How building industry must change after Opal, Mascot towers

Independent “check” or “verification” engineers for all large-scale developments need to be returned to the building industry so developers can ensure the structural integrity of their buildings, experts say, following the structural damage to unit blocks like the Opal Tower and Mascot Towers.

• City of the future: What Sydney will look like in 2040
• Taller buildings to reflect growth of Parramatta

A job made redundant 20 years ago by cost-cutting cowboys in the building industry must become mandatory to restore public confidence in apartments, experts say.

Engineers Australia and major developer Billbergia say independent “check” or “verification” engineers need to be on all large-scale developments so developers can ensure the structural integrity of their buildings.

As the high-rise building industry undergoes an unprecedented crisis of confidence, EA has called for a greater role for check engineers on apartment building sites.

In its submission to the NSW Government’s discussion paper on building reform, EA will also call for engineer registration schemes similar to what doctors and lawyers have.

All units in the Mascot Towers unit block were evacuated due to structural damage in June. Picture: Damian Shaw

“Check engineers, or some call it a clerk or works, would be someone on site every day to check what is being designed is actually being built,” EA public affairs manager Jonathan Russell said.

“There needs to be more independence between those who build and those who verify.

“Our members routinely say that this role, normally done by an engineer or architect, was commonplace 20 years ago but has since disappeared.”

Developer Billbergia, responsible for thousands of apartments at Rhodes, Wentworth Point and Meadowbank, will call for similar changes in its submission.

MORE FROM BEN PIKE:

‘We don’t want sky-high slums in Liverpool’

What Sydney looked like in the 1930s

Development director Rick Graf said their “four silver bullets” include mandatory independent checks for structural, cladding and waterproofing issues.

They say while their company performs these checks, many in the industry don’t.

“It would add 1 to 2 per cent to the cost of the build but would prove much more cost effective than coming back and fixing the problems later,” Mr Graf said.

Some structural damage at the Opal Tower in Sydney Olympic Park also led to evacuations. Picture: Dylan Robinson

“In a price driven construction sector, it is important that this is tackled at a government level to raise the benchmark of the builder across the industry.”

Structural problems at Opal and Mascot towers, as well as defects at an abandoned apartment block in Zetland, have sent shockwaves through the industry.

NSW last week struck a deal with the states to pursue national building standards, however Better Regulation Minister Kevin Anderson still plans to introduce building reforms by the end the year.

“The NSW Government will consider every submission made as part of the public consultation on building reforms in NSW,” Mr Anderson said.

“The proposed reforms will improve the transparency, accountability an quality of work in the building and construction industry.

“The Government has been encouraged by the co-operation and motivation of all stakeholders to not just get behind the proposed reforms, but identify ways to strengthen them even further.”

The Daily Telegraph can also reveal the state government has paid compensation to 21 residents at the Mascot Towers apartment block, which was evacuated last month after major cracks appeared in the basement.

Mascot Towers owners and tenants, many of whom remain turfed out of their homes indefinitely, have been receiving up to $400 per night to cover the costs of living out of home.