DESIGN : DEAR PLUMBERS 27
3 . Agrément certificate option The Agrément certificate design and construction is normally a patented design and construction system and not commonly used in the plumbing industry . The owner is the body or legal person who decides which design method to use , unless the local authority feels that for certain reasons , they require a rational design .
The sequence , from concept and planning to design and NBR approval , is all part of the pre-tendering process , long before the contract goes out to tender and the contractor gets involved . Once the design , specifications and contract documentation have been completed and approved by all the relevant authorities , only then can the contractor come on board with all the support parties , such as the subcontractors . All of this goes through a legal process , from the appointment of the consultants right through the tender process and the appointment of the contractor with subcontractors .
THE GREATER HIERARCHY The abovementioned all forms part of a greater hierarchy , which is as follows : 1 . The government department responsible for the NBR is the
Department of Trade and Industry ( dti ).
2 . Under the dti are two institutions , namely : a . The NRCS , responsible for regulations ; and b . The SABS , responsible for standards . 3 . Regulations are compulsory and a “ thou shall ” rule . 4 . Standards are not compulsory unless it has been promulgated by the minister as a regulation .
5 . SANS 10400-XA is an example of such a document that has been promulgated as compulsory regulation and a “ thou shall comply ” rule .
6 . The role of the building control officer ( BCO ) is to apply the NBR and their mandate is the NBR only .
7 . The BCO is not appointed by the dti but by the municipality , which is under the authority of the South African Local Government Association ( SALGA ). The fire officers are also appointed by the local authority .
8 . The BCO has the authority to approve drawings and issue the final CoC for occupation .
9 . Some standards and design codes of practice have been promulgated under the authority of the Department of Water and Sanitation ( DWS ) and the Water Act , and were used as model water by-laws for the municipalities to be adopted and also used as local water by-laws and adopted by some private institutions .
10 . Local by-laws are the lowest ranking and ‘ trumped ’ by all other legal documentation .
11 . The documents that were adopted by the DWS are : SANS 10252-1 ( water ), SANS 10252-2 ( drainage ), and SANS 10254 ( geysers ).
12 . SANS 10252-2 ( drainage ) overlaps with SANS 10400-P and is basically a duplication of SANS 10400-P , but it does contain some additional technical information to that of SANS 10400-P . Yet , it becomes problematic during conflicts in litigation as to which document is the legal document under the NBR . Strictly speaking , these documents are not NBR documents , but it is implied that there is reference to it in some form .
13 . The local by-laws are under the authority of the specific municipality that operates under SALGA — normally under the municipal engineering department and not under the BCO . Therefore , the BCO doesn ’ t require drawings for the water systems of buildings , except that they do require the fire department to inspect the fire drawings and recommend to the BCO to approve the design , which the BCO then signs off . 14 . The local water by-laws state that a set of water drawings must be kept on site , but there is no way to submit it to the office of
May 2023 Volume 29 I Number 3 www . plumbingafrica . co . za