Building Development - Report Example

Building Development Student’s Name Student’s Number Title of Unit Unit Coordinator Project title Date Introduction This report provides a description of the education providers, the building information, and the building designs available from different institutions in Victoria, Australia. Aims and Objectives To show the comprehensive nature of building development in the Australian state of Victoria. To identify different institutions that offer design services, building information and building-related information in Victoria. Education Providers Chisholm is among the educational providers who provide building courses that include bricklaying, building and construction, building design, cabinet making, electrical and plumbing (Chisholm Institute 2015). The foregoing courses are ideal for people who actively participate in the construction of buildings. Similar courses are offered by the Victorian State Government, which in total has 52 certificate courses offered to people interested in gaining knowledge in the building industry. Such courses range from simple courses such as plumbing, to more technical courses such as building biology. Similar short courses are also provided by the Holmesglen Institute of TAFE, Owner Building Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, Southwest Tafe (Warrnambool) and TAFE virtual campus. In addition to the general building skills, educational providers enhance the learner’s understanding of materials that are used in the construction of houses. Such knowledge is essential since the competency of the future workers as well as the competency of the buildings they will be constructing will depend on how well they mix and use different materials. Moreover, the learning institutions seek to enhance the learners’ tool skills – hence making them competent at handling whatever tools they need to use during construction. Building Information Building information can be acquired from different institutions, which include: the Building Practioners Board, Australian Owner-builders, Victorian Authority, Dial Before You Dig, Land Registry, Timber Merchants Association and Home Ideas Centre. Each of the foregoing institutions has different information details, all which is necessary for the construction of buildings. For example, from the land registry, one gets information related to the property where the building will be constructed, land titles, and the valuation of the land. Dial Before You Dig on the other hand provides information regarding underground utilities such as cables or water pipes that are located where a building location is set to be (Dial Before You Dig 2015). By sourcing information from them, the builders get to know the exact location of the underground utilities and hence avoid drilling or excavating where they are. Home Ideas Centre contains multiple construction and renovation ideas. And as the name suggests, Timber Merchants Association advises timber users on the best timber products to use, how to take care of the same and how to renovate with it. On its part, the Victoria Building Authority (VBA) (2015) is a comprehensive repository of building-related information. VBA contains resources such as building contracts, permits, insurance on plumbing, insurance on domestic building, compliance certificate, safety information on swimming pools and spas, termites, bushfire, and practitioner disciplinary register. VBA also has resources to guide disputes and their resolution, as well as fees and payments that building permits, registration and licenses, plumbing fees, building fees, and charges that are applicable during disputes or building appeals. Practioners are also provided with a wealth of information on plumbing audits, permot levies, compliance certificate, security of payment and drainage inspections. Additionally, VBA (2015) contains information regarding performance audits, legislation, modification and any accreditition or certification that needs to be obtained. On the other hand, the Australian Owner Builders’ (2015) website contains information that is meant to provide owner builders with information about the resources and tools in the building industry. Some of the information includes project management, ways of financing the constructions, cost estimating, and different insurance offers. In their website, the Australian Owner Builders describes who can build their own homes or buildings and explain requirements by the state and federal government. The website also provides fact sheets about owner building. Building Design Building Designers Association Victoria (BDAV) is a membership organisation that pools together different architectural designers in Victoria and guides them with a constitution and rules, as well as a code of ethics. The BDAV contains information for architects, which includes events, best practice, partnerships and the job market. The website also contains information for people seeking accreditation to become thermal performance assessors as well as home sustainability assessors. Victoria Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) is also listed as a provider of building design-related information, although it appears that the institution is mainly concerned with resolving disputes that arise from civil building practices. Building-related disputes can also be heard and resolved by VCAT. This may include disputes between homeowners, architects, engineers, builders and constructors among other building practitioners. A homeowner who, for example, feels that the architectural designs represented a different picture of a building than what was actually delivered, can lodge a complaint with VCAT. In resolving the disputes, VCAT relies on the Fair Trading Act 1998 and on the Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995 (VCAT 2015). Occupational Health and Safety Victoria WorkCover Authority (WorkSafe Victoria) also contains information relating to design. Specifically, WorkSafe Victoria advocates for the use of layout and design to improve safety in construction sites. The institution is guided by the Victoria occupational health and safety (OHS) laws, and specifically demands that designs of specific buildings comply with specific laid down rules. WorkSafe Victoria has gone a step further and developed a guide that is intended to offer direction to engineers, architects, designers and other professionals who work on designs of buildings. The guide, which is dubbed “designing safer building and structures”, is addressed to people who have a duty under OHS Act 2004 section 28. The Act obligates building designers to ensure that their designs do not pose any risk to people who may occupy a building that is based on a specific design. WorkSafe Victoria holds the opinion that hazards can be identified in the design stage before the actual construction begins, and therefore argues that safer buildings can only be built if designers and other members of the building team are proactive and alert for any hazards at every stage of the construction process. WorkSafe Victoria seems to understand that different workplaces experience varying risks. As such, the organisation has consulted with stakeholders in different industries and developed design guidance and suggestions meant to enhance safety in different workplaces. Designing for the health industry is one example of the suggestion documents made by WorkSafe Victoria in conjunction with stakeholders in the health industry. Summary This report contains evidence that building development in Victoria is indeed comprehensive as indicated by the presence of education providers, designers, and building information. From the report, it is evident that the knowledge resources available to professionals working in the building industry and owner-builders are sufficient. References “Australian Owner Builders” 2015, viewed 30 September 2015, . Chisholm Institute 2015, Career fields, viewed 30 September 2015, . Dial Before You Dig 2015, Safe excavation information, viewed 30 September 2015, . Victoria Building Authority 2015, regulating for a quality built environment in Victoria, viewed 30 September 2015, . Victoria Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) 2015, Building, viewed 30 September 2015, . Read More