SAFER BUILDINGS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22327, 30 July 1934, Page 9

SAFER BUILDINGS

NATIONAL CODE OF BY-LAWS INACTIVITY OF COMMITTEE (FeOM 008 pARLIAMENTaKY KEPOWE*.) WELLINGTON, July 29. Although a committee of the New Zealand Standards Institution was appointed shortly after the Pahiatua earthquake some months ago to devise a national building code for the guidance of -local bodies, no meeting of this committee appears to have been held to date. The committee consists of three subdivisions—a main committee, a technical committee, and a by-laws panel—and when several members of each of these committees were asked to-day what progress had been made with the framing of a code they all replied that so far no meetings had been held and that if there had been meetings they had not heard of them, nor had they received any invitation to be present.

The personnel of the sub-committees was announced yesterday. The members are as follows; Main Committee. —Messrs J. O’Shea and G. A. Hart (New Zealand Muncipal Association), ~F. F. Gilmore (Fire and Accident Underwriters’ Association of New Zealand), W. Mill (New Zealand Federated Builders and Contractors*' Industrial Association of Employers), H. C. Morton (New Zealand Institute of Architects), F. W. Furkert (New Zealand Society of Civil Engineers), R. Burn (New Zealand Manufacturers’ Federation), J. T. Mair and W. L. Newuham (Public Works Committee), Dr M. A. F., Barnett (Department of Scientific and Industrial Research), Mr J. G. Lancaster (Electric Supply Authorities Engineers’ Association of New Zealand), and Professor J. E. L. Cull (Canterbury College, co-opted member). Technical Committee. —Messrs J. M. Dawson and C, Reginald Ford (New Zealand Institute of Architects), W. Mill and P Graham (New Zealand Federated Builders and Contractors’ Industrial Association of Employers), R. A. Campbell and P. Holgate (New Zealand Society of Civil Engineers). By-laws Panel. —Messrs _J. O’Shea (Municipal Association, chairman), and the city engineers of Wellington, Christchurch, Auckland, and Dunedin. Hitherto the names of the members of the Building Code Committee of the Standards Institution have not been made public. The intention was that the bulk of work should be done by the technical sub-committee and that after this body had decided on a suitable building code it should be translated into by-law form by the by-laws panel. The.main committee was to include representatives of the various other interests concerned in building construction with which the Technical Committee and the by-law panel were to consult before a code was finally agreed on. In March last the Prime Minister (Mr Forbes) announced that Government was arranging with the New Zealand Standards Institution to set up a special committee consisting of representatives of the Government, technical engineers, architects, and local authorities, etc., to frame suitable building regulations in order to ensure that adequate provision was made for the safety of buildings against earthquake damage, as well as for the protection of the public. It was explained by Mr Forbes that these regulations would be supplied to local authorities with a request that they should be incorporated in by-laws. In the event of non-compliance with the request the Government had power under the Finance Act, 1931, to have it enforced and would see that this was done, particularly in areas which had a known seismic history.

After the Hawke’s Bay earthquake a Building Construction Bill was introduced in the House of Representatives, but this measure was not proceeded with. Many objections were taken to the proposed legislation and complaints were made that it would, if given effect to, make building too costly. _ There wag also an objection by local bodies that the Bill would result in the control of building being centralised in the Public Works Department. This year a model by-laws scheme was decided on as an alternative method of coping with the problem.