and Esperance in April.

A morning session will cover amendments to the National Construction Code (NCC) 2016 relating to fire safety in high-rise buildings that take effect on 12 March 2018; proposed changes to the NCC 2019 that have been released for public comment; the improved CodeMark scheme; and the practical development and assessment of performance solutions. This part of the morning session is a modified version of the Australian Building Codes Board’s presentations in Perth in February 2018. The morning session will also cover recent amendments to the Building Act 2011 and associated regulations.

The afternoon session will cover findings of the Department’s audits, including current and future general inspection projects; work being undertaken to address security of payment issues; recent changes to the law and processes relating to resolving payment disputes in the building and construction industry; and an update on other reforms the Department is working on, including the home indemnity insurance scheme.

“The Building Commission carries out regular audits and inspections, which help us to identify potential problem areas and work with the industry to deal with them before they pose a serious threat,” Building Commissioner Ken Bowron said.

“We are committed to sharing information on the findings of our compliance activities and the Building Code of Australia with building industries across the State to ensure the high quality of workmanship we typically see in regional areas continues.

“We encourage local building industries and anyone interested to register for our regional sessions and be updated on all the useful information on offer.”

Further information and online registration for all sessions are available on the Building Commission website at www.commerce.wa.gov.au/building-and-energy/events-and-seminars-0 or phone 1300 489 099 or email be.events@dmirs.wa.gov.au for assistance. Both sessions are free of charge but registrations are essential and places are limited.

Event details and registrations

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Media Contact: Amanda Iannuzzi, (08) 6251 1335, 0466 409 828 or be.media@dmirs.wa.gov.au.