Written Answer by Ministry of National Development on inspection of HDB flat building façades

Aug 6, 2018

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for National Development while awaiting for the mandatory building façade inspection regime to be rolled out

(a) whether interim inspections can be conducted on HDB façades with the same installation methods as those that fell off; and

(b) whether the inspection regime can also be extended to newly built BTO HDB flats.

Answer:

In the design and construction of HDB flats, HDB ensures that all its buildings, including the external façade features, are designed and installed in accordance to approved Codes of Practice, the Building Control Act and Regulations, as well as other statutory requirements. Inspections are carried out during construction to ensure that works are completed in compliance with the requirements. In the case of claddings and fixtures, these installations are usually designed and supervised by a Specialist Qualified Person, who is a Professional Engineer and the plans must be approved by BCA.

Once the buildings have obtained the Temporary Occupation Permit, building owners are required to ensure that the building exterior is maintained in a serviceable state under the Building Maintenance and Strata Management Act. For HDB estates, Town Councils conduct regular inspections on the building façades as they are responsible for the maintenance of common property. Where necessary, they will engage a Professional Engineer to follow up on the repairs required.

The Periodic Façade Inspection (PFI) regime aims to enable early detection of tell-tale signs of deteriorating façade elements. It adopts a risk-based approach to balance enhanced safety against increased costs for building owners. This is why the PFI regime is scoped to focus on buildings above 20 years old, and excludes private landed houses, temporary buildings and low rise buildings.

Notwithstanding the PFI regime, should any façade be dislodged from buildings, BCA will carry out an independent investigation on the incident to verify the cause of dislodgement. For HDB projects, HDB will also appoint an independent consultant to carry out checks on the HDB blocks with similar façade features to ensure there are no safety concerns. This is done regardless of the age of the building.