Standards Australia has published two revised Australian Standards for termite management, AS 3660.1:2014 Termite Management, Part 1: New Building Work and AS 3660.3:2014, Termite Management, Part 3: Assessment criteria for termite management systems.
The two documents have been developed for use in the National Construction Code and as a tool to assist builders, designers, regulators, manufacturers, installers, and assessors to provide constructions with managed termite risk across Australia.
AS 3660.1:2014 Termite Management, Part 1: New Building Work replaces the edition from 2000. It provides a range of options for termite management that can be implemented during the construction of buildings. All members working in termite management at construction should have a copy of this Standard.
AS 3660.3:2014 Termite Management, Part 3: Assessment criteria for termite management systems replaces the 2000 edition with new requirements and pass/fail criteria that will enable manufacturers and system proposers to assess their products and methods. It provides a clear path for compliance with AS 3660.1:2014. Few members will need a copy of this Standard.
“Termite management is an important issue for the building industry and property owners, and by accounting for the risks of termite damage during construction, we can help property owners to reduce the costs and chemical use of remedial control,” said Dr Don Ewart, Chair of Standards Australia technical committee BD-074 Termites, on which he represents the Total Environment Centre.
“Australia has, since the early 1990’s, led the world in termite management innovation and our Standards need to reflect this diversity of approaches. The testing Standard, AS 3660.3, has been written so as to provide an assessment path for any conceivable approach,” Dr Ewart said.
“The drafting Committee has gone through a rigorous process to take account of the needs of the stakeholders and still provide workable documents that are appropriate to be referenced in the Construction Code. The documents are simple, clear and should meet requirements well into the future,” Dr Ewart said. The Committee will now turn its attention to AS 3660.2 and the post-construction management of termites.
Both revised documents are part of a series on termite management:
• AS 3660 Termite Management
• AS 3660.1 Part 1: New Building Work (2014)
• AS 3660.2 Part 2: In and around existing buildings and structures – Guidelines
• AS 3660.3 Part 3: Assessment criteria for termite management systems (2014)
Representatives of government, industry, professional and consumer organisations constituted the Standards Australia technical committee BD-074 Termites.
We would like to thank all AEPMA members who participated in the Standards development including making representations. Particular thanks go to Dr Don Ewart, John Graham, Vasili Tsoutouras, David Watson and Graham Hellier. The Standards will never be perfect as they still represent a compromise between regulators and those involved in the building industry.
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