Building Quality and Compliance Pillars

HIA’s Position Statement

Pillar 1: Raising the profile of our industry’s high quality work and services

HIA as the voice of the residential building industry will lead the debate on building quality and promote the quality work our industry undertakes.

• HIA will take a leading role in improving consumer, media and regulator understanding of building quality and the building process.
• HIA will promote a more balanced discussion in the media and with governments on the true extent of non-compliances in the industry and on the need for more layers being added to the building regulatory system.
• HIA will take a proactive role in changing sentiment of the general public and media on building quality and compliance.

Pillar 2: Practitioners, industry culture and safety

• HIA will continue to promote an industry culture of continuous improvement that works to deliver quality in construction in the built form.
• HIA will promote an industry culture of continuous improvement in compliance, safety, professionalism and customer support.

Pillar 3: Building regulatory system

• The building regulatory system should be robust and maintain industry and consumer confidence.
• Future reforms that focus on tangible and practical outcomes and hence the building outcome should be a priority and where new reforms are introduced there should be appropriate transition and implementation times to allow industry to adapt to the new rules.
• A building approval (certification) system should be simple, provide certainty, be transparent and maintain confidence in the rigour of the system.
• The building regulatory system has significant consumer protection safeguards in place to address any issues that may arise in relation to a home building and does not require further layers of complexity.

Pillar 4: Role of state and territory regulators

• The building industry does not need more regulations – regulators have the appropriate rules and powers that they should better utilise.
• Regulators should proactively work with industry associations to support industry knowledge and quality outcomes.
• Regulators should proactively develop supporting materials, directly engage with industry on new and existing rules and provide compliance tools and mechanisms to underpin and support
• compliance and understanding of building laws and they should be appropriately funded to provide this support.

Pillar 5: Building products – conformance and compliance

• Greater shared responsibility in the supply chain to limit non-conforming building products.
• Improved building product compliance information should accompany products and support compliant selection and use by the industry.
• A building product certification system that is robust, provides certainty for approval, is easily accessible, but at the same time remains flexible and not cost prohibitive.

Pillar 6: Building codes and standards

• Clear, concise and easy to understand and use building codes, standards, and building regulations.
• Maintain a national building code, published every three years, that contains minimum necessary community accepted standards.
• Any new building regulations must be developed in conjunction with industry and subject to rigorous impact analysis and be proportional to the identified issue and have appropriate transition times for implementation on new regulations.

Pillar 7: Building approval documentation and specifications

• Support improvements to building plans and specifications to improve their quality and accuracy, but at the same time does not create unnecessary red tape or a one size fits all approach nor become cost prohibitive for preparation of building approval documentation.
• Ensure that the key parties responsible for the design of buildings, and critical sub-elements of buildings, are appropriately skilled and accountable for the compliance of those designs.
• HIA to take an educative role in explaining the different types of plans that may form part of a project, including those for approval, those for construction and completed works plans.

Pillar 8: Tools and mechanisms to support compliance

• HIA will continue to be an industry leader and service provider of first choice on building codes and standards training and awareness and on building code support services.
• Building practitioners should have the ability to get clear and definitive interpretations on the National Construction Code (NCC) and Australian Standards in a timely manner

Policy endorsed by HIA National Policy Congress: OCT 2020, Endorsed with amendments 2024.