The standards your job is actually built to.
Every competitor in this trade says "quality workmanship". Almost none of them will tell you which document defines it. These are the Australian Standards that govern carpentry, concrete and guard rail work, what each one covers, and who is responsible for applying it.
Concrete work is designed to AS 3600 and AS 2870, timber framing to AS 1684, and barrier and handrail loads come from AS/NZS 1170.1, AS 1657 and AS/NZS 2890.1. Your engineer or certifier specifies which apply to your job. A contractor builds to that specification and documents that they did.
Concrete standards
Concrete structures
The design standard for reinforced and prestressed concrete. It is where the cover requirements that protect reinforcement from corrosion come from, and where your engineer gets the design rules for structural slabs and footings.
Residential slabs and footings
Governs slab and footing design for houses, including the site classification (from A through to E and P) that describes how reactive the soil is. This is the standard behind the soil test your engineer asks for.
Specification and supply of concrete
Covers how concrete is specified, produced and delivered, including strength grades and slump. It is the reason adding water to a truck on site to make placing easier is a problem rather than a convenience.
Formwork for concrete
Sets out formwork classes and surface finish requirements. If a concrete face is going to be seen, this is where the expected finish class comes from.
Steel reinforcing materials
Covers the reinforcing bar and mesh itself, including grades and marking. It is what makes N-grade bar and SL mesh mean something specific rather than approximate.
Carpentry standards
Residential timber-framed construction
The framing standard: member sizes, spans, bracing and tie-down for timber framed houses. Almost every question about whether a frame is adequate resolves back to this.
Structural design actions
Defines the loads a structure has to resist, including wind. Part 1 also sets the barrier loads used for car parks and balustrades, which is why a balustrade is a structural element rather than a fitting.
Timber structures
The engineering design standard for timber, used where a job goes beyond the scope of AS 1684 and needs a specific structural design.
Guard rail and barriers standards
Permanent, imposed and other actions
Section 8 sets the barrier design loads for car parks and similar structures. When we ask who specified the barrier, this is the document their number came from.
Fixed platforms, walkways, stairways and ladders
Covers guardrailing and handrails for access ways and plant platforms, including heights and load requirements for industrial guardrail.
Parking facilities: off-street car parking
The design standard for car parks, including layout, wheel stop placement and clearances. It is why wheel stops sit where they sit rather than where they look right.
Design for access and mobility
Sets handrail requirements on accessible paths of travel, including heights, extensions and graspability.
Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware
The crash test standard road safety barriers are assessed against in Australia, with test levels such as TL2, TL3 and TL4. Road barrier products are specified by their MASH rating.
What we carry.
Ask any contractor for these before you ask for a price. Ours go out with every proposal.
Got a specification you need priced?
Send the engineer's drawings or the certifier's requirements. We will price against the actual specification rather than against a guess at it.