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An investigation into the effectiveness of the inspectorate in the South African home building industry
Author(s)
Mpambane, Sinethemba
Date Issued
2008
Type
Thesis
Publisher
Cape Peninsula University of Technology
Abstract
The lack of protection for prospective homeowners from inferior workmanship in
homebuilding has led the South African government to introduce legislation that give inspectors
powers to enforce compliance with building regulations in order to address this shortcoming. In
spite of this endeavor the home building industry still produces houses built with many structural
problems caused by poor workmanship. The National Home Building Registration Council
(NHBRC) has spent large sums annually on remedial works. It is against this background that
this research project has been conducted. The study sought to establish criteria necessary for and
barriers to an effective inspectorate function in the South African home building industry. Both
qualitative and quantitative research methods were used for the study, including interviews, and
knowledge, attitudes, and perception (KAP) surveys of relevant stakeholders such as inspectors
and homebuilders.
The study presents the perceptions and opinions of building contractors on their
interactions with building inspectors in the housing industry. The study demonstrates that having
dealings with the inspectorate at various levels does not necessarily mean that, for example,
newly constructed houses will be inspected on a more regular basis.The findings of this study provide baseline data for inspectorate departments and
researchers, thereby contributing to understanding the importance of an effective inspectorate in
the homebuilding industry.
The primary study conclusion is that homebuilding contractors do not have regard for the
competence and levels of knowledge of inspectors given that these are evidently lacking. The
preferred characteristics of inspectors were helpfulness, trustworthiness, fairness and being
knowledgeable and thorough. It is clear that one of the major challenges facing the home
building inspectorate in South Africa is the lack of competent and knowledgeable inspectors to
insure adherence to the National Building Regulations and specifications by building contractors.
Considering that the majority of South African contractor in the housing sector are emerging
contractors it is imperative that the inspectorate play a developmental role by providing them
with useful advice more frequently than is currently the case.
If continuous training on technical maters of both inspectors and contractors is applied the
desired quality standards and workmanship in the homebuilding industry can be attained.
homebuilding has led the South African government to introduce legislation that give inspectors
powers to enforce compliance with building regulations in order to address this shortcoming. In
spite of this endeavor the home building industry still produces houses built with many structural
problems caused by poor workmanship. The National Home Building Registration Council
(NHBRC) has spent large sums annually on remedial works. It is against this background that
this research project has been conducted. The study sought to establish criteria necessary for and
barriers to an effective inspectorate function in the South African home building industry. Both
qualitative and quantitative research methods were used for the study, including interviews, and
knowledge, attitudes, and perception (KAP) surveys of relevant stakeholders such as inspectors
and homebuilders.
The study presents the perceptions and opinions of building contractors on their
interactions with building inspectors in the housing industry. The study demonstrates that having
dealings with the inspectorate at various levels does not necessarily mean that, for example,
newly constructed houses will be inspected on a more regular basis.The findings of this study provide baseline data for inspectorate departments and
researchers, thereby contributing to understanding the importance of an effective inspectorate in
the homebuilding industry.
The primary study conclusion is that homebuilding contractors do not have regard for the
competence and levels of knowledge of inspectors given that these are evidently lacking. The
preferred characteristics of inspectors were helpfulness, trustworthiness, fairness and being
knowledgeable and thorough. It is clear that one of the major challenges facing the home
building inspectorate in South Africa is the lack of competent and knowledgeable inspectors to
insure adherence to the National Building Regulations and specifications by building contractors.
Considering that the majority of South African contractor in the housing sector are emerging
contractors it is imperative that the inspectorate play a developmental role by providing them
with useful advice more frequently than is currently the case.
If continuous training on technical maters of both inspectors and contractors is applied the
desired quality standards and workmanship in the homebuilding industry can be attained.
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