A course created by Woods Bagot in collaboration with the Property Council Academy has been launched in an effort to educate designers about new building industry reforms in New South Wales.
The course, titled Multi-disciplinary Design Integration, will bridge a gap in multi-disciplinary design integration, as the new reforms come into effect later this month. The reforms are among measures to restore consumer confidence and make sure that apartments being built are trustworthy.
NSW Building Commissioner, David Chandler OAM, believes the current lack of multi-disciplinary integration is the single biggest problem in the state’s residential building industry.
“The lack of multi-disciplinary design integration in the construction industry is eating away at consumer confidence. That’s why this online course is so important,” he says.
“Through the Construct NSW Digital Learning Platform, the Office of the Building Commissioner is partnering with industry to rebuild the conversation about multi-disciplinary design practices, and remind practitioners that consumers contract for a whole building – not just its parts.”
Woods Bagot Contracts and Commercial Manager Michael O’Brien, who worked with the NSW Office of the Building Commission and TAFE NSW to author the content, says the course will “equip emerging developers, contractors and designers to understand what’s involved in every stage of the design and construction process with a good outcome at the end”.
“A good outcome is a building that works well, is stable and safe, will last a long time, and provides a high quality experience for its occupants,” he says.
“Participants will learn about the design process and what needs to happen at each stage—the coordination and integration—to protect design integrity in a building’s construction.”
O’Brien believes design matters because it addresses more than the way a building looks. He says the course will save novice developers money in the long term, through avoiding costly mistakes and pitfalls.
“Through upskilling, the course will also support improving the quality of products and services offered in the industry, which is the reason we got behind it.”
Woods Bagot was invited by the Property Council of Australia to provide the expertise for the course, which is designed to build industry capability while universities refocus their education on multi-disciplinary design skills to fulfil the new requirements.
The 2-hour online course of eight topics is available on the Construct NSW Digital Learning Platform. To find out more, click here.
