Process of Obtaining Building Permit †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Process of Obtaining Building Permit. Answer: Introduction: This essay discusses the process in the owner of the proposed vacant lot can obtain a Building Permit in WA by focusing on the required outcomes and inputs, the stakeholders, application steps, and documentation. The Building Permits deals with the actual fire safety, structural, and other technical issues relating to the safety and health of the individuals in and around the building. The Building Permit is mandatory before any work of construction can be undertaken and can be acquired from a permit authority for the region in which the construction will take place. This section illustrates all the documentation that is required by the owner of the project when seeking a Building Permit in West Australia. Some of the documentation that the owner of the owner should have include support information, technical certificates, structural details, specifications, and plans(Board 2014). The following are the documentation that should be submitted to the Permit Authority: Plan: This document shows the details of the building which is to be constructed. Some of the details that may be present in a plan include structural details, support information, and specification of the building. Certificate of Design Compliance: The applicant of building permit must have a certificate of design compliance. This document must be signed by a building surveyor that is registered and proves that the construction will comply with every standard of a building that applies to it. This document can be given by either the building surveying contractor that is registered in case the building surveyor is employed by the contractor or a local government in case the building surveyor that is registered is employed by the local government(Dept, Official Year Book of Western Australia 2011). National Construction Code: The Building Code of Australia is made up of Volumes Two and One of the Plumbing Code of Australia and Building Code of Australia. This document addresses amenity, health, fire safety, and structural issues in the building. Some of the features of the Building Code of Australia include provides a clear endpoint to a process of construction, takes risks, retains the options of the owner to use the current certifications of the Local Government, introduces streamlined and separate processes for commercial and domestic buildings approval, enables private registered building surveyors to certify compliance of design, nominates Permit Authorities, and covers all constructions(Australia 2013). The steps of application for Building Permit depend on whether the specific state accepts the Design Compliance Certificate to be issued through private building surveyors that are registered, there are two ways of making application for Building Permit in case the particular state does not accept private certificates then only the second method will apply(Glass 2014). In this method of application, the documents are surrender to the Permit Authority together with Design Compliance Certificate from the Building Surveyor that is registered. This certificate certifies to the Permit Authority that the specifications and plans of the building conform to the Australian Building Code and other laws that are related to it. The Permit Authority does not have to conform that the plans comply with the Code since the submission comes with the Certificate of Design Compliance. The Permit Authority will then have a given duration to issue the Permit which can be ten days(Kerr 2015). This types of application of Compliance is the same as the Building Licence application under the previous legislation before private certification where specifications and plans are submitted to the Local Government that will review the documents and then make the decision in case they attain the Building Code requirements as well as other laws. When the application of Permit is done using this method without Design and Compliance Certificate, the Permit Authority may provide a documentation review and issue the Certificate of Design. There will be need to make a decision between Permit Authority and owner on the fee to be issued(McGrath 2011). The major stakeholder in the application of Building Permit is the Permit Authority who is responsible for providing all permits, remaining with records, and have the responsibility of ensuring that constructions in its locality comply with the minimum standard required. The three forms of permit authorities include State by Ministerial approval, Special Permit Authority by Ministerial approval, and Local Government(Regions 2012). The local Government plays an important role in ensuring that the building developments and building industry are regulated. After the landowner have made a design of the building and ensured that it complies with the Building Code of Australia, the approved design will then be submitted to the Local Government which is the Permit Authority. The Local Government will then be required to provide the Building Permit within a given duration. The work of Local Government in Building Control include issue Occupancy Permit, undertake building inspection under construction, and issuing Building Permits for Uncertified and certified specifications and plans. Other roles of the Local Government varies according to a particular state, but normally include planning and development approval, building services such as licensing, community services such as welfare services, health services such as water inspection, provision of recreational facilities such as parks, and infrastructure and property services such as waste management and collection(Glass 2014). A building surveyor is a private certifier that is engaged in privately issuing certificates required, inspection of building work and assessing documentation. A municipal Building Surveyor carries out duties as a Permit Authority and delivers similar services as the independent certifier on behalf of permit authority and also may have an implementation role. Under the existing Act, an accredited building surveyor are supposed to be registered in either of the three classes of building surveying practitioner. These classes include Building and surveying practitioner technician, Building surveying practitioner level 2, and Building surveying practitioner level1(Statistics. 2014). There is the need for the owner to have all the required documentation before submitting them to the Permit Authority. These documentations include support information, technical certificates, structural details, specifications, and plans. A good construction manager should effectively communicate with regulators to attain satisfactory and timely results. The owner should also understand all the Building Acts and Building Regulations so as to ensure that the design is of the acceptable standard before submitting it to the Registered Building Surveyor. It is also important for the owner to know the structure, roles and responsibilities of the Local Government in the area(C. B. Statistics 2014). After the Permit Authority has received the Certificate of Design Compliance which proves that the specifications and plans of the building conform to the Building Code of Australia and other laws that are applicable, the Permit Authority will then have a duration of approximately days to issue the Building Permit. After the client has obtained the Building Permit, he will have to seek Planning Consent from the Local Authority before he could begin the construction works. Planning Consent and Building Permit are two approvals which deal with different issues and are administered by different sections of Local Government(Regions 2012). Conclusion A Building Permit is mandatory before any construction activities can be undertaken and can be acquired from the Permit Authority for the region in which the construction will take place. The documentation that is required by the Local Government (Permit Authority) when seeking Building Permit include support information, technical certificates like Certificate of Design Compliance, structural details, specifications, and plans. References Australia, Department of Western. 2013. Statistical Register of Western Australia. Peth: Government Statistician's Office. Board, Australian Building Codes. 2014. Building Code of Australia. City of Fremantle: SAIGlobal. Dept, Western Australia. Registry. 2011. Official Year Book of Western Australia. Albany: The University of California. Glass, J. 2014. A Survey of Building Materials Used in House Construction in Western Australia. Perth: Forests Department of Western Australia. Kerr, Alex. 2015. The south-west region of Western Australia. Mandurah: University of Western Australia Press. McGrath, F. 2011. The Building Surveyor. Perth: Trust Publication. Regions, Department of Local Government and. 2012. Local Government Maps. Northern Territory: https://www.localgovernment.nt.gov.au/home/shire_boundaries. Statistics, Australian Bureau of. 2011. Population and Growth. Canberra: Regional Statistics. Statistics, Commonwealth Bureau of Census and. 2014. Statistics of Western Australia: Building and housing. Bunbury: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Western Australian Office, Statistics., Commonwealth Bureau of Census and. 2014. Statistical Register of Western Australia. Broome: W.A. Watson, Government Printer.