Are You Importing Building Products into NZ?
3-minute read
If you are importing building products into NZ, be sure to know New Building Product Information Requirements.
On 11 December 2023, new regulations for building product information requirements will commence.
The new regulations have been made to provide building product users with information about how building products contribute to compliance with the Building Code.
They place obligations on New Zealand-based manufacturers, importers, wholesalers, retailers, and distributors.
What Is Changing
There will be new regulations about building product information so that people who use the products will be able to see how they contribute to Building Code compliance.
If you are based in New Zealand and are a manufacturer, importer, wholesaler, retailer, or distributor of building products, you will have to follow the new regulations.
They have been introduced to:
- improve the quality and consistency of building product information
- help people choose and install the right products for their needs
- enable more efficient consenting.
When the Changes Happen
The changes happen from 11 December, 2023.
The new regulations were announced in June 2022 to give 18 months to get ready for them.
What You Need to Do
New Zealand-based Importers and Manufacturers
Under the regulations, manufacturers and importers of designated building products have new responsibilities.
- You must provide a minimum level of information about certain building products you supply to the New Zealand market, including how the product will perform.
- You will be required to provide the information free if it is online.
- You may need to put more effort into collating, producing and disclosing your product information than you previously did.
- You will have to make some decisions about how you will meet the new requirements.
There are a number of decisions you can make that will help you to meet the new regulatory requirements:
- Decide which of your building products are captured by the regulations (some may not be). This is outlined in Regulation 7 – legislation.govt.nz
- Look at where you can group lines of products together on one product information disclosure or where you can produce a product information disclosure for systems.
- Look at what technical product information you already have for your building products. For example, a product technical statement, technical data sheet, or appraisal. You can build on this information by carrying out a gap analysis using the checklist developed by MBIE.
- Identify any existing information that needs to be brought up to requirements, or that needs to be added, eg whether the product is subject to a warning or a ban under section 26 of the Building Act 2004.
- Consider linking to larger supporting documents, such as installation manuals and maintenance manuals, that may already exist elsewhere on your website.
- Collate and publish the required information about your product.
New Zealand-based wholesalers, distributors, and retailers
- You will need to check that certain building products you supply include product information.
- You will be required to have the building product information available to customers when certain building products are for sale.
- You are not expected to constantly review the information disclosed by a manufacturer or importer. We recommend that you communicate with product manufacturers about any changes that impact the information you have available about the building product.
Tools and Resources to Help You
To learn more about the new regulations, visit the Building Performance website here, which has resources and tools, such as a checklist and step-by-step guide, to help you understand your obligations and how to comply.
Source: Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment
P.S. Easy Freight Ltd helps New Zealand importers & exporters to save money on international freight and reduce mistakes by guiding how to comply with Customs and biosecurity rules.
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