ASSOCIATIONS 11

By

Rory Macnamara

An initiative by IOPSA to conduct a survey and research project in March 2021 was a stroke of genius , simply because it revealed much of what the plumbing industry felt all along . With 87 % of local authorities not receiving a clean audit and being pretty much dysfunctional , it makes sense for industry to take control of itself within the framework of the law .

It is no secret that South Africa has a disproportionate number of unqualified people doing plumbing work and the public is their prey . Another non-secret is the consumer themselves who allow themselves to be conned because of price and price only . That they suffer the consequences afterwards just does not seem to ‘ click ’ with them .

All qualified plumbers will agree that unqualified people are not doing the industry any good .

Furthermore , there may be some , very few , pockets of good in certain municipalities around the building inspectorate and water inspector , but as the survey shows , this is far and few between . Enforcement of compulsory standards is questionably poor resulting in sub - standard products being installed as well as lack of knowledge of the standards by mostly unqualified people and a few qualified plumbers !

With the NRCS stating that they are only responsible for Part P of the National Building Regulations and not the rest of plumbing , leaves a huge gap in the enforcement chain .

The survey identifies the unfair competition aspect which forces qualified plumbers to ‘ cut prices ’ just to stay in business – resulting in almost a hand-to-mouth existence which has and will continue to have a detrimental effect on skills as the supply chain starts seeking other areas of work and target markets at the expense of an essential service like plumbing .

Of critical importance to local authorities , a point they just do not seem to get , is the illegal connections to the water and waste infrastructure by unqualified people , some in the employ of local authorities , causing untold damage and potential health hazards to the people in the area . Whilst the official and properly constituted bodies for plumbing are doing the best they can under difficult circumstances , it is clear that the local authorities are failing in their responsibility in the control and management of the plumbing installations in their area of responsibility .

The plumbing industry has a tried and tested model for supporting local authorities and the plumbing industry and needs to be considered more closely than it has been by local authorities .

Regarding whether the municipality had water by-laws : 72 % stated yes . 4 % stated no . 24 % stated they did not know !

As to whether the respondents had a copy of the by-laws : 45 % stated yes . 63 % stated no .

Would the municipality have the capacity to control plumbers in the area : 65 % stated no . 17 % stated they did not know . 18 % stating yes . This indicates that 82 % are either no , or did not know .

Regarding whether the municipality had water inspectors : 42 % stated yes . 43 % stated did not know . 15 % stated no .

Response to the question : Rate the knowledge and service of water and building inspectors ( where 1 is low and 10 is high ): Building Inspectors gained an average of 5.5 for knowledge and 5.3 for service .

June 2021 Volume 27 I Number 4 www . plumbingafrica . co . za