Requirements for plans for alteration and erection of buildings—Act, s 27 (1) (a)
17 Requirements for plans for alteration and erection of buildings—Act, s 27 (1) (a)
This section applies to plans that relate to the erection or alteration of a building.
The plans must contain sufficient information about the proposed finished dimensions, arrangement, locations and inherent characteristic of materials making up every element of the proposed building work to allow—
a certifier to work out if a building erected or altered in accordance with the plan would contravene the Act; and
a competent builder to carry out the building work in accordance with the plans and the Act; and
a certifier to work out if the building work, if carried out, complies with the plan and the Act; and
a certifier to work out if the building work is exempt from all or part of the Act.
Examples—building work that complies with Act
1 Plans accompanying an application for building approval relate to the erection of a house with a sheet metal roof. One of the conditions of the development approval for the house is that the roofing must not be white or off-white. The plans must show the proposed colour of the roof sheeting in sufficient detail to enable the certifier to decide if the colour complies with the development approval and the builder to erect a roof in a colour that complies with the development approval. Stating the name of a colour, for example, light grey, may not be sufficiently descriptive unless the plans are accompanied by a relevant colour chart, or manufacturer’s product colour, or a reference to a standard colour in AS 2700 (Colour standards for general purposes).
2 A statement in plans accompanying an application for building approval to the effect that fire collars must be provided where pipes penetrate fire-rated walls may not be sufficient detail about fire collars if the statement does not include either the technical details of the collars or the name of the manufacturer and model designation of the collars.
3 A statement in the plans about the dimensions of bolts may not be sufficient detail if the statement does not include details about the technical characteristics of the bolts, for example, tensile strength and how tensile strength is tested for and measured, by reference to an applicable standard like AS/NZS 1252 (High strength steel bolts with associated nuts and washers for structural engineering).
Note 1 A reference to an Act includes a reference to the statutory instruments made or in force under the Act, including regulations and the building code (see Legislation Act, s 104).
Note 2 Australian standards may be purchased at www.standards.org.au.
The information in the plans under subsection (2) must—
be consistent with AS 1100; and
be apparent from reading the drawing, so that someone using the plans need not take measurements from the drawing.
Plans are taken to satisfy subsection (2) to the extent that they contain the following information:
the extent, overall dimensions and main construction material of a wall, partition, floor or roof if—
AS 1684 or AS 3623 applies to the framing for the wall, partition, floor or roof; or
the framing is of the same scale and kind of arrangement as the framing to which those standards apply;
the location, overall dimensions and description or name of the proprietary product that is sufficient to identify a truss product type for mass-produced proprietary trusses if—
the manufacturer publishes a written span table that states the spanning capability of the truss; and
the table applies directly to a truss and its span stated in the plan;
for masonry work to which AS 3700 applies—the overall extent and dimensions of the masonry work and structural details of reinforcement (if any);
for concrete work to which AS 2870 (which is about slabs and footings) applies—the overall extent and dimensions of the concrete work and structural details of reinforcement (if any).
Example—par (a) (ii)
AS 1684 applies to houses only. However, under par (a) (ii), it can be used for a fitout that has the same proportions as a house or for part of a building with the same loads and requirements as a house.
However, subsection (4) does not apply in relation to a matter mentioned in the subsection if the plans provide for an addition to, or variation from, the matter.
Example
A plan includes information on the extent, dimensions and main construction material for a building whose walls, floors and roof comply with AS 3623. However, the plans also show a service utility pipe that penetrates a fire-rated wall. Subsection (4) does not apply to the additional information required when a fire‑rated wall is penetrated. The details required under s (2) for any fire collar would need to be included in the plan.
The plans may contain other information.
For this section, information is also taken to be contained in plans if the information is in something attached to the plans.
In this section:
AS 1684 means AS 1684 (Residential timber‑framed construction—design criteria), as in force from time to time.
AS 2870 means AS 2870 (Residential slabs and footings—construction), as in force from time to time.
AS 3623 means AS 3623 (Domestic metal framing), as in force from time to time.
AS 3700 means AS 3700 (Masonry structures), as in force from time to time.
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