NSW’s new Building Commissioner James Sherrard has officially started in his role leading the state’s first dedicated building and construction regulator.
In his first week in the job, as the Building Commission NSW marks its one-year anniversary, Mr Sherrard has set out his priorities to underpin industry oversight and compliance, backed by a growing team of more than 450 people.
His focus builds on the success of the regulator in restoring quality and public confidence, while looking towards further industry reform:
- Developing and introducing building reforms to support strong regulation, industry productivity, and consumer protection.
- Increasing construction compliance and building quality to support the 2029 National Accord housing target.
- Support further education on how quality construction can save practitioners time and money.
- Setting clear expectations of ‘what good looks like’ through industry education, and examples of rated developers and good standard projects.
Building Commission NSW was established by the Minns Labor Government on 1 December 2023 and is marking its first anniversary by reflecting on 12 months of compliance, innovation, and reform including:
- Inspecting around 1,400 buildings across metropolitan and regional NSW, focusing on home building and residential apartments.
- Publishing a library of the most common defects to help practitioners identify and fix issues early, better protecting consumer investments and saving builders time and money.
- Building a more dedicated regional presence, starting with inspectors based locally in the Illawarra.
- Using data and intelligence to focus attention on riskier licence renewals and applications.
A prime example of the Building Commission NSWs work was a recent concrete quality safety blitz which unearthed defects in 12 buildings across four major metropolitan regions.
Inspectors targeted specific sites in Sydney, Newcastle, the Central Coast and Wollongong, which was guided by intelligence suggesting 20 Class 2 (apartment) buildings under construction may be at higher risk of poor-quality construction.
Building Commission NSW inspectors used Schmidt Hammer tests, which measure the elastic properties or strength of concrete, to identify risks in quality of formed concrete and variations in strength across column and slab structures at these sites.
While all the defects identified can be rectified with none posing a public safety risk, Building Commission NSW has responded quickly by issuing orders to ensure defects are resolved before the buildings are finished and residents move in.
Building Commission NSW will continue to monitor these projects through to completion, while the concrete audit program hits the road and targets more regions across NSW.
These ‘Anywhere, Anytime’ inspections are part of a wider campaign of regular audits that will focus on the quality of work related to the five key building elements of structure, fire safety, waterproofing, building envelope, and key services like electrical, plumbing, and lifts.
These activities are designed to reinstate consumer confidence in the building industry by getting on top of defects early and ensuring early intervention and education to builders and site managers.
Since 2021/22 alone, NSW has seen a 20 per cent reduction in waterproofing defects and a seven per cent reduction in structural defects.
Find more information on the work of the Building Commission NSW.
Minister for Building Anoulack Chanthivong said:
“Building Commission NSW is in safe hands as Mr Sherrard takes over the helm of the state’s first dedicated building regulator.
“Commissioner Sherrard will lead an exciting new chapter for compliance and change in the building and construction industry.
“Building Commission NSW was established in December 2023 with the core goal of turning the state’s construction industry around.
“Public confidence in the building and construction was low, standards were not up to scratch, and there were too many horror stories of building defects.
“Building Commission NSW has made significant progress in turning negative perceptions of the building industry around.
“Commissioner Sherrard has all the tools and experience to make a lasting effect on NSW’s construction landscape, and I have no doubt he will continue to raise the bar for the industry and restore public confidence.”
Building Commissioner, Building Commission NSW James Sherrard said:
“I look forward to leading the dedicated and passionate Building Commission NSW team as we all push the construction industry to be better, build quality homes, and take compliance seriously.
“There is a housing shortage in NSW and we need to play our part meeting important housing targets without compromising on quality.
“Building Commission NSW was set the challenge to lift industry standards, and momentum is already shifting.
“Most developers, builders, designers, and engineers are onboard with the changes.
“Notwithstanding this approach, we will still enforce the legislation, where necessary, without fear nor favour.
“We will continue to get on with the job to restore industry integrity and give NSW residents peace of mind that their home is safe and secure.”
James Sherrard Bio:
Mr Sherrard has more than 30 years of experience, spanning global construction projects with specialist expertise in strategy, commercial, and infrastructure areas.
His previous role was Head of Commercial, Performance and Strategy at Transport NSW, where he led a team responsible for contract frameworks, the acquisition of property for major infrastructure projects, procurement for several multi-billion dollar projects, and an analytics team.
Mr Sherrard has been a project manager on civic, residential, and sporting infrastructure projects across metropolitan and regional NSW, and globally, including the Sydney and London Olympics.
He has worked at senior levels in professional services consulting, focused on infrastructure and urban renewal, and has formal qualifications in building, business, and law.
Mr Sherrard’s experience in international construction projects between 2004 and 2015 spanned time working in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.