Building construction is a vast subject, ranging from the construction of a small individual home to tall skyscraper commercial complexes and huge malls. The construction of non-residential buildings like hospitals, courts, schools, etc. require specialised design knowledge and use of different type of building materials. The building materials required will have a wide variance according to the size and the budget of the said construction. Even between two individual homes of the same size, there can be a huge difference in the materials used, depending on the budget allocation. A simple home can be constructed with a few building materials, while a similar home of the same size can use a large variety of materials if there is no constraint on the budget.

The January 2003 amendments to Building Code of Australia have specified measures and regulations on building construction and the type of building materials that can be used in Australia. This has been done with the intention of achieving minimum energy requirements of new buildings and major refurbishments and energy efficiency measures are completely met with. The inclusion of energy efficiency measures is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB) is a subsequent initiative of the Australian government to include all the levels of the government and representatives of the building industry.

An interesting item termed as the Building Assemblies & Materials Scorecard is being developed by the Centre for Design at RMIT University. This tool is expected to help users to find the actual environmental impact of building products and building assemblies. The new tool considers the impact of the entire building assemblies, not just the individual products, like the impact of using both timber & plaster for a wall. Another study reveals that the major constructions are proliferating around coastal Australia areas and the incidence of solar radiation is very high over a major portion of the Australian mainland. This affects organic materials and metal surfaces severely and products that work well in other countries are found wanting in Australia many times. Hence, special care is needed to be taken while choosing the building materials. It will be best if leading experts in the field, be it architects, engineers or developers, are considered and consulted in this sensitive matter, to avoid later problems and save long term costs.

Some of the most essential building materials can be listed as follows:

• Bricks & tiles
• Ceilings & Wallboard
• Cement
• Decorative Concrete
• Doors
• Drainage Products
• Elevators
• Faucets
• Fireplaces
• Flooring
• Home Automation Products
• Insulation
• Lighting
• Pipes & Plumbing Fixtures
• Roofing
• Spas & Saunas
• Wood & Joinery

Many of the leading building materials suppliers are expected to participate in the Designbuild Perth 08 Exhibition and the Perth Plumbing Show to be conducted in the city of Perth

between October 17 and October 19 this year. The site has provided a list of the exhibitors that have consented to participate in this Designbuild Perth 08 exhibition. There are several trade directories available in Australia, through which building materials suppliers can be located.

Until recently, Australian architects and builders have been building designs similar to that of their counterparts all over the world. They have extensively used high performance glass with reflective coating and insulating glass in their high-rise commercial buildings and residential apartments. However, the introduction of the new building regulations is set to change the scenario drastically. Since these regulations are meant to make the buildings more energy efficient, the construction industry has to include low emissivity glass, higher performance toned glass and Solar Low E glass, etc. in their building designs.

The understanding of these new materials is very low in the industry. Regulators of the industry as well as the designers and developers have to realise the benefits of the above products, the resultant energy consumption and the potential reduction in the emissions of greenhouse gases.

In the 1990s, the Australian government initiated studies into the relatively new subject of greenhouse gas emissions of residential and commercial buildings. These studies revealed that the construction industry must become more sensitive to environment and at the same time maintain economic efficiency. Subsequently, in March 1999, the Australian government reached an agreement with the building industry regarding strategies for making the buildings of the country more energy efficient. According to the agreement, the government and the industry will support and encourage voluntary best practices in building designs and construction.

The Building Code of Australia was incorporated with a single standard for adherence to minimum performance requirements so that the worst energy performance practices followed by the industry in the name of aesthetics were totally eliminated in the phased manner. The Australian government guidelines for building designs with higher energy performance can be found in the Building Code of Australia and the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme.

The Australian Council of Built Environment Design Professionals (BEDP) (http://www.bdp.asn.au) is the summit organisation that represents more than 96,000 architects, engineers, planners, quality surveyors, landscape architects, and lighting designers in Australia. The BEDP is planning to submit a report on Future Directions to the government on the designs of the Built Environment. This report will highlight the challenges faced by the construction industry professionals in building designs. It is expected that the report will raise the possibility of achieving some relief in the hardships faced the construction industry professionals. They have been complaining about the difficulties in adhering to all the norms of the Building Code, which can be quite daunting at times.

The best place to learn everything about the latest building designs in Australia will be the Designbuild Perth Exhibition to be conducted in Perth between October 17 and October 19 this year. More than 120 exhibitors will display wide-ranging building design products like frames & structures, windows/glass & doors, kitchens & bathrooms, heating & cooling, concrete, plumbing, etc. The stress on sustainable building with the latest in the line will be at display at the Green Building Zone, which will incorporate the exclusive Ecospecifier Pavilion.