The BSD recently commissioned a structured public promotion programme with a view to elevating the awareness and recognition of the public of the building surveying profession. This was particularly important in advance of or in parallel with the implementation of the MBIS in the second half of the year. We plan to launch a series of publications and interviews in various media to foster more public attention on and understanding of the role of building surveyors. Members may note a recent profile of BS in the Hong Kong Economic Times (香港經濟日報). Besides, we will hold a road show, workshops, and seminars for the public and private building owners to brief and advise them on how to effectively handle the MBIS and our role in the matter of building safety. We wish that the events will help boost the image and identity of building surveyors as "building doctors" and as experts in building maintenance and the repair, renovation, and revitalization of existing buildings, building controls, and the overall development and project manae3dgement works.

 

Needless to say, we have not forgotten the pivotal support of new blood in sustaining the continued development and growth of the profession. School visits will be an important part of the promotional campaign. We are reviewing how to make better use of the e-media to let the divisional council reach members in a more accessible way so that members can be updated in a timely manner on the latest news, moves, and developments in our profession. Should you have any suggestion on other areas of improvement in this respect, please feel free to let us know.

 

Invitation for nominations for the second year HKIS Building Surveying and Eddie Lee Memorial Education Foundation Scholarship for Secondary School Students has been tendered to about 400 secondary schools. We hope this event will echo our promotion of BS.

 

How much do you understand the building setback requirement in the SBD guidelines under PNAP APP-152? In a meeting between various professional institutes, the Buildings Department recently clarified that the setback requirement of building at a development site will also apply to all streets that abut the site, are less than 15m in width, and are not the only ones fronting the main façade of the building, as described under B(P)R 18A(3)(i)&(ii). Our definition of a “street” is any passage that has a width of 4.5m for the purpose of the SBD Guidelines. It does not matter if the street is for vehicular traffic or for purely pedestrian use.

 

Hence, a site with its secondary frontage facing a narrow street or lane of just 4.5m in width under the purview of B(P) R 18A(3)(i)&(ii) may also have to fulfill the requirement and set back the building by 5.25m in order to allow an overall width for a 15m wide street in the future. This may have a significant impact on small scale redevelopment sites in urban areas. The loss of podium level floor space below 15mH, in particular the ground floor area, may sometimes render the re-development financially infeasible.

 

Members are reminded that The Buildings Energy Efficiency Ordinance (BEEO) will come into full operation on 21 September 2012. Through mandatory implementation of the Building Energy Code, the BEEO regulates energy efficiency standards of the key building services installations of prescribed buildings (except for units in industrial and residential buildings). Those installations include air-conditioning, electrical, lighting, and lifts and escalators.

 

On 15 August 2012, a joint CPD with PFMD with the topic, “Voluntary Building Assessment Scheme,” was held. To support the “Mandatory Building Inspection Scheme” (MBIS) and the “Mandatory Window Inspection Scheme” (MWIS), the Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) was commissioned by the government to implement the Voluntary Building Assessment Scheme (VBAS) with the objective of encouraging building owners to properly manage and maintain their buildings on their own initiative. Building owners were encouraged to appoint VBAS assessors to conduct their VBAS assessments. The speaker, Mr Augustine Chow of the HKHS, introduced the details of VBAS, its benefits and mechanisms, how to become a VBAS assessor, etc, to our members. The reference presentation material has been uploaded to the following link in the HKIS website: http://www.hkis.org.hk/hkis/general/events/cpd-2012078.pdf.

 

A CPD on the APC Series - Design and Planning of Building Services was held on 17 September by Mr Nelson Ho. Mr Ho has shared his experience on how to properly design and plan of building services for the efficient operation of a building. I believe that our fellow probationers benefited a lot after attending the CPD.

 

The new Assessment of Professional Competence in Building Surveying officially took effect on 1 September 2012. This new APC regime is a unified training and assessment programme for both professional members (MHKIS) and technical members (AMHKIS) in building surveying. Candidates in different pursuits will follow different paths to qualification. The new Rules and Guide to the APC has specified a new mechanism for training and assessment while the parameters of the core competences of building surveyors have been updated. The roles and duties of counsellors have also been revamped.

 

In order to let members obtain a better understanding of this new system, our Divisional Education Committee (DEC) has organized several briefing sessions. The first briefing session was held on 28 August for all professional members as well as for probationers and students. The second one was held on 4 September for officers and trainees of the three largest local government employers, viz. ArchSD, BD and HD, while the third one was held on 24 September for all serving and potential counsellors and assessors.