NZCB advocacy

Providing a voice to represent New Zealand Certified Builders (NZCB) is a collective effort. The NZCB Board, Members and Chief Executive sit on several National boards and Industry Groups and attend various industry functions. Below you will find some of the great advocacy work that has been recently completed.

MBIE Advisory Groups

Across August and September, NZCB Chief Executive Malcolm Fleming was invited to represent the Association on two Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) Advisory Groups:

• Critical Materials Taskforce The Plasterboard Taskforce has morphed into this new group, the purpose being to take a system view over supply-constrained materials and products, as well as looking at market imbalances, to identify potential emerging issues. The group will also take watching briefs over spiking demand for specific materials and products, as well as innovations and new materials and products.

The advisory group will meet monthly for the next six months, with short meetings of up to 60 minutes duration. Frequency of the meetings will be assessed in April 2023. The Critical Materials Taskforce had its first meeting in late October 2022. • MBIE’s Building Sector Working Group This is a standing committee that is comprised of Building Consent Authority (BCA) representatives, along with builder representation via NZCB and the Registered Master Builders Association (RMBA). The September meeting was the first in a year, at which live trialling of initiatives designed to streamline the building consent process within individual BCAs was reported on. Going forward, the group will help inform regulatory changes in the Building Consent System review space.

NZCB representative: NZCB Chief Executive Malcolm Fleming

NZCB working with MBIE on the development of H1 Educational Collateral

Following on from an MBIE/New Zealand Construction Industry Council (NZCIC) H1 workshop in late August, NZCB was provided the opportunity to view the draft of the first two (of four) MBIE produced H1 Educational Modules. Feedback was provided via the Regional Presidents in September, with the follow-up being a late October workshop with MBIE and BRANZ, which NZCB, RMBA, and the Insulation Association of New Zealand were invited to. The purpose of the workshop was to finalise the H1 Educational Collateral. The resultant H1 Educational Collateral was launched to members and the construction industry at the NZCB Conference and Expo, in November.

NZCB representatives: NZCB Board Chairperson Nick Farrelly, NZCB Board Member Director Mike Craig, NZCB Nelson Bays President Dave Gunter

Earth Building in New Zealand

Since 1998, New Zealand has had a suite of three Earth Building Standards. These are NZS 4297 Engineering Design of Earth Buildings, NZS 4298 Materials, and Construction for Earth Buildings, and NZS 4299 Earth Buildings Not Requiring Specific Design. The types of earth building covered in these standards are adobe, cob, pressed-earth brick, rammed earth, and poured earth. Around 2017, a new committee was established (which included some original members and the Chairperson from the 1998 committee) to revise/update the standards, and to expand them to cover a variety of earth building techniques, ranging from dense rammed-earth materials at 2,200 kg/m3 down to straw bales at 90 kg/m3. Completion of this standard is being undertaken by a partnership between Standards New Zealand and the Earth Building Association of New Zealand (EBANZ). The role of all members of the Standards Development Committee and their nominating organisations, of Standards New Zealand, and of EBANZ, in the success of this collaborative process is acknowledged. Thanks also to EBANZ for the research and fundraising that enabled this project to progress, to Martin Ulenberg for work on diagrams, and to all those from within New Zealand or from overseas who offered support or made donations of time or money for this project, including Te Kāhui Whaihanga/ New Zealand Institute of Architects. Particular thanks are given to the development lead, Ian Brewer, for his administrative and editing work. Currently the Standards Development Committee and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) are working on alignment of the last few areas. We then aim to have the standards put out for public comment, and subsequently cited, in 2023. NZCB representative: NZCB member and Director of BioBuild, Alan Drayton