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| Building Department Accreditation in a Difficult Economy |
| By Richard L.F. Archer, IAS Program Manager |
The International Accreditation Service (IAS) Building Department Accreditation (BDA) and Third Party Permitting, Plan Review, and Inspection Service Providers (TPP) accreditation programs provide building departments and third parties with an opportunity to conduct a thorough evaluation of their operations from top to bottom. The BDA and TPP programs offer independent verification by a highly respected, internationally recognized, accreditation body that your department operates under the highest ethical, legal and technical standards. The BDA and TPP programs use a peer review system, which means highly experienced building department personnel are involved with the evaluation of your department. This provides your jurisdiction/company with a tremendous resource to help you address any issues that your organization may need to resolve. When housing starts begin to rise, hiring and training will become a concern for many departments. The BDA and TPP programs evaluate your hiring practices, and processes for verification of credentials, as well as training and supervision policies. The BDA and TPP programs examine whether you have formal policies and procedures in place, along with service goals and stakeholder input, regarding the administration of your department. Information technology systems are evolving to be a vital part of any building department’s operation. What does your department have in place for the handling and storage of data? How do you verify the accuracy of the information entered? Given how everyone is watching the bottom line, it makes sense to investigate how accreditation will give you a leg up when things take a turn for the better. Having a well-run building department is an additional asset that can attract new development in your community. The cost of IAS accreditation can be spread out over three payments and, depending on when you begin the process, can be spread out over two budget cycles. In a recent email, one client stated, "This IAS accreditation process is great! We have been looking at all of our business processes and reviewing our policies, updating and enhancing as necessary." Paul J. H. Schoemaker, of Decision Strategies International, was quoted in Business Week, "For businesses, the idea is not to get locked into the current reality, but realize that the system is quite volatile and can quickly turn. You want to have strategies that can make you win, no matter what happens." Accreditation should be part of your strategy to position your building department to effectively and professionally offer the best services to your community. |
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The decline in housing starts, along with the recession, has presented significant challenges to building departments everywhere. As with previous economic booms and busts, we anticipate an eventual uptick in housing starts. When the construction market begins to pick up steam, will your building department be ready to meet the demands? The same question can be asked of third-party service providers that offer permit, plan review and inspection services to building departments.