As a building owner, you must make sure your building is safe to be in and free of defects. When everyone adheres to proper building compliance, New Zealand buildings are safer, and accidents will be minimised. To make sure your structure is fully up to code, you need to have it inspected by a qualified inspector.
You probably already know the basics of building inspections - they are meant to inspect and check out a building to search for any issues that could be dangerous. However, do you know what happens during an inspection and why you must have your building inspected regularly?
The point of a building inspection, as mentioned, is to make sure that your building and its specified systems comply with New Zealand’s building code. If your structure comes up short and doesn’t follow proper building compliance regulations, you could face fines or penalties if they are not corrected in a timely manner.
The actual inspection itself can include examining the exterior, the interior, the specified building systems, and more. Issues can appear all over a structure due to a plethora of reasons, and, unfortunately, sometimes the average person doesn’t notice these issues until they grow into a significant problem.
Specified systems are particularly important for the functionality and safety of a building. Specified systems can include emergency lighting systems, smoke control systems, lifts or escalators and more. If any of these systems do not comply with proper building compliance regulations, they could be defective and they could malfunction and cause harm to people in the building.
Because following the proper regulations is vital, it’s imperative that you find inspectors who are experienced and qualified. Here at Compliance Consultants, we understand that every building is unique. So, if you do have any issues in your building, we are well prepared to look at your facility and work with you to find the best solutions possible.
You don’t want to hire an inspector who will simply point out a problem, tell you to fix it and then leave. Instead, it would be best if you strived to find helpful inspectors willing to talk with you to understand your situation. Our excellent team at Compliance Consultants are here to help our clients fix their structure’s issues by offering innovative solutions that are practical and realistic.
To some, the process of finding a building inspector, having them examine their building and then fixing any and all issues found can sound like a chore. These people may wonder, ‘why do I need to go through all that trouble? My building is fine, so inspections aren’t needed, right?’
These thoughts are very dangerous - just because you don’t immediately notice an issue yourself doesn’t mean everything is alright. One of the main goals of building compliance is to ensure that your building is secure to protect the people in and around your facility.
One crucial part of an inspection and building safety in general is determining what everyone would do in case of a fire. With a good fire procedure set, everyone can hopefully be safer if a fire ever does break out. Without these regulations in place, a fire disaster could truly be devastating.
Another primary reason you need to have your building inspected is so that you can get an up-to-date building warrant of fitness for your structure. A building warrant of fitness, commonly shortened to BWOF, is an annual certificate that proves that your building has been inspected and is safe and well-maintained.
By having your building warrant of fitness, you can prove without a doubt that you follow the building compliance code and that your structure is well taken care of. Failure to keep up with your building warrant of fitness, or displaying a falsified warrant of fitness, can result in severe fines or even prosecution.
As you can tell, building inspections are vital to make sure your building is safe and complies with New Zealand law.
Now that you know just how important building inspections are, it’s never too soon to find a good company who will help you when you need to have an inspection done - and our team at Compliance Consultants is here and eager to assist you.
Our people have years of experience and the right knowledge to conduct a thorough inspection of your structure. If we find any problems with any part of your building, we will also help you find a good solution to fix the problem.
Is it around that time of year when you need to get your building warrant of fitness renewed? If so, we invite you to come speak with us through our site’s contact page. You can also reach us at 0800 325 435.
Make sure your building follows New Zealand’s building compliance regulations with help from our fantastic inspectors at Compliance Consultants.