Product assurance in the New Zealand building market

Every building is designed for a specific use and has to meet our Building Code requirements. If you manufacture or supply a building product or system, it is critical to know it complies with the Building Code.

Your product or system must help to make the building durable, safe, and fit for purpose.

The product assurance approach developed by MBIE is about providing evidence and information that your building product or system complies with the Building Code. Following it will help you to meet your obligations under section 14 (g) of the Building Act 2004.

The product assurance approach helps manufacturers and suppliers choose the best, most cost-effective ways to show Building Code compliance, which will help their product to be accepted in the market.

Product assurance also helps:

• building designers, engineers and consumers by providing clearer guidelines for products suitable for the building market
• builders, specialist trades and building consent authorities (BCAs) with better technical information and greater certainty about product use.

The information you provide about your product needs to be reliable for anyone to use, whether they are:

• trade merchants
• designers
• engineers
• homeowners
• builders
• building consent authorities
• regulators.

Showing your product complies

There are a number of ways to show your product or system complies with the Building Code. The cost of each option will also depend on your product or system.

Products and Building Code compliance has information about the product assurance approach to compliance, the options you have to show compliance, and how to get started. 

Your product or system also needs to comply with consumer and trading laws.