The first draft of the building inspectors regulations is expected to be released in September this year, says the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC).

In November last year, the NHBRC and the South African Council for Project and Construction Management Professions (SACPCMP) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop the new regulations, which will provide the built environment profession with “a code of professional practice and conduct, which will hold practitioners accountable,” NHBRC special projects adviser Dr Jeffrey Mahachi explains, adding that the new regulations will be standardised and measurable against specific norms and standards and enforceable by law.

NHBRC CEO Mongezi Mnyani highlights that, for the NHBRC to achieve its mandate, the relevant capacity and capability must be in place to provide acceptable quality assurance through its inspection systems. “This will require regulation to ensure clear responsibility and accountability, as well as alignment of inspection activities; [thus], we approached [the] SACPCMP to collaborate on this regulation. The Building Inspection Mandate is not solely for the NHBRC but also for the industry as a whole.”

Mahachi points out that, while qualified professionals currently carry out building inspections in the built environment, they have little experience and no training in best inspection practices. “There is no mechanism to guide or enforce the practice in the country or in Africa,” he asserts.

The new regulations are based on the National Building Regulations Act of 1977, the South African National Standards codes and the NHBRC Homebuilding Manual. “A curriculum based on these guides is being developed by competent persons in alignment with the guides and the South African National Qualifications Framework,” Mahachi notes.

He adds, that once the regulations have been approved, the NHBRC will be granted professional designation by the South African Qualifications Authority, resulting in the council being the authority to oversee compliance with the new regulations.

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SACPCMP hosted the first exploratory meeting to discuss the viability of establishing a regulatory framework for building inspectors in 2010, after the need had been expressed for the professionalisation of building inspectors who would be regulated through one of the built environment professional councils.

The participants included the departments of Public Works and Labour, the Council for the Built Environment, the South African Council of the Architectural Professions, the SACPCMP, the NHBRC and the Institute of Building Inspectors of South Africa.

It was agreed that only through a regulatory framework for building inspectors can public safety and welfare be assured. Such a framework also has the potential to ensure competent and diligent inspections that will improve on the quality of the built environment and construction.