In line with sustainability and water conservation practises, modern day tapware and appliances require significantly less water flow than older appliances. However, the Australian Standard that determines the requirements for reticulating hot and cold water within buildings has not been updated to reflect the reduced demand.
In May, the Building Code of Australia (BCA) has introduced provisions for ‘alternative solutions’ offering an opportunity to design outside the current Australian Standards if performance is not compromised and a benefit is achieved.
What does this mean for you?
This means that considerable cost savings can be achieved on plumbing infrastructure, installation and headworks charges.
Potential cost savings
Wood & Grieve Engineers (WGE) has undertaken research of international best practise to test and compare the possible cost benefits for clients. By using European standards for calculating peak flow to different types of projects, a more tailored approach can be utilised that delivers savings of around 20 – 25%.
WGE’s alternative plumbing solution covers:
- Modelling the hot and cold water reticulation of the building to simulate diversified flow patterns and assess reduction of peak flow throughout the building
- Design and documentation of cold and hot water reticulation to reduce internal pipe sizes, water connection to building and headworks cost
- Liaison with plumbing contractor and licensing board to provide required calculations for submission and lodgement of alternative solution
For more information about how WGE can assist with your project, contact Ralf Boepple, Hydraulic Project Engineer and Principal on 08 6222 7119.
