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Inspectors going private
00:00 11 Jul 1996
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Local authority building inspectors could be facing competition in
the commercial sector for the first time before the end of the
summer.
Schal Property Services (SPS), a division of Tarmac Property Services, this week announced that it expects its application to the DoE to become approved inspectors to be granted within weeks.
The Association of Consulting Engineers (ACE) has also produced an insurance package enabling its members to act as inspectors of commercial buildings.
SPS's application is a result of the Building Act 1984 introduced to open up building control to competition. But up until now the private sector has been unable to enter the market due to a refusal by insurers to provide cover.
Ken Blount, head of professional standards at SPS, said: "We have got together an insurance package and hope to have our application approved and to start producing inspectors before the end of the summer.
"There are numerous advantages to increased competition. Clients operating nationwide can come to one source rather than have to keep applying to individual local authorities and we could work closely with them on standard design."
ACE has produced an insurance solution with Griffiths & Armour, allowing members to act as approved inspectors. Members have still to apply for approval as a company to the DoE or, from last Monday as an individual to the Construction Industry Council.
Brian Woodford, director of professional affairs at ACE, said: "Our members are short of work and ideally qualified to be inspectors. Plus it's an advantage for people to have choice which generally improves efficiency and reduces prices."
The CIC is running a pilot scheme with 50 volunteers from August until the end of November which means that applicants outside the scheme would have to wait until 2 January 1997 before they could apply to be inspectors.
Julian Parrott, policy and projects manager, said: "The pilot is to test the scheme's robustness to ensure that we don't let people through who are unsuitable to be inspectors."
Schal Property Services (SPS), a division of Tarmac Property Services, this week announced that it expects its application to the DoE to become approved inspectors to be granted within weeks.
The Association of Consulting Engineers (ACE) has also produced an insurance package enabling its members to act as inspectors of commercial buildings.
SPS's application is a result of the Building Act 1984 introduced to open up building control to competition. But up until now the private sector has been unable to enter the market due to a refusal by insurers to provide cover.
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Ken Blount, head of professional standards at SPS, said: "We have got together an insurance package and hope to have our application approved and to start producing inspectors before the end of the summer.
"There are numerous advantages to increased competition. Clients operating nationwide can come to one source rather than have to keep applying to individual local authorities and we could work closely with them on standard design."
ACE has produced an insurance solution with Griffiths & Armour, allowing members to act as approved inspectors. Members have still to apply for approval as a company to the DoE or, from last Monday as an individual to the Construction Industry Council.
Brian Woodford, director of professional affairs at ACE, said: "Our members are short of work and ideally qualified to be inspectors. Plus it's an advantage for people to have choice which generally improves efficiency and reduces prices."
The CIC is running a pilot scheme with 50 volunteers from August until the end of November which means that applicants outside the scheme would have to wait until 2 January 1997 before they could apply to be inspectors.
Julian Parrott, policy and projects manager, said: "The pilot is to test the scheme's robustness to ensure that we don't let people through who are unsuitable to be inspectors."
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