Congratulations April 2014 Midwest
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Martin Fiesel
Regional Master Franchise Owner
A Buyers Choice Home Inspections
49 Brander Ave
Langdon, AB, T0J1X2
Canada
1 800 929 0189
1 587 899 3800
1 800 929 0189
Email Me
Website
For more information or have clients interested in a Home Inspection, please call me at 1 800 929 0189.
A Buyers Choice Home Inspections - 49 Brander Ave Langdon, AB T0J1X2 To remove your address from this list, click to Unsubscribe. Forward to a friend. |
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The term "Safe and Sanitary" came into existence after the first Building Act was introduced in 1992. There were specific sections in that act which made it clear that:
1. All building work required a building consent (there were exceptions, but they were very seldom relevant to domestic housing)
2. A building consent cannot be issued retrospectively.
3. Territorial Authorities (Councils) could declare buildings unsafe or insanitary, regardless of when they were built. This therefore applied to buildings or work built prior to July 1992 with or without what was then known as a building permit.
Many members of the public who owned buildings which had work done (including the construction of the complete building) without a building permit or building consent believed that they could get such "illegal" or "unauthorised" works legitimized by obtaining a "Safe and Sanitary Report". This is simply not true.
However, councils do have discretion whether to allow such unpermitted or unconsented building work to remain in place. Their main consideration was and still is, Is the work dangerous or insanitary?
In essence, "dangerous" means likely in the ordinary course of events to cause injury or death to any persons or damage to other property; or would give rise to almost certain loss of life in a fire (again, in essence).
"Insanitary" means situated or constructed or in such disrepair as to be offensive or likely to be injurious to health; subject to undue dampness or without adequate potable water or sanitary facilities (for the intended use).
Councils don't like illegal work and will not preclude the possibility of taking steps at some stage, but they will accept a report from a suitably experienced person, (usually an NZIBS member) and issue in reply a "letter of comfort", which has come to be called a "Safe and Sanitary Certificate", despite the fact that it is not a "certificate" at all (it is usually just a letter), is limited to the time of issue, is non-statutory (doesn't appear in any law) and is not a consent or guarantee.
What this means is that if the illegal work is not dangerous or insanitary, the council has better things to do than make you tear it down and rebuild, but they do retain the right to take further action at some stage in the future should they decide it has become necessary because the work has become dangerous or insanitary.
May 21, 2014
2,551
I get it... You're completely convinced that allowing your employees to get on Facebook and Twitter would pull the rug out from under your bottom line. Because of that, you block chat, tweets, and all other social networking to make sure your workers are doing only what you pay them for. I am here, however, to suggest that there can be a backlash from that approach. Social networking can actually help you in the long run, and I want to try to open your eyes to this fact. In the end, of course, it's your business and your call. But let's see if you can be swayed.
1. Morale
Back in the '90s, people wanted to be hired by companies that were cool to work for. And when the employees actually enjoyed working for a company, they did their best work. Morale is a huge aspect of the business world, but few owners and managers seem to get it. Low morale among the workers breeds contempt, and contempt breeds disloyalty. Disloyalty, as you know, breeds attrition.
2. Reputation
Your reputation is everything in business. And in this day of instant gratification and notification, finding yourself with a reputation going down the drain is little more than a disgruntled employee away. That does not mean you must cater to every whim and folly of your employees. But giving them tiny crumbs (like social media access) will go a long way toward keeping your reputation healthy.
3. Communication
Communication -- whether it's internal or external -- is key to business success. One of the fastest means of communication today is social networking. In fact, it's just about the most immediate form of communication you can find. Your employees may be communicating with the outside world, but many of those people on the outside are consumers and possible clients.
4. Advertising
Dare I say "free advertising"? I dare and I do. Social networking brings to businesses a boon of free advertising. You can't afford not to hop onto this bandwagon. And getting on board early shows the public that you are an agile, aware company. Allowing your employees to take advantage of social networking also shows you care about them. In this society, caring goes a long way. All of that makes for some seriously powerful advertising.
5. Collaboration
Social networking facilitates collaboration internally, but it also lets users collaborate with the entire world. I have done this countless times. When I've been stuck on an idea, I call out to my followers on Twitter or Facebook to get a deluge of answers. It's free and it's fast.
6. Social Research
You need your finger on the pulse of society. You can get this with your employees on social networking sites. In fact, you'll have instant access to the court of public opinion even as it evolves in front of you. This is another (free) way to expand your company's reach.
7. Skill Building
Your company and its employees need to know how to use social networking effectively. Why? Because our society is on a collision course with an even further embedding of social media into our lives. You want your company and your employees at the forefront of that trend. At some point, your employees may have to use social networking to market and sell your product. Allowing them to use it on a daily basis now will ensure that they're social media savvy, without the need for training.
8. Transparency
The world wants transparency. We've seen it from every level of business and government. Allowing your employees to participate in social networking illustrates to your employees' social circle that you mean business when it comes to employee retention and happiness. Today's consumers and society eat that up. But if they see a company deliberately squelching the employee voice and hiding behind the walls of security and information blocking, there will be a backlash. Transparency can go a long way toward boosting customer loyalty as well as your customers' faith in you as a business within the community.
9. PR
Blocking social media may unleash PR problems. The effects of blocking social media will trickle down to the public -- quickly. And although you might not think so, this can quickly snowball into a PR nightmare, especially as more and more young employees -- who depend upon social networking -- join the workforce.
10. Networking
You want your company to network. You want your employees to network. You want your employees to know what other companies are doing and to be in touch with the heartbeat of your market. What better way to accomplish this than with social networking? Yes, they can network with email, but not on as grand a scale.
For most managers and executives, the bottom line will yank the rug out from under these reasons. But times are changing and it's certainly best to keep up rather than scramble to bridge gaps and fill holes. I would highly recommend allowing social networking in your company -- even if only experimentally. See how it affects performance and morale and then decide whether it's a perk worth keeping.
Duane Turner
Office: 09 811 8018
Mobile: 027 376 4806
duane.turner@abuyerschoice.com
www.waitakere.abuyerschoice.com
Waitakere & Surrounding Areas
Introducing the Ontario Top Award winners
Congratulations again to these TOP AWARD winners for April 2014 and to the entire Ontario TEAM for a great year to date !! Mike Smith |
May 14, 2014
Hello everyone,
Our BC Team has had a major success on the largest commercial inspection in the history of A Buyer's Choice Home Inspections! A three man team of Randy Squires and Ron Lyons, lead by Aaron Borsch, inspected a 75 suite Holiday Inn for a commercial client this past month. 
The inspection was more complicated than normal because we had to manage a number of sub-contractors to ensure that all systems were inspected for the remote client. The inspection included:
- City of Surrey - Fire, Safety & Accessibility
- Elevator Contractor
- Mechanical Contractor for Industrial Boilers and Chillers
- Swimming Pool Contractor
- Restaurant Inspection
- Industrial Laundry Inspection
- Thermal Imaging of suites and offices.
The work was done over a 3 day period. Consequently a fair degree of planning was necessary to manage the sub-contractors and coordinate the timing of the inspection activities to ensure there was very little disruption for the hotel guests and employees while in full operation.
COORDINATING ACTIVITIES IN THE SITUATION ROOM
Ron Lyons brought his expertise as a journeyman electrician, so he handled the inspection of more than 16 electrical panels and a complicated metering system.
OVERVIEW OF THE SWITCHGEAR ROOM
Randy Squires conducted the inspection of the guest suites, building exterior and restaurant. As team leader, Aaron managed the inspection of the common areas, offices, laundry and sub-contractors. The project was completed on-time, on-budget and caused a minimum amount of interference with the ongoing operation of the hotel.
The client was also very happy with the amount of detail and thoroughness of the 166 page inspection report.
Congratulations to this team of professional inspectors on a job well done!!
Best regards,
Kim & Dave Williams
BC Regional Owners
A Buyer's Choice BC
2559 Shaughnessy Street
Port Coquitlam, BC, V3C 3G3
Canada
778 996-0369
604 608-3852
Email Me
My Website
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Sarah Turner
Office: 09 811 8018
Mobile: 022 043 1226
sarah.turner@abuyerschoice.co.nz
www.waitakere.abuyerschoice.com
Waitakere & Surrounding Areas
The Bank of New Zealand has posted its half-year profit. Photo/Bevan Conley Increased pressure on bank margins will mean higher home ...
