SA Affordable Housing November - December 2019 // ISSUE: 79 | Page 39

PLUMBING JUNCTION
Why developers
should use a
reputable plumber: Part 2
This is the second of a two-part series on
affordable housing by IOPSA on standards
that relate to the construction of a building
and the installation of plumbing therein.
By IOPSA
I
t must be noted that when we look at the National
Building Regulations and Standards (NBR, SANS 10400
SANS10252-1 & 2, SANS 10254, SANS 10106, SANS
1352) related to the construction of a building and the
installation of the plumbing therein and drainage, there is
no mention of affordable housing.
Fortunately, there is a ray of light in as far as plumbing
workmanship. Since its inception the Plumbing Industry
Registration Board (PIRB) has provided a data base of
plumbers available on a regional basis. Not only does this
register list the plumbers’ details, but also lists their
additional specialisations, such as solar installer, heat
pump installer, and so on.
Once a plumber qualifies, an internal process is followed
(including additional assessments) to get promoted to a
licensed plumber. Only licensed plumbers may issue a
Certificate of Compliance (COC), and once this certificate is
logged, it could be randomly picked for an audit on site. So,
even though they have to self-certify their work as well as
the work done by their employees, their workmanship and
materials used are subject to auditing by a third party,
namely an IOPSA Compliance Auditor. This audit confirms
compliance to the Standards & Regulations, as well as
checks and balances for the remedial work, if required.
It is important to bear in mind that the issuing of these
COCs are mandatory as per SANS 1352 : 2012 (the
installation, maintenance, replacement and repair of
domestic air source water heating heat pumps), SANS
www.saaffordablehousing.co.za
10106 : 2014 (the installation, maintenance, repair and
replacement of domestic solar water heating systems) and
SANS 10254 : 2017 (the installation, maintenance,
replacement and repair of fixed electric storage water
heating systems). Using a PIRB licensed plumber at least
provides the end user with peace of mind – especially as
far as accountability is concerned.
IOPSA (Institute of Plumbing South Africa) serves the
plumbing industry as far as the registration of the
companies that the licensed plumber represents. This type
of company registration provides the same type of
recourse for any disputes that need to be resolved
between members and clients. Worth mentioning is the
fact that the application process to join IOPSA as a
company requires a clean audit, so that new members are
screened prior to claiming IOPSA membership.
I am not saying that there is no room for affordable
housing in the housing or construction realm, on the
contrary it will solve a lot of problems around our current
housing crisis. The requirement will always be to have the
affordable housing, but without the underlying problems.
As can be seen from the above examples, if the owner of
that affordable housing unit, bought this unit because of
his/her limited budget – how is it that the majority of the
running costs associated with the unit is then for the
owner’s account? All the more reason to use the reputable
guys out there when it comes to doing the plumbing on
that affordable house.
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