VICTORIA

Act: Building Act 1993.

Regulation: Building Regulations 2018

Compliance Certificate: Annual Essential Safety Measures Report  (AESMR)

Under the Victorian Building Act 1993 and the Building Regulations 2018, building owners, have the responsibility, regardless of age of the building, to ensure that all essential safety measures, pieces of safety equipment, fittings or other safety measures that relate to their building are maintained in order to perform as designed.

To qualify this maintenance requirement, an Annual Essential Safety Measures Report is required to be issued by the owner. The owner may elect to appoint an agent to complete the AESMR on their behalf.

An AESMR shall be prepared annually before the anniversary date of the buildings occupancy permit.

For buildings constructed before 1 July 1994, an AESMR shall be prepared within 28 days before 13 June each year.

Local Councils and fire authorities have the responsibility under current legislation to enforce building regulations for increased safety. Under the the Building Regulations 2018, penalties have increased for non-compliance.

ANNUAL CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS

Annual Essential Safety Measures Report (AESMR) to be prepared and signed by the building owner (or agent of owner).

No requirement exists to display the Annual Report, however, a building owner must keep records and be able to provide copies within 24 hours upon request by council or fire brigade authorities.

BUILDING OCCUPANCY TYPES REQUIRED TO COMPLY WITH SAFETY MEASURES REGULATIONS

All Class 1b – 9c occupancy buildings as defined by Part A3.2 of theNational Construction Code are required to be maintained regardless of floor area size or whether the building is occupied or vacant.

ADOPTION OF AS1851

Maintenance can be conducted to the version of AS1851 listed onthe Occupancy Permit or Maintenance Determination for the building. Alternatively the owner may decide to adopt maintenance to AS1851-2012.

Maintenance can be carried out using any version of AS1851, the requirements of a building performance solution, a determination made by a suitably qualified person or maintenance requirements specified by supplier or manufacturer.

Best practice dictates that maintenance, where possible, should be carried out to the most current version of AS1851, being the 2012 version, except where specified differently on the FSS or an impediment exists.

DEFINED ESSENTIAL FIRE SAFETY MEASURES

A building surveyor may determine any measures they determine to be an essential safety measure on an Occupancy Permit or Maintenance Determination as they deem required.

Schedule 8 of the Building Regulations 2018 defines safety measures terminologies:

Part 1 – Building Fire Integrity

  • Building elements required to satisfy prescribed fire-resistance levels

  • Materials and assemblies required to have fire hazard properties

  • Elements required to be non-combustible, provide fire protection, compartmentation or separation

  • Wall-wetting sprinklers (including doors and windows required in conjunction with wall-wetting sprinklers)

  • Fire doors (including sliding fire doors and their associated warning systems) and associated self-closing, automatic closing and latching mechanisms

  • Fire windows (including windows that are automatic or permanently fixed in the closed position)

  • Fire shutters

  • Solid core doors and associated self-closing, automatic closing and latching mechanisms

  • Fire protection at service penetrations through elements required to be fire-resisting with respect to integrity or insulation, or to have a resistance to the incipient spread of fire

  • Fire protection associated with construction joints, spaces andthe like in and between building elements required to be fire-resisting with respect to integrity and insulation

  • Smoke doors and associated self-closing, automatic closing and latching mechanisms

  • Proscenium walls (including proscenium curtains)

Part 2 – Means of Egress

  • Paths of travel to exits

  • Discharge from exits (including paths of travel from open spaces to the public roads to which they are connected)

  • Exits (including fire-isolated stairways and ramps, non fire-isolated stairways and ramps, stair treads, balustrades and handrails associated with exits, and fire-isolated passageways)

  • Smoke lobbies to fire-isolated exits

  • Open access ramps or balconies for fire-isolated exits

  • Doors (other than fire or smoke doors) in a required exit, forming part of a required exit or in a path of travel to a required exit, and associated self-closing, automatic closing and latching mechanisms

Part 3 – Signs

  • Exits signs (including direction signs)

  • Signs warning against the use of lifts in the event of fire

  • Warning signs on sliding fire doors and doors to non-required stairways, ramps and escalators

  • Signs, intercommunication systems, or alarm systems on door of fire-isolated exits stating that re-entry to a storey is available

  • Signs alerting persons that the operation of doors must not be impaired

  • Signs required on doors, in alpine areas, alerting people that they open inwards

  • Fire order notices required in alpine areas

Part 4 – Lighting

  • Emergency lighting

Part 5 – Fire Fighting Services and Equipment

  • Fire hydrant system (including on-site pump set and fire-service booster connection)

  • Fire hose reel system

  • Sprinkler system

  • Portable fire extinguishers

  • Fire control centres (or rooms)

Part 6 – Air-handling systems

  • Smoke hazard management systems

    a) automatic air pressurisation systems for fire-isolated exits

    b) zone smoke control systems

    c) automatic smoke exhaust system

    d) automatic smoke and heat vents (including automatic ventsfor atriums)

    e) air-handling systems that do not form part of a smoke hazard management system and which may unduly contribute to the spread of smoke

    f) miscellaneous air handling systems serving more than one fire compartment to which Sections 5 and 6 of AS/NZS 1668.1,as in force of as re-issued or as published from time to time

    g) other air handling systems

  • Carpark mechanical ventilation system

  • Atrium smoke control systems

Part 7 – Automatic Fire Detection and Alarm Systems

  • Smoke and heat alarm system

  • Smoke and heat detection system

  • Atrium fire detection and alarm system

Part 8 – Occupant Warning System

  • Sound system and intercom system for emergency purposes

  • Building occupant warning system

Part 9 – Lifts

  • Stretcher facilities in lifts

  • Emergency lifts

  • Passenger lift fire service controls

Part 10 – Standby Power Supply System

  • Standby power supply system

Part 11 – Building Clearance and Fire Appliance Access

  • Open space around large isolated buildings

  • Vehicular access around large isolated buildings

Part 12 – Mechanical Ventilation and Hot, Warm and Cooling Water Systems

  • Mechanical ventilation systems incorporating cooling tower systems (other than a system serving a single sole-occupancy unit in a Class 2 or 3 building or a Class 4 part of a building)

  • Mechanical ventilation systems incorporating hot and warm water systems (other than a system serving a single sole-occupancy unit in a Class 2 or 3 building or a Class 4 part of abuilding)