New Requirements for Mid-rise Wood-frame Residential Construction to be Developed
The Office of Housing and Construction Standards have announced that new Building Code requirements will be developed to increase the maximum building height for mid-rise wood-frame residential construction from four to six storeys. These requirements will come into effect in January 2009 and will be developed in consultation with industry, local governments and the public.
In response to this initiative by government, AIBC and APEGBC have sought input from subject matter experts within their respective memberships so as to advise APEGBC and AIBC on the challenges that will need to be addressed from a technical implementation perspective. As a result of the input received, APEGBC and AIBC have provided a detailed joint submission to the Office of Housing and Construction Standards. While the joint AIBC-APEGBC submission advises that there are no insurmountable technical issues to six storey above-ground wood-frame construction for residential occupation, various technical and implementation concerns from an engineering and architectural perspective were identified that need to be addressed (e.g., fire safety, structural, and wood shrinkage).
Further to this, APEGBC members with the appropriate professional expertise and experience have participated in three technical working groups in the areas of building envelope, structural/seismic and fire protection to identify relevant technical and implementation issues. As a result APEGBC has submitted a preliminary proposal to government to develop guidelines for six-storey wood-frame residential construction building projects concerning those areas of practice.
The public review on the proposed code changes to the BC Building Code closes on December 15, 2008. After that time, all submissions will be reviewed and considered. The amended BC Building Code is expected to be in place January 2009.
More information is available online from the Office of Housing and Construction Standards.