2022 NCC Seminars: Standards Australia

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[Music]

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Welcome to the Australian Building Codes Board presentation of the changes to the 2022 edition of the NCC Volume Three.  

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My name is George Sinnis and I'm an Engagement Officer in  the Water and Waste sector at Standards Australia.

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So in this presentation I'll take you through  changes to the AS/NZS 3500 series, the 2021 Edition

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which is referenced in the NCC  2022. I'll take you through some major  

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changes or some project proposals we have  received for future editions of the 3500 series.

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I'll talk about the direction Standards Australia  is heading and I'll talk about some initiatives and projects we've launched. Things like our new  project proposal portal and our public comment  

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management system and finally I'll talk about  access to standards. This year we turn 100 and  

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in celebrating this milestone it's important to  remember and recognize the contribution and  

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efforts of Standards Australia's many  members, contributors and stakeholders.

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Whilst recognizing our traditional history, of  which the plumbing is one of those traditional   sectors, we're active in promoting the growth  of new industries to support the development  

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of a safe and secure environment and create market  confidence in new and established technical fields.

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We're at the forefront of developing  strategies and standards for use of smart  

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cities, blockchain, critical and emerging  technologies and hydrogen which in turn  

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ensures that Australia and Australian  industry sits as a world leader in these areas.

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We have a number of events this year to mark  our centenary including, the TEDx Standards  

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Australia and SA event in October, go  to our website for more information.

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As you may know we've recently launched our store  and we've been working hard to further diversify  

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by exploring partnerships with distribution and  subscription-based modeling and in-app delivery of  

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standards, We've branched out with new distributors  and we're working hard to find different ways of  

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doing things and make accessing standards easier  and more cost effective for small business.  

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Our subscription sets provide an alternative  to purchasing hard copies, they give the user  

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more choice and they save small businesses money  and they provide easier access to standards. You  

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can find the list of bundles on our website and  please let us know if you have any suggestions.

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We're also launching our reader room, which will  offer no fee access to standards for household  

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and personal use. So that mums and dads don't  have to pay to view standards for casual use  

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and we're hoping to launch  this by the end of next year. We're also improving accessibility for our  users through digital access and exploring  

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and implementing innovations in delivery of  content for the building construction and  

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water and waste sectors. So things such as visual  standards, digital standards, workflows and videos.

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Many of you will have used our new public  comment management system and possibly our  

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new online proposal portal, which I will talk  about towards the end of the presentation.

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We now have a strategic initiatives team and  a research team who work to identify and flesh  

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out upcoming opportunities. This will allow us to  move quickly on emerging themes and hot topics.  

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The UN sets the goals and  we work to align with them.  So things such as hydrogen for clean energy,  sustainable cities, climate action and so on. 

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We're seeing real appetite for conversation around  circular economy, sustainability and resilience.

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So the main part of my presentation I'll take  you through the broad revision to the AS/NZS 3500  

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series, it's the 2021 Edition and all five parts  Parts 0 through to Parts 4 have been revised.  

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So starting with definitions, so AS/NZS 3500 Part  0 has not been updated since 2003 and during the  

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15 years since it was published the main parts of  the series have been updated twice, both in 2015  

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and then again in 2018, and this has left a number  of defined terms being listed within the  

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AS/NZS 3500 Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4 not included in Part 0  and this results in misalignment between parts in  

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the series and this misalign has the potential to  cause confusion through defined terms not being  

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consistent both with the standards and also with  the PCA. So the revision includes defined terms  

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located in AS/NZS 3500 Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4 to be  included in Part 0 and then deleted from the  

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main part of the series. Existing definitions  in Part 0 were also reviewed  

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to see if they need to be amended in light of  new technologies and practices. Also defined terms  

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in the PCA, that are relevant to the 3500 series, have been added to Part 0 and defined terms in  

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other standards such as AS/NZS 6400 will also be  duplicated to ensure that they are referenced in  

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Part 0 and they do live in the 3500 series and  there is that consistency in the terminology. 

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So moving or looking to WaterMark alignment, so references to product specifications  

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were common throughout AS/NZS 3500 Parts 1, 2 and 4 and there are a few issues with  

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that. The major issues being the fact that the  specifications reference were the addition of  

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the specifications, which were current at the time  of publication, now as a secondary reference this  

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locked that specific edition of that document in  until the primary reference document is updated  

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and this was made worse due to the  fact that the the PCA and the 3500 series both  

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aligned and they were both revised on a three-year  cycle. The other issue is that the specifications  

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referenced in the AS/NZS 3500 series may not be  the same specifications deemed appropriate by  

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the WaterMark administration for the certification  of a plumbing or drainage product. So as an example  

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the installation standard could reference a  document for the authorization of a product,  however to be certified under the WaterMark  Certification Scheme the product would be required  

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to be manufactured and certified for compliance  to a completely different document not referenced  

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in the 3500 series. So overall this revision  will ensure alignment between the plumbing and  

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drainage installation standards, the requirements  of the NCC and the WaterMark Certification Scheme.

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Looking at backflow prevention so this revision  will amend AS/NZS 3500 Part 1 to remove the  

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duplicated requirements between the standard and  the PCA for backflow prevention and contamination  

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control. So in 2019, in the 2019 PCA, a number of  the backflow prevention provisions which were  

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considered matters of public policy were actually  put into the PCA Part B5 cross-connection control.  

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This amendment was largely to remove the  duplication between what's now in the PCA   and the AS/NZS 3500 Part 1 and so as a  result the provisions were removed to be  

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required, were removed from the standard  and the information now lives in the PCA.  

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So the information in Appendix F, specifically  figures F1 to F7, which relate to the installation  

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of backflow prevention devices are required  to be relocated to Section 4 and this will  

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provide a single section on backflow prevention. So other parts of 3500 Part 1 Section 4 were  

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also reviewed and updated such as Clause 4.4 and  this will now mean that Section 4 of 3500 Part 1  

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becomes that one-stop shop for backflow prevention. Looking at bushfire prone area so AS 3959 contains  

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requirements for plumbing which unfortunately  plumbing practitioners were not aware of as it  

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wasn't referenced in Volume Three and the appropriate  provisions were not contained in the 3500 series.

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Now this overall led to a lack of awareness of the  plumbing requirements legislated under the BCA via  

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AS 3959 and although this issue was attempted to be  resolved through the introduction of informative  

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references in the BCA, the issue remained that  plumbers just weren't aware of these additional   requirements for plumbing and drainage  installation in these bushfire prone areas.

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So as construction is continuing to  expand outside of major capital and   metropolitan areas this issue  is one that's probably going to increase.

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So the revision of the 3500 series, specifically Parts 1 to 4, will   include information for plumbing and  drainage in designated bushfire prone  

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areas and it'll refer the reader to the NCC  for any specific requirements. It'll ensure  

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that the plumbing systems installed in buildings  in designated bushfire prone areas do not create  

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an increased fire risk to the building, such as  providing an entry point for flames and embers.

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Looking at wet wells, so a range of prefabricated  wet wells are now made available from a variety of  

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modern materials. So materials such as high density  high density polyethylene, polypropylene and PVC.  

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Since the first release of AS/NZS 3500 Part 2 in   1990 there had been no updates to  the allowable wet well materials  

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and the restriction to only allow the installation  of wet wells from materials such as reinforced  

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concrete, corrosion resistant metals, brickwork or  glass reinforced plastic materials constrained the  

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use of modern materials and these required  a performance solution. So the revision of   3500 Parts 2 and 3 will increase the range of  materials that can be used to construct wet wells.

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AS/NZS 3500 Part 2 was revised to include  requirements for drains in unstable soils.

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3500 Part 2 2018 and the NCC 2019 did not  previously reference any requirements or provide  

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any guidance on the construction requirements  of drainage systems laid in unstable soils. So an  

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informative appendix will be included in  3500 Part 2 and this will provide guidance on the  

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minimum standards that should be applied when  laying drains in unstable soils. The committee  

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actually considered mandatory requirements  but they came down on this on making them   informative. So as to give regulators the option  of enforcements as and when they are required.

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This project was to amend sections 6.10 and 6.11  in AS/NZS 3500 Part 2. The revision was done to  

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enable the standard to reflect common industry  installation practices which will provide for  

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improved levels of safe ventilation performances  from AAVs and pressure attenuators within plumbing  

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and drainage systems in buildings. So the  existing technical installation requirements   that were previously contained in Part 2, did  not reflect our current industry knowledge and  

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installation practices as the performance of both  of these products has been evolving over time.

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So in regards to the air admittance valve so  Section 6.10 of 3500 Part 2 the changes are  

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fairly minor and they're aimed at reducing any  chance of a non-compliant installation practice. 

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Section 6.11, pressure attenuated, is a bigger  change and this supports the critical partnership  

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required from the commercial plumbing contractors  and the professional engineering designers who  

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are responsible for the final designs required  to service commercial multi-story developments.

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Overall the changes will enable  a more flexible and efficient   application for the installation of the products.

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3500 Parts 1 and 4 were revised to include  consistent requirements for penetration in steel

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frame construction. The objective was actually  to bring requirements for holes in steel framing

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into line with the BCA and the BCA's  reference Nash steel framing codes which specify,

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the provision of service holes in metal framework  including the size, number and placement of holes.

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AS/NZS 3500 Parts 1 and 4 and the PCA did  not refer to these standards and Parts 1 and 4

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actually prescribe a completely  different set of requirements and this   caused confusion in industry when two  sets of requirements applied to a building.

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The revisions will ensure consistency between  the BCA, the PCA and now the 3500 series and  

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this will remove the risk of misinterpretation  for plumbers. AS/NZS 3500 Part 1 was revised and  

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the requirements for jointing of plastic pipes  was reviewed. The revision will actually direct   plumbers to the relevant installation standards  for the jointing of PVC, ABS and PE piping. 

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There are a number of of common jointing methods  that were not previously mentioned and this led   to calls from plumbing industry for additional  methods such as the electro-fusion jointing of  

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polyethylene pipes and ensuring that the  fittings and pipe combinations are appropriately  

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matched, so that they don't result in leaks. Another  amendment to the 3500 Part 1 involved the removal  

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of all requirements to comply with a product  standard. The ABCB advised that all products  

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used in plumbing and drainage systems with the  exception of storm water must be WaterMarked.

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Now there are three installation Australian  Standards for plastic pipes they are 

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AS/NZS 2033 for polyethylene, AS/NZS 2032 for PVC now  they're both referenced in the 3500 series.

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AS/NZS 3690 for ABS was not referenced  in the 3500 series even though the product  

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standard AS/NZS 3518 is currently referenced, so  to provide coverage for all appropriate jointing  

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methods all three installation standards are  referenced in the 3500 series and the proposed  

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changes to the standard should reflect  what is actually occurring in practice.

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Looking at separation distances so AS/NZS 3000  otherwise known as the wiring rules states that  

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the wiring systems shall maintain a separation  distance of not less than 25 millimeters between  

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any above ground gas or water piping. This  minimum separation distance is consistent

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with 3500 Part 1 but not 3500 Part 4, as Part 4  specifies that a minimum separation distance of  

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100 millimeters between electrical services and  heated water pipes. So our problem arises when  

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an electrician installs wiring within 25 to  100 millimeters of a heated water pipe after a  

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plumber has completed the heater water service installation. Plumbers are then directly impacted  

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in the relocation of pipe work which often costs  both time and materials. So the revision of 3500  

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Part 4 will align the requirements for separation  distances between above ground heated water pipes  

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and electrical services both with the wiring rules  and it'll also be consistent with 3500 Part 1.

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Looking at pipework marking so the revision  of AS/NZS 3500 Parts 1, 2, 3 will  

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include marking of pipes. This was actually  an outcome following public consultation on   the drafts of the 3500 series where  it was identified that there would  

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be merit in reviewing the marking  requirements for commercial pipe work. The revision will ensure that the 3500 series  provides clear and consistent requirements for  

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commercial pipe work labeling to ensure that the  risk of pipework misidentification is minimized.

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Looking at vacuum drainage so as part of  the revision to 3500 Part 2 there were minor   amendments to Section 16 vacuum drainage and  installation now Section 16 is relatively new  

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it was first introduced in the 2018 edition of  3500 Part 2 and there were unfortunately several  

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small errors that were included in the final text.  So this project simply corrected those errors and  

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most are simply editorial or involve clarification  of some of the informative text in the section.

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AS/NZS 3500 Part 2 was revised and this includes  amendments to the requirements for commercial  

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dishwasher discharge and in particular to  remove the restriction on only connecting  

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commercial dishwashers to a disconnector gully. As a Deemed-to-Satisfy solution Appendix B  

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of 3500 Part 2 allowed commercial dishwashers  to connect to a disconnect the Gully with a  

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10 meter discharge pipe however this was illogical  as dishwashers are frequently installed in complex  

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locations and they've got no way of getting to  a disconnector gully within 10 meters and since  

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there's other equipment in commercial kitchens  that aren't constrained in these ways. So things   such as commercial kitchen sinks Appendix B  was modified to allow dishwashers to connect to  

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different drains not just a disconnecter gully.  While specifying the pipe size and length of each  

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type of connection Clause 13.25.3 was also chained  by deleting the requirements to only connect to  

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a fixture trap and waste pipe and simply refer  to Appendix B. The maximum number of commercial  

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dishwashers connected to a single drain is then  limited to four as per clause 9.4.2

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3500 Part 3 was reviewed to update the rainfall  intensity data provided for both Australia and  

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New Zealand based on 2019 data. Rainfall intensity data is used in AS/NZS 3500 Part 3 to  

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accurately design roof drainage and storm water  drainage systems. The data is continually updated  

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through the relevant government agencies such as  the Bureau of Meteorology and as the 3500 series  

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is only revised every three years this leads to  systems designed based on outdated data, which  

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makes it difficult for designers to actually  determine the Deemed-to-Satisfy information and   whether it is appropriate. So there was a change  of terminology used by the Bureau of Meteorology  

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and this project sought to actually align  the terminology with the Bureau of Meteorology. So  

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terms include the annual excedence probability  so the probability that a given rainfall total  

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accumulated over a given duration will be exceeded  in any one time and also the the new terminology  

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also includes average recurrence interval which  is the average or expected value of the periods  

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between exceedances of a given rainfall total  accumulated over a given duration. So these are the  

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terms that are now aligned with the recent terms  that the Bureau of Meteorology have published.

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The revision to 3500 Part 4 will include  requirements for the meter delivery of heated  

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water from centrally generated and circulated  heated water systems to individual dwellings  

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in multi-dwelling buildings. 3500 Part 4 did not  contain requirements for branches of centralized  

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heated water systems in multi-dwelling buildings  and this resulted in unnecessary loss of water  

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and energy. This corresponds to the objectives of  the PCA relating to the supply of heated water  

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the revision will provide minimum requirements for  compliance with the PCA BP 2.5 legionel control  

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and BP 2.6 energy use, specifically it will include  requirements for branch layout and measurement  

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restrictions from the centralized heating system  to outlet points. Sticking to 3500 Part 4 the  

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revision also sought to amend the requirements  for heated water temperature control. Duplicated  

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requirements between the PCA and 3500 Part 4 were  removed so in the 2019 edition of the PCA heated  

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water temperature control provisions which were  considered matters of public policy were actually   elevated from 3500 Part 4 and put into the PCA  Part B2 heated water system and NCC primary  

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references. So 3500 Part 4 should not actually  duplicate the NCC, so this project here will  

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remove any potential confusion for plumbers and  actually point them in the direction of the NCC.

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Looking at drains at grade so the revision of  3500 Part 2 involved amending the requirements  

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for connecting of drains installed at grade, as sanitary plumbing and drainage blockages  

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were regularly occurring. So research  was undertaken, a domestic installation   was replicated as sanitary drainage  blockages were regularly occurring.  

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Water efficient fixtures were utilized and  the installation was compliant with the PCA   and AS/NZS 3500 Part 2. It included  a toilet which was installed upstream  

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of four other fixtures connected to a drain  using 45 degree junctions, installed on grade.

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Test result showed the full flush discharge from  the toilet's performance was negatively affected  

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by each 45 degree Junction. During a full flush  discharge the water was found to travel up each  

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of the four branch lines significantly reducing  the flush volume carrying the waste test media  

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stranding the solids and the paper. Standing was  also observed within the 45 degree junction caused  

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by the redirection of the flow of the waste from  the junction. A number of alternative 45 degree  

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junction configurations were tested to find a  solution, including the 45 degree junction to  

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be installed at a minimum of 15 degrees incline  when connecting a main drain to a branch drain. 

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This configuration was evaluated through  physical testing and observations found this   to provide the best performance of all alternative  configurations tested. A proposal was submitted to  

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Standards Australia in 2018 suggesting amendments  to show a 15 degree incline when a branch drain  

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is joined to another drain and while this  was done for 2018 there was corresponding  

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texts that had not been updated which caused  confusion in industry where drains were still  

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being laid at grade without the 15 degree incline  of the junction, a minor amendment corrected this. 

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So in this slide you can see two images of a  main drain to branch drain connection, the image  

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on the left has the connection at grade, whilst the  image on the right includes the 15 degree incline.

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Moving away from the 3500 Series and I'll look at  the recent revision to AS 2419, which specifies the  

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requirements for the design, installation, commissioning and testing of fire hydrant  

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installations. The purpose of this work was to  ensure that the requirements relating to fire  

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hydrant installations are contemporary and they  reflect the present and future risks within the  

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built environment. So as well as acknowledging the  benefits of these systems it introduces a range   of requirements for high-rise buildings based  on internationally applied standards. It limits  

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the scope to buildings having an effective height  up to 135 meters to Class 7b or Class 8 buildings  

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having a total volume of no more than 108,000  meters cubed and to buildings that do not include  

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automatic wrapped storage systems. Buildings  over 135 meters present additional challenges to  

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attending fire brigades which has implications  on the design of on-site fire hydrants.

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Appendix D contains information  around buildings over 135 meters  

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but the standards committee wished to defer  prescribing prescriptive solutions until it  

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is better identified and better understood how  international standards will treat these risks.  

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Believe it or not, despite this presentation  being for the NCC in 2022, Standards Australia  

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has actually shifted its attention to 2025 and  ensuring that the AS/NZS 3500 Series can remain  

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relevant and fit for purpose going forward. So  in the following slides I'll present general   themes of proposals that Standards Australia have  received ahead of the next edition of the NCC 2025,  

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but bear in mind that things are quite rudimentary  as we've only just started looking at this work.

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So things that will be looked at in a future  review of AS/NZS 3500 Part 1 include flow rate  

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and velocity guidance for the installation of  polyethylene pipes, gray water services, flexible  

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hose installation requirements, provisions  for emergency eye wash and shower equipment,  

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water service isolation, rainwater tank installation   and installation considerations for cold  water pumps. Things that will be looked at  

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in a future review of AS/NZS 3500 Part 2 include  installation considerations for waterless urinals, 

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the use of eccentric taper fittings on all  types of installations, clarification of  

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their requirements of overflow relief gullies in  developments with multiple buildings on one site,  

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installation of above ground pipe work and  connection of fixtures using drainage principles,

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provision of installation of bath wastes and  review of provisions for sanitary waste pumps  

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things that will be looked at in in a future  review of 3500 Part 3 include, in addition to  

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the type of graphical and editorial errors, it'll  include revisions to requirements for eaves and  

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gutters, installation requirements for charged  stormwater lines and installation considerations  

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for rain water tanks and rainwater pumps. Things that will be looked at in a future review  

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of 3500 Part 4, again in addition  to the typographical and editorial amendments,

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it'll look at the issue of flow rate and velocity, thermostatic mixing valves and heated water pumps. 

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As I mentioned all bullet points are quite  vague at this stage and the work is still   at quite a rudimentary level but  we definitely encourage you to review all  

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draft standards when they eventually come  out for public comment. I'm sure Standards Australia  and the ABCB will both advertise  the public comment period for the 3500 series  

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and I'll be going through our new public  comment management system which will make it   much easier for you, for industry to actually make  comments on these draft standards going forward. 

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So we have a number of ways you can be involved, we're a member-based organization and our work  

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program is set by you, it's set by industry,  it's not set by me, anyone could submit a   proposal to us if there is a need for a new  standard or revision and assuming there's a  

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net benefit to the Australian community  and that it gets broad industry support. We then run it as a project with a project  manager under a formal technical committee  

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which is responsible for the content. Now technical committees are usually comprise of  

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usually peak bodies or member basis associations  but under the technical committees we have  

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informal working groups which are made up of  subject matter experts who are not necessarily   aligned with a nominating organization but they're  actually brought on to help create the content.  

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So if you can't sort of align yourself to any of  these peak bodies or member associations doesn't  

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mean you can't participate we definitely encourage  you to actually participate in working groups. 

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We also encourage everyone to review draft  standards on our portal and submit public comments.

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we have a new proposal system which should make  life easier and I'll go through the changes now.

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So we have tried to make it easier for you  to submit a proposal, earlier this year we   released an online proposal portal platform  which can be accessed via our website.

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If you're a new user you will  need to create an account,  but it's hoped that this new platform will improve  our standards development and consultation process.  

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During this trial and transition period, and  it is still quite early days, the Microsoft   Word proposal forms which I'm sure some of you  have read and reviewed will remain available for  

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use and these can also be found on our website.  Now on the portal Standards Australia has three   main types of projects to suit your needs, they  are a creation of a new standard, or publication  

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changes to an existing standard or publication, so  typically revision or amendment and also adoption  

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of international standards or publications.  As I said it's still in its infancy so bare   with us while we perfect it and as I said the  Microsoft Word proposal forms are still available.  

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Several years ago Standards Australia released  a public comment management system which has   made it much easier for stakeholders to  provide public comments on draft standards  

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to access the system you can go to  our website www.standards.org.au,

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click committee access in the top right corner and  then click public comment, the third icon across.  

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To create a public comment account, like the  proposal portal you will need to register  

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an account with the my essay profile which you  can do on the landing page. So there are three  

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main menu tabs in the public comment management  system the dashboard, the my comments and the help.

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So the dashboard which is the screenshot you can  see in the slide shows all the draft standards   that are currently open for public comment, they're  sorted chronologically by comment period end date,

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so the draft standards closing sooner appear  at the top of the list. You can also search  

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for draft standards in the search bar which will  make it easier. The my comments tab shows you all  

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the comments you've previously submitted, saved and  resolved and it also shows some comments from  

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those members who actually resolve those comments  and we've got the help tab which redirects you to   the standards academy where you can view training  resources for the public comment management system.

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Now there are many great features on this new  system and this includes the ability to view the  

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draft online, the ability to actually download  the draft and you can read it in your own time,

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the ability to upload bulk comments  when you have several comments   and also the ability to endorse or report  current comments so that you're not doubling  

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up, you can just give it a thumbs up  or thumbs down. Thank you for watching.