ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: October 31, 1995
Dept. File No.: PL001.RPT
TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: City Building Inspector
SUBJECT: Structural and Mechanical Amendments to Building By-law
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT Council accept in principle amendments to the Vancouver
Building By-law to include recent revisions in the 1995
National Building Code which affect Structural, Mechanical,
and Safety Measures relating to Construction and Demolition.
B. THAT Council instruct the Director of Legal Services to revise
the Building By-law accordingly.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of the Community Services Group RECOMMENDS
approval of A and B.
COUNCIL POLICY
Council has always promoted principles of good building practice through
adoption of modern Building By-laws and upgrading to the latest
available National Standards.
DISCUSSION
This report recommends adoption of some recent amendments to the 1995
Edition of the National Building Code of Canada (N.B.C.). This is
another step in our program to update our Vancouver Building By-law.
The recommended changes from the 1995 NBC were reviewed by local
designers and found to be credible and non-controversial, are considered
substantial improvements to the design requirements of the previous
Code.
In 1990, City Council adopted the current requirements for structural
design from the 1990 N.B.C., and in 1991 Council adopted our mechanical
design requirements from the 1990 N.B.C. There are no significant
related B.C. Building Code amendments to these parts.
These new 1995 changes to the affected parts are few in number but will
legally allow the local professional designers to use the most up-to-
date structural and mechanical requirements and safety measures to
design and construct buildings within Vancouver.
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In most cases, the 1995 NBC changes specify more up-to-date standards
and technology than is presently permitted in our Building By-law.
There are only a few significant changes in these parts of the 1995 NBC,
all of which have received wide public input and discussion over the
past 5 years across Canada, such as:
In Part 1 (Scope and Definitions)
(1) Some new and improved definitions such as air barriers and cavity
walls within buildings.
In Part 2 (General Requirements)
(1) Completely updated list of currently acceptable design and material
standards.
In Part 4 (Structural Requirements)
(1) Seismic design formulas have been slightly improved by NBC
committees, based upon information gained from recent earthquakes
in the U.S.;
(2) Design loads on guards and walls have been slightly adjusted and
even reduced in some areas, and;
(3) Latest CSA design standards for wood, concrete and steel
construction are now referenced to take advantage of modern
technologies.
In Part 6 (Mechanical Design)
(1) Energy-saving equipment is now regulated in the 1995 NBC (very
useful in Vancouver because energy saving is mandatory);
(2) Measures have been brought into this part of the NBC to protect
mechanical equipment against fire and smoke conditions and seismic
activity, and;
(3) Make-up air is now being heavily stressed as a safety issue because
of more air-tight buildings.
In Part 8 (Safety Measures for the Public Relating to Construction and
Demolition)
(1) Improved requirements for fencing, boarding and barricades during
construction, and;
(2) Improved requirements for handling dangerous materials during
construction or demolition.
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CONCLUSION
In order to bring our Building By-law up-to-date, it is recommended that
the above technical changes in the 1995 N.B.C. which affect Part 1
(Definitions) Part 2 (General Requirements), Part 4 (Structural), Part 6
(Mechanical) and Part 8 (Construction Safety) be adopted at this time.
We will be proposing further changes in the near future for adopting
most of the rest of the 1995 N.B.C., with the applicable B.C. Building
Code amendments, and incorporating all the changes Council has already
approved to streamline and reduce the size of the Vancouver Building By-
law.