A Word from the Chair

Kia ora koutou,

I want to extend a warm welcome to our new members and express my thanks to our long‑standing members. Your commitment is the backbone of the Association of Building Compliance (ABC). Each new member strengthens our voice, and the continued support from existing members allows us to advocate for better building compliance standards nationwide. Thank you for your passion and dedication.

Many of you will know that ABC has been working with Future Skills to develop a New Zealand Certificate in Building Compliance (Level 4). After much time and energy spent developing this course, we now have a bespoke qualification that gives people working in, or wanting to work in the building compliance sector, the core knowledge they need. The qualification aims to equip learners with skills to interpret and apply New Zealand’s regulatory framework — including sections 100–111 of the Building Act 2004 and the Fire and Emergency NZ Act 2017 — with a focus on specified systems, compliance schedules and inspection processes. Importantly, it also develops communication skills so graduates can engage professionally with building owners, regulators and other stakeholders.

Future Skills runs the qualification in three courses. Course 1 – Building Regulatory Environment for Building Compliance runs over five weeks and blends two face‑to‑face workshops with online tutorials. We see this qualification as a pathway for technicians and inspectors to become IQP (Independently Qualified Person) registered, and to lift standards across the country. We encourage employers to consider enrolling staff; group discounts are available for organisations enrolling five or more learners. Also check to see if you qualify for the Final-Year Fees Free scheme. Please contact Helen Hegley at Future Skills (helen.hegley@futureskills.co.nz) for more information or visit our website.

Association updates and upcoming events: Your committee has been busy representing you and planning for the year ahead. We continue to hold monthly committee meetings to discuss policy submissions, member enquiries and industry developments. Planning continues for our regional forums, we would appreciate any topic suggestions sent through to the ABC or if you have any training you think maybe beneficial for our members please let us know. These meetings provide a chance to network, discuss regional compliance issues, and share best practice. We have begun preparations for our annual conference in Ōtautahi (Christchurch) in 2026. The theme is “Building Confidence through Competency - Real Competency, Confidence through expertise, Compliance for safety, Trust you can build on.”. We will release more details in the coming months and invite suggestions for speakers or topics.

New qualifications and government reforms promise to raise standards and provide clearer pathways for practitioners. As ABC members, we have a responsibility to remain informed and to support initiatives that enhance the safety and compliance of our built environment. If you have any questions about the NZQA Certificate, the upcoming forums or conference, or any of the reforms discussed above, please get in touch. Your feedback and participation are vital to the success of our Association.

Ngā mihi nui,

Laura Williams

Chair, Association of Building Compliance

Kia ora koutou katoa, 

With the conference done and dusted we are now re-focused on our training workshops and seminars. We are delighted to have to the services of Jarrod Ward as our new Technical Officer and Trainer. Jarrod brings over 30 years of experience in the fire industry, specialising in gas flood systems for boats and the power sector. He has a comprehensive background in building compliance across all specified systems, along with valuable experience at Council level, and previously as an IQP. Jarrod is straight into training and delivering our Fire Alarms workshop which he also helped write. Jarrod will be also writing, with the help of some of our members, an Access or should I say Egress Control workshop which will dovetail into our Automatic Doors workshop and SS13 Smoke control and Smoke Curtain workshop. We have been asked by quite a few members about having these workshops, so we are listening to your voices and developing these. We hope to have them out by November.

Our new Automatic Doors workshop was held in Wellington and we have had some great feedback on it. A couple of the comments were "The breakdown on the 'why' is what has been missing since being in Council for six years. If this was raised to me six years ago, we'd be well ahead." and "Very beneficial for my personal gain. Clear and concise explanations despite some areas we were able to openly debate on. Highly recommend this course for all council officers in this space! Thanks Terry!" This is what happens when we get industry experts in to help train our industry, thank you Terry for the hard work you have put in in developing the workshop and delivering it.

I am encouraged to hear that many councils are taking the chance to upskills their staff by enrolling them in the new Future Skill Certificate of Building Compliance. This is a great initiative to strengthen their knowledge. I hope that we have more IQP's and BWOF Agents join them on these courses as you not only learn from the tutors but from others on the course. With everyone leaning the same material and using the same resources, we can hopefully have more consistency across the country with both the level of IQP inspections and BWOF Audits. These courses will also give you the fundamental knowledge required for the Building Compliance industry and help you to demonstrate your knowledge for competency assessments. I look forward to hearing how the first courses go.

I am pleased to announce also that we will be hosting our first forum in Dunedin in November. We hope that this will be supported by the lower South Island councils and IQP's. For this first event we will be extending it to half a day so we can give a full overview of the industry updates and also be host 2 guest speakers. Dunedin council will also be hosting a session and there is a spot for other councils to give updates too. As always, our forums are free to attend for members and non-members as we want to share the knowledge and update with everyone.

Lastly, we are traveling east to deliver face-to-face training. Thats right, we will be delivering 4 workshops over 2 days in Hastings. It is the first training that we have done in this area since I have been involved with the Association. I hope that the local will support the opportunity to have some training delivered locally. If there is the support, we will deliver it more often. 

Noho ora mai,

Trent Fearnley

The Insurance Council of New Zealand (ICNZ) and the Association of Building Compliance are pleased to invite you to a half-day session on Protecting Buildings from the Risks of EV Fires in carparks.

This event will examine the international evidence from EV fires on building structures, the risk for safe egress and explore potential solutions to protect building structures in carparks, avoid widespread damage, and keep people safe.

Why attend?   This is a unique opportunity to engage with the fire protections industry, insurers, insurance brokers, property owners, councils and regulators on EV fire risks in carparks and provide an opportunity to gain insights to improve safety and minimise building losses in New Zealand.

Forum Overview  Electric Vehicle Fires in enclosed spaces such as building carparks can generate significantly more heat than present fire protection systems are designed to cope with.  Egress paths in these carparks may need to be better protected.

Recent overseas parking building EV fires incidents have authorities in those countries looking for practical solutions. We think it's time New Zealand starts to seriously look for practical solutions as well.   

Key Topics include:

• Educate key stakeholders on evolving risks and what are the current solutions.
• Understand what the Fire & Emergency response with an EV fire in and enclosed carpark.
• Discussion on egress solutions to minimise personal harm

 Main Speakers

• Malcolm Christie from Ryan Fire
• George Hare, BRANZ, AFAC researcher seconded to FRSNSW research team, will be discussing the latest research and test data from the AFAC EV project 
• Representative for Fire Emergency New Zealand (FENZ)
• Ed Claridge, Auckland Council Fire Engineer, from the Engineering New Zealand Working Group looking at developing future guidance on safety of EV in buildings

This event will be moderated by ICNZ’s Insurance Manager John Lucas.

We are pleased to confirm that we are ready to roll out an ABC member specific Professional Indemnity, Public Liability and Statutory Liability scheme commencing from 1 September 2025. 

The policy covers and wordings have been designed and drafted specifically for ABC members to address the specific risks that IQP’s have. 

The insurance comes with ABC Member discounted premiums and several enhancements:

Professional Indemnity (PI) cover:

Several enhancements have been negotiated, but the main ones are:

Fines and Penalties – this is normally excluded under PI policies.  The ABC PI policy provides cover for this up to $50,000 per claim and $100,000 in the annual aggregate.  This is very important especially in light of the fines/penalties that could be issued by the Council. 

The policy provides for an additional reinstatement of cover.  Normally policies have one reinstatement – yours will have two.  That means that if you have a limit of $500k per claim – you could have 3 claims in the year of $500k each, rather than two. 

The policy provides cover of $100,000 in respect of Public Relations Expenses.  In the event of a claim this is very important to ensure that you have the right advice following a major incident where the media is all over it.  This will help to provide best response to protect your reputation as much as possible. 

Public Liability cover:

Extends to provide cover for Business Advice or Service.  This is normally excluded. 

Fines and Penalties cover of $50,000 any one claim and $100,000 in the annual aggregate.  This is normally excluded. 

Higher sub-limits relating to Care, Custody and Control and Lost or Stolen keys. 

The above will be at substantially reduced rates. 

We can also provide cover in relation to Management Liability , i.e. Directors and Officers, Material Damage and Business Interruption, and Vehicle insurance. 

We are currently building out a scheme on this, however have arranged discounted rates for you on these items too. 

Next Steps / Process

1. We are ready to roll out this offer with immediate effect.
2. Attached please find a copy of our health check document, this details what documentation we require to assist.  

I have also updated the presentation for our road shows.  At the roadshows we will present on this but also the value of the cover for fines and penalties and the business advice extension. 

For more information click here or visit Howden or contact Rene Hattingh rene.hattingh@howdengroup.com. 

Rene will be presenting at both the Central and Wellington Forums this month for those interested in hearing more.

GAIN AN NZQA ACCREDITED QUALIFICATION THAT IS UNIQUE, RELEVANT, AND INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC.

The first of its kind, this 20-week programme allows you to study while working in the field. Gain the core expertise you need to operate effectively in the building compliance environment, as an Independent Qualified Person (IQP) or Building Compliance Officer.

*** Are you an ABC member? Get 10% discount on course fees ***

Got more than one staff member wanting to do the course? Pay for 3 registration and get the 4Th free - use code ABCMEM43. they can be on different courses, just contact Helen to get more information helen.hegley@futureskills.co.nz

See the Future Skills website for more information Certificate in Building Compliance (Level 4) - Future Skills 

Your member profile on the ABC website gives you access to a range of useful features, including:

• Updating your contact details

• Adding your biography and photo

• Tracking your CPD hours

• Downloading attendance and training certificates

• Access to your ABC membership certificate

• Viewing all emails sent to you by ABC

• Checking any upcoming registrations

If you are your organisation's primary Accounts contact, you’ll also have access to both current and historical invoices, along with convenient payment links for ease and peace of mind.

Log in now and make the most of your profile to stay connected and up to date!

Upcoming Training Workshops – REGISTER NOW TO SECURE YOUR PLACE!

We are excited to announce our upcoming scheduled workshops over the next couple of months, some delivered online to provide greater flexibility and convenience. These workshops are designed to enhance your skills, update your industry knowledge, and help with your IQP registration. Whether you're aiming to upskill or update your qualifications, our sessions offer valuable insights and networking opportunities to keep you leading in building compliance.

Don't miss this opportunity to advance your professional development. Register now!

ONLINE

Monday 29 September - HVAC and Smoke Control - requirements for SS5, SS9, SS11 and SS13 - Full-day workshop

Thursday 10 October - Compliance Schedule Best Practice - Half-day workshop

Thursday 23 October - BWOF Fundamentals and Owners Compliance Checks - Two Half-day workshops - Register for both and get 15% off!

Thursday 23 October - BWOF Fundamentals - Half-day workshop 

Thursday 23 October - Owners Compliance Checks - Half-day workshop 

Friday 4 November - *NEW* Automatic Doors for Compliance - Half-day workshop

Friday 7 November - Understanding a Fire Engineering Design Report - Full-day workshop 

AUCKLAND

Tuesday 23 September - *NEW* Automatic Doors for Compliance - Half-day workshop

Friday 26 September - *NEW* Automatic Fire Alarm Systems - Half-day workshop

HASTINGS *NEW LOCATION*

Tuesday 7 October - BWOF Fundamentals - Half-day workshop

Tuesday 7 October - Means of Escape to a Final Exit - Half-day workshop

Wednesday 8 October - *NEW* Automatic Fire Alarm Systems - Half-day workshop

Wednesday 8 October - Emergency Lighting - Half-day workshop

Register for one full day training - receive 15% discount;

Register for all four workshops - receive 20% discount!

WELLINGTON

Thursday 9 & Friday 10 October - IQP Backflow Prevention Course with Unit Standards - 2-Day workshop

Friday 10 October - SS7 Automatic Backflow Preventers - Refresher Theory and Practical - Full-day workshop

Friday 21 November - *NEW* Automatic Fire Alarm Systems - Half-day workshop

CHRISTCHURCH

Thursday 18 & Friday 19 September - IQP Backflow Prevention Course with Unit Standards - 2-Day workshop

Friday 19 September - SS7 Automatic Backflow Preventers - Refresher Theory and Practical - Full-day workshop

Tuesday 21 October - *NEW* Automatic Doors for Compliance - Half-day workshop

Thursday 6 November - *NEW* Automatic Fire Alarm Systems - Half-day workshop

To find out cost and times for our courses, as well as others taking place later in the year, click here:  Workshops/Seminars » Association of Building Compliance (abciqp.org.nz)

 If you have any queries regarding the above workshops or require further assistance please email us - admin@abciqp.org.nz 

Certificate in Building Compliance

The new NZQA approved course is now live. Best the first to get on the course and qualified with the new qualification. The first course starts on August 25th. It's not too late to enrol, so if you are interested, please contact Helen at Future Skills at helen.hegley@futureskills.co.nz or call 0800 550 410. For more information about the courses, enrolment options and fees please click here. 

We are delighted to welcome our new members to the Association. Your addition to our community is exciting, and we look forward to both sharing our expertise and learning from your experiences. We are committed to continuous improvement and development, and we believe that together, we can achieve great strides in building compliance excellence.