A Word from our Acting Chair

Tēnā koutou katoa (Greetings to you all)

As you may have noticed, I am not Laura Williams, nor am I trying/or willing to fill her boots – but Laura is off for a bit of a break and should be back around Christmas, so I will do my best to ably assist in her absence and wish her the best.

I am also delighted to welcome AMPCO Lift & Electrical Services Limited as our Associations Platinum Partner, and look forward to a mutually beneficial relationship with them, as well as with our other valued organisation Partners and members.   

It’s been a hectic time post the 2025 conference, catching up on real life matters and accumulated business matters, but the ABC conference subcommittee are already hard at work pulling together all of the many jig-saw pieces needed to deliver another successful conference in 2026 “Building Confidence through Competency” – and remember we have Extra Early-bird registrations available now at last conference rates, so book now as the costs will have to increase!!!

Further to the recently released Level 4 Certificate in Building Compliance with Future Skills, I am pleased to share that I’ve signed up to complete Course 1: Building Regulatory Environment for Building Compliance (as have two of my colleagues), and whilst going back to school may seem a little bit daunting for some, it’s also a little bit exciting to find out what I know and what I didn’t know I need to know. I’ll provide an update at a future date, but hope many of you have already committed to become better informed in the space we operate within.

The Association is extremely humbled to have so many talented and skilled people both inside and out of the organisation, who offer their time to share their knowledge with members – in which we are truly grateful.

We implore members to attend our workshops and seminars both for the learning opportunities these offer, but the priceless networking that can be achieved. And don’t forget, we need suggestions of future topics and speakers for future events – so please share these with us.

I referenced earlier many pieces of a jig-saw, and wish to remind everyone that we are just that – a piece or two in the framework of compliance within New Zealand where the public have an expectation of everything being right/compliant/safe for when they or a family member access buildings of Specified Systems within the same.

We all have to work together to achieve this and its not always easy, but at the same time we have look after ourselves and our colleagues – so please offer a friendly greeting or olive branch to someone you may come across who looks like they need a smile or is having a bad day – it might just be you on another day 😊   

Ngā mihi nui

Lyall Senior

Vice-Chair, Association of Building Compliance

Kia ora koutou katoa, 

This month saw the start of the very first Certificate in Building Compliance course. Congratulations to those people who took their first steps towards the NZQA qualification for the Building Compliance Industry, you are raising the bar for our industry. I hope this is the first of many courses to be run. As an Association it is good to see a course which is designed by the industry for the industry, which includes BWOF Auditors, IQP's Advisors Risk Reduction, Evacuation Consultants and Facility managers, being launched so that we are all being educated using the same guiding principles and information. So hopefully we can get to see more consistency across the country. After all we are all after the same objective, to have safer buildings for those that use them.

Our training is continuing over the next two months, especially our two new workshops Automatic Doors for Compliance and Automatic Fire Alarm Systems. Next month we will have two new workshops which will dovetail into them, Egress Control and Smoke Control. So, look out for these opportunities as we try to get the first workshops underway at the end of November.

Also, next month is the last of our forums for the year with a new one hitting Dunedin for the lower South Island Councils, IQP's and others. I will try to make most of these forums so I can touch base with as many of you as possible. I welcome the opportunity to chat with you and to see where ABC can improve and also help our members even more with their requirements. 

Noho ora mai,

Trent Fearnley

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 

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

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

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

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

AUCKLAND

Friday 28 November & Friday 7 November - IQP Backflow Prevention Course with Unit Standards  - Full-day workshop 

Friday 7 November - SS7 Automatic Backflow Preventers - Refresher Theory and Practical - Full-day workshop 

WELLINGTON

Friday 21 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.