At the Building Products Summit hosted by the Building Products Innovation Council on 25 February, the National Building Products Coalition (NBPC) released the Building Products Information – Good Practice Conformity Guide (the Guide) and a number of supporting documents.

The voluntary Guide has been developed by the NBPC to provide practical tools and prompts that can be directly applied within businesses engaged along the building product supply chain.

It identifies key behaviours that establish what should be practiced to provide credible, verifiable product information—helping everyone in the supply chain make more informed and confident decisions.

By following good practice, businesses can:

• Build trust and reputation with clients and regulators
• Reduce risk and liability exposure
• Improve productivity and market competitiveness
• Support a level playing field, where doing the right thing is rewarded
• Contribute to an estimated $2.4 billion in annual economic benefits
• Deliver products that are part of a more sustainable built environment

As an industry-led initiative, the Guide reflects a shared belief that industry must take responsibility for raising the bar on product information, performance claims, product use and accountability.

The NBPC is a collaboration of leading industry bodies committed to lifting standards and transparency across the building and construction sector. Its mission is to help advance implementation of the National Building Product Assurance Framework (the Framework) developed by the ABCB at the end of 2021 in response to Recommendation 21 of the Building Confidence Report (BCR).

In supporting a BCR National Implementation Framework, building ministers agreed to “a holistic package of measures to provide a reliable conformity assessment framework, including product conformance information, particularly where those products are used in complex buildings.”  In response was the development of the Framework, which comprises five elements:

• Element 1: Strengthened NCC evidence of suitability requirements
• Element 2: Information obligations for manufacturers and suppliers
• Element 3: Product traceability and identification
• Element 4: Improved surveillance, research and information sharing
• Element 5: Strengthened compliance and enforcement

The NBPC has previously submitted a Proposal for Change to the ABCB to strengthen the Evidence of Suitability provisions as per Element 1 and released the Building Product Information – Traceability and Digitalisation Guide as per Element 3. The latest Guide provides a good practice checklist focused on strengthening the credibility, clarity, and verifiability of product information and claims as per Element 2.

The Guide also picks up on Reform 1 of a Regulatory Options paper for implementation of the Framework prepared by Bronwyn Weir, one of the authors of the BCR, which identified three reforms and estimated an annual positive impact of $242.8 million. This formed part of Building ministers consideration when determining building product quality and safety as a priority at their June 2024 meeting. The three reforms identified and largely aligned with the Framework, are:

• Reform 1 – Product labelling, traceability and information
• Reform 2 – National designated building register
• Reform 3 – Enhanced accountability for product suppliers

The Guide starts with a set of straightforward, practical questions that serve as prompts to help users understand not only their own responsibilities, but also the information and reporting needs of others across the building product supply chain.

When determining whether a building product or system has the necessary evidence to establish if it is suitable to use in the design and construction of a building, including conformance with the requirements of the National Construction Code (NCC), specifiers and installers of building products are guided to a series of questions they should be asking, framed around the following subjects:

1. Product types and scope of use
2. Regulatory objectives and requirements
3. Type of product conformity assessment
4. Assessment rigour
5. Verifiable evidence
6. Conformity traceability

In respect to manufacturers or suppliers, the Guide points to how they can strengthen the credibility, clarity, and verifiability of their building product information and claims, by adopting a good practice checklist, summarised as follows:

1. Standard operating procedure for documented sign-off process creating consistent product information in line with NBPC’s Traceability & Digitalisation Guide data template
2. Formal version control process for all product information
3. Not use misleading or ambiguous wording, phrasing or imagery and embrace accurate representation of product information, performance and sustainability claims
4. Provide valid and verifiable documentation claims for testing, inspection and certification
5. Provide specific documentation when making any product performance or sustainability claims which are outside of certification, classification or industry standard tests
6. Webpage access to the descriptive, physical and sustainability characteristics of the building product in line with the NBPC’s Traceability & Digitalisation Guide data template
7. Ensure all product information changes are reflected in revised product information that can be traced to the product and publicly available
8. Publish clear product information on design limitations, handling, installation, operation, maintenance and disposal of the building product, in combination with any installer accreditation, installation training obligations and safety and/or environmental regulations
9. Transparently State what is covered, excluded, and required to comply with when making any claims of guarantees and/or warranties
10. Ensure technical helpline contact details (telephone and/or email) are visible and accessible on a webpage for Australian users
11. Ensure anyone conveying product information is qualified or competent to the level of knowledge required and ability to communicate effectively for their role
12. Provide all the information required in actions 1 to 11 inclusive and not miss an action or parts thereof

A key to success is for everyone along the supply chain, both supply and demand side, to participate in and promote good practice conformity. To further assist in this regard the NBPC has developed a series of supporting documents that itemise relevant Guide content for different target audiences:

1. Good Practice Checklist for Manufacturers and Suppliers
2. Key Product Conformity Questions for Specifiers and Installers to Ask  
3. Key Product Conformity Questions for Building Surveyors/Certifiers to Ask 

Further, the NBPC has developed the supplementary TIC for Building Product Conformance document intended as an introduction to understanding good practice product conformity through testing, inspection and certification (TIC). Sourcing credible and verifiable evidence often relies on conformity assessment to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of the National Construction Code, a key feature of which is the use of impartial and accredited testing, inspection and certification bodies, of which ICC-Evaluation Service is one. The following extract from this document depicts key features of the Australian building approval and product conformance infrastructure.

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