Dear +Raymond Huo,

There is a high probability that the +Labour party will be taking office at the next election. With the support of the +Conservative party, +Greens party and the +Maori party.

As a building inspector with the +Auckland Council, I am fully aware of the ramifications of the changes in the (Building amendment act of 2012) this will of course be imposed on the  licensed building practitioners. Maybe within the next 18 months.

I would like to boldly offer you my ideas on how you can provide a future.

This will be when you sit around the cabinet table and discuss policy and how to lead the building and construction sector:

As I mentioned I am an inspector and a qualified carpenter for 31 years. 

 I have sadly watched with dismay the weakening of the industry by the application of : 

+Adam Smith’s theory of +Laissez-faire +economic model which includes the division of labour. 

 It is well documented that he did not have a healthy respect for the Guilds. All which respected the role of the tradesman and his craft. I acknowledge that the guild system had a monopoly over the traditions and as such abused their control by manipulating the market price and restricted access.

From my small world at Auckland Council the opposite has now happened.

As each grassroots contractor knows +Fletchers, +James Hardies, +Carters. Look after the shareholder return first. There is a myriad of other material and major commercial construction companies who ride on their coat tails. Their collective drive is orientated to the betterment of the main manufacturers only.

The continual weakness of the supposed representative associations only strengthens any comprehensive challenge to the Government and local council changes.

At the moment the +Construction Industry Council and their member organisations propose to be a representative of and speak on behalf of the industry.   http://www.nzcic.co.nz/

28 Inspections by building consent authorities
Section 90 is amended by repealing subsection (3) and substituting the following subsections:
“(3)In this section, inspection includes—
“(a)the taking of all reasonable steps to ensure that building work is being carried out in accordance with a building consent:
“(b)in the case of work carried out under a commercial building consent, the taking of all reasonable steps to determine whether the approved quality assurance system is being complied with.
“(4)Nothing in this section may be taken to impose an obligation on a building consent authority to make an inspection.”

The builders are not ready for this transition, how would I resolve this problem?

Firstly, the local building consent authorities should be obligated/regulated to provide support  technical support (as building industry advisors) this role is transitional from where they are at today towards where they should be technically in the future  with obviously a constraint on the b.ca and T/A to not charge for this service.  {31/03/2011 speech +Maurice Williamson}

I want to assure you that the risk-based consenting system will be introduced only when we have confidence in the quality of our building work.  One of the pre-conditions includes having a sound base of competent licensed building practitioners, who know how to comply with the Building Code. 

Secondly, this service needs to be funded via the +Building Research Levy. This means the +BRANZ funding mechanism its purposes/existence  needs to be adjusted.

1.    The minister in charge of the levy needs to be changed to economic development or the building and construction sector minister.

2.      No longer does, nor should the minister talk with the MBA as in reality they represent a small proportion of the whole industry. 12,900 members relative to upwards of 120,000 participants in the industry {+DBH 2009 Productivity report}

4 Minister may prescribe rates of levy

·        (1)Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Minister may from time to time, after consulting with the association and the New Zealand +Master Builders' Federation Incorporated

3.    The T/A, s should have no right to take a fee from the transaction costs.

4.    The fee should be externally audited and managed by each districts localised Licensed Building Practitioners. Each district creating a “Building Industry Education Fund scholarship”.

5.    Each district employees the transitional “Building Industry Advisors”.

6.    Each district contracts the appropriate ITO,s for the trade training and the district will create K.P.I.s for the I.T.O s to achieve.

7.    Each district has the right to hire and fire the groupings of government departments and associations.  Each department will have to meet K.P.I,s. If they do not achieve it the district can employ outside organisations to resolve the localised building industry problems we all have.

8.    We would develop a inspection online system like +Telarc-SAi  www.envirostep.co.nz  to help educate and address compliance issues.

9.    The software self-auditing program would be jointly owned by government and LBP district areas. It would be used to influence the insurance council’s investment. Income received would be returned to the localised communities.

4 Minister may prescribe rates of levy

·        (1)Subject to the provisions of this Act, the +Minister may from time to time, after consulting with the association and the New Zealand Master Builders' Federation Incorporated

The minister says that we as an industry have been the poor cousin in the economic room. Please note  quotes from his speech to the Construction Clients Group: 28/03/2012

• But be assured, there is no slowing down or direction change, this is about taking what has been a poorer cousin of other parts of economic development and bringing it into the main stream. This government sees the Building and Construction sector as a vital cog in its economic growth agenda.

• And recognising that there is no “one size fits all” for building work, risk-based consenting aligns the amount of checking and inspection required by a building consent authority with the complexity and risk of the work, and with the skills and capability of the people carrying out that work.

Vision for the sector

• Productivity sounds as if it’s all about profits and nothing else. Profitability is definitely an important part of it, but there are also many social benefits which will flow from lifting GDP by 2% and driving an additional $3 billion of economic activity.

• For example, many of those who work in the sector are often in the lower socio-economic group. By driving up skills you drive up wages. By streamlining the construction procurement pipeline you help mend the boom-bust cycle which currently plagues the industry. Not only does this cycle send our skilled tradesmen overseas or into other sectors, but during the bust stage it pushes many people back onto the welfare spiral. This could be addressed by providing secure, attractive career pathways

Whilst we are on the subject of reform, I believe for the protection of homeowners and the licensed building practitioners that every T/A should demand a personal guarantee for products used on building sites. This is if the manufacturers who are refusing to sign up to the criminally liable code mark material appraisal system, but continue to go down the locally endorsed Branz  system.

This is not unduly a problem for the T/A, but it is an absolutely a huge problem for every LBP in NZ who will need to insure against it.

Raymond, the vision of the minister is admirable. The constraints on him and any future ministers is that the government has lost any real controls over the industry.

My proposal for vision aligns our industry with helping mainland +China in joint building industry education also the importation of quality reasonably priced building materials.  China has a real need of educating un-skilled farm workers that move from the country to the city.  

With all our faults we also have some real potential positive attributes. We can help.

 The industry needs to be profitable. The guys in the SME sector are not as yet able to develop due to many issues.  Some of them are a lack of efficiency, productivity, low numeracy and the most obvious low profitability.

The above locally owned business model takes back the ownership of the build process to the +LBP and homeowner on site.

An additional component that you can align with is the possible broader vision for us as a country.

Your alliance and endorsement of this vision has at its core,  a price reduction in the supply of quality materials being introduced into the building supply chain.  The undue influence by the main material suppliers will stop. They will be required to support and address customer first policies in their processes to win favour.

Currently their dominance creates intimidation on the associations, government, local government, retail outlets. e.t.c Their power is also felt in the media in print, television, online and the public relations marketplace.   

As has been evidenced by your peer +Clare Curran in parliament before 05/04/2012. In relation to the undue pressure from +TVNZ executive on the +Fair Go team.

I would plead with you to help see the woods for the trees.

 Have a broader more progressive vision beyond your three year term.   I would also ask you to consider the real future the +Chinese, +Indian participants    have in our country. We need your contacts your relationships to help us increase our competitiveness internationally.

I wish you the best of luck with the future and the next election.

I would love to discuss this further if you were inclined.