• Review of operating and engagement model commenced
• Commitment to conclude review by February 2016
• Stakeholders are asked to provide comment by 18 December 2015

Following the transfer of responsibility for plumbing regulatory code development to the Australian Building Codes Board in 2011, Standards Australia has undertaken a substantial amount of work and achieved solid results in a number of areas.

Through the same period, the Australian Building Codes Board has undertaken a review of the Watermark Certification and Management Scheme in relation to its regulatory function but also with respect to its operation.

In the most recent round of Standards Australia project prioritisation, demand was strong for work to be undertaken in the plumbing sector.
Concurrently, Standards Australia has been in a dialogue with industry stakeholders as to the effectiveness and efficiency of the current system as it relates to:

• Strategy and leadership within the sector;
• The prioritisation of industry and government objectives;
• The efficiency of the current technical committee arrangements;
• Coordination of activities across the range of organisations who play a role in plumbing technical standards writing and regulation;
• Development of new and innovative solutions for products and large scale industrial and commercial application.

In order to ensure that the development work undertaken efficiently and effectively leads to outcomes, Standards Australia will be undertaking a review of its plumbing standards development program prior to the commencement of any new development work.

Standards Australia has released a survey seeking input from stakeholders on:

• What’s working
• What’s not working
• How can we improve

The survey is accessible through this link.

Further consultations will be held in January and February 2016 with the review to be completed by February 2016.

In the meantime, development work on existing projects will continue.