Many of the people who contact AKTIV Engineering need some assistance to understand the construction process.
Let us help navigate you through the process of how to turn your ideas into a well-developed set of Structurally Drafted Plans that are ready for obtaining Building Approval Prior to commencing Construction.
You are absolutely welcome to call us if you can't find the answers to your questions on this page.
Call 0429 805 068 now!
Some things to think about before you call;
These days anyone can design a house plan. There are some excellent tools online to draw up plans. But you will need a licensed RPEQ Engineer to be able to sign off on the design before it can get a Building Approval.
A Structural Engineer checks to ensure that all of the structural elements in the design will allow the structure to survive the various forces it will encounter in it's lifetime. Having a Structural Engineer sign off on your plans is a legal requirement.
A Form 15 is an accompanying document to Certified Plans. It is filled out by the certifying Structural Engineer and details the Design Criteria used to certify the design. This includes:
This is never advisable, as the local Council can send you a 'Show Cause' letter, asking you to get the structure Certified (with a Form 15) or they may ask you to remove it.
This process is known as Retrospective Approval, and usually involves several steps;
These steps are usually only necessary if the structure was built without building approval.
A Building Approval is provided by a Building Certifier. The Building Certifier will check to see whether the building application will trigger a Siting Dispensation (a Siting Dispensation is where your design contravenes a Council regulation. e.g., building a carport within 6.0 m of a front boundary).
If the design does trigger a Siting Dispensation, The Building Certifier will lodge a Development Application.
Anyone can do this, but generally we leave it to the experts; Building Certifiers. They will negotiate with the Council on your behalf, and endeavour to to resolve any issues the development may have prior to lodgement
The following Scenarios outline what you would need to get your project certified at different stages in the project.
Scenario1. You have an idea for a Proposed Patio, but has no Drafted Plans.
In this scenario you will require:
Scenario 2. You have existing architectural House Plans that include a Proposed Patio. The plans show patio dimensions, site dimensions including distances to boundaries, and all aspects of the existing dwelling, but no Structural Engineering detail.
In this scenario you will require:
Scenario 3. You have existing House Plans that include a Proposed Patio. The plans show patio dimensions, site dimensions including distances to boundaries, and all aspects of the existing dwelling. Certified Engineering drawings have also been compiled, but you want to make changes to the design.
In this scenario you will require:
The order is which most jobs are done goes something like this: