RD Building Design

14/08/2026

There is a lot of talk online and in the media right now about slashing "red tape" to fix housing affordability. The headline catching everyone's attention is that the National Construction Code (NCC) is over 2,000 pages long, with politicians claiming this massive volume of regulation is making it impossible for builders to build homes quickly and cheaply.

As someone who has worked in building design for over 20 years, I think it’s time to add some context to those talking points and look at what cutting the code down would actually mean.

Breaking Down the 2,400 Pages

While the complete Building Code of Australia is roughly 2,400 pages, no single project requires reading the entire document. The code is split across distinct volumes:

Volume 1 (Commercial): Covers commercial structures (Classes 2 to 9, like apartments, warehouses, and stadiums) across roughly 937 pages.

Volume 2 (Residential): Covers standalone homes and non-habitable structures like garages and fences across 330 pages.

Housing Provisions: Contains the specific technical "nuts and bolts" for residential builds, coming in at 602 pages.

Volume 3 (Plumbing): Covers water supply, sewerage, and stormwater standards across 372 pages.

When designing a standard single-family home (Class 1A), a designer isn't reading 2,000+ pages—they are working within Volume 2 and the Housing Provisions, which total under 1,000 pages. Claiming builders have to wade through 2,000 pages for a house is a bit of political spin that makes the issue sound far worse than it is.

What Happens If We Slash Regulations?

Some have suggested stripping the residential code down to an 80-page summary. While the code could certainly be streamlined and better organized, slashing fundamental regulations creates significant risks.

An 80-page code leaves too much open to interpretation. Without clear technical guidelines for structural integrity, thermal efficiency, and weatherproofing, critical decisions are left entirely to on-site guesswork. We've already seen what happens when compliance and oversight slip: compromised safety, poor build quality, and costly long-term issues for homeowners. The code exists to ensure homes are safe, durable, and comfortable to live in over time.

The Real Bottlenecks in Housing

Politicians often fixate on the "builder," but in reality, architects and building designers are the ones trawling through regulations to ensure compliance before a shovel touches the dirt. Good design compliant with the code can actually keep costs low, provided the plans are kept simple.

The real delays in modern residential construction aren't caused by reading compliance documents; they come down to:

Overly Complex Designs: Custom, highly intricate plans that slow down ex*****on.

Trade Shortages & On-Site Coordination: Managing disparate trades and assembling every component from scratch on-site takes time.

A Better Path Forward

Instead of gutting quality standards to speed up builds, the industry should look toward smarter construction methods like prefabrication and modular builds. Think of it like an IKEA flat-pack or Lego set: when parts are precision-engineered off-site with clear assembly instructions, on-site mistakes drop, construction speeds up, and performance quality remains guaranteed.

Simplifying the code's structure is a worthy goal, but gutting performance standards isn't the answer to cheap, reliable housing. True efficiency lies in better design choices, streamlined construction methods, and modern manufacturing—not cutting corners on quality.

18/07/2026

Big progress for our Charles Street project. Steel roof and wall cladding getting installed.

18/07/2026

Our Errol Street, Footscray project well on the way. Good to meet the crew of Pache too.

03/07/2026

# Musings on Energy: The Real Cost of Power (And the Best Way to Save It)

There is a hell of a lot of information and discussion out there right now about electricity and energy—how we generate it, where it comes from, and where we are heading. This isn’t just an Australian conversation; it’s a global one.

When you look at the debate, it usually splits into two highly polarised camps. On one side, you have the proponents of traditional, large-scale bulk electricity generation. On the other, you have the renewable energy movement.

But if we step back and look at the pure physics and economics of both sides, a fascinating picture emerges.

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# # Camp 1: The OGs of Baseload Power

Let’s start with the traditional side. When it comes to bulk electricity generation, **coal** is the undisputed OG. For a long time, coal was king because it was cheap, plentiful, and easy to access—provided you built the power stations near the coal fields.

Then you have **natural gas and diesel**. Natural gas is a bit newer in the grand scheme of things because it relies on gas turbines to create that necessary spinning motion. Since their invention back in the 1930s and 40s, we’ve adapted that technology from aircraft and boats to power grids. Diesel generators operate on a similar timeline, using a non-renewable resource to create immediate, reliable power.

Sitting in this same camp—though a different beast entirely—is **nuclear power**. Developed around the same time as gas turbines, we figured out nuclear fission in the mid-20th century. While it has been used for armaments, it has also provided continuous baseload power globally since the 1950s.

The main perk of Camp 1? Reliability. If you have a continuous stream of fuel—whether chemical or nuclear—you can run these systems 24/7 ... but creating and maintaining those supply lines can be very costly. If there is a break in supply then generation can be disrupted.

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# # Camp 2: The Renewable Movement

Then we have the renewable energy side, which also has its own "OGs" and newer technologies.

The original renewable is undoubtedly **wind power**. Humanity has been using windmills and sails pretty much since we learned to walk. We figured out early on that the wind offers a free turning motion, famously utilized for centuries in places like Greece and the Netherlands to grind grain. Once you build the actual mechanics, the resource itself is free.

Next is hydro, where we convert stored potential energy from dams into electricity by speeding water through turbines.

**Solar power**, by comparison, is much newer. It wasn’t until the 1960s and 70s that the science behind solar panels was fine-tuned enough to produce meaningful energy outputs. Today, it’s obviously one of the most popular forms of generation in the world.

Beyond wind and solar, we have options like **geothermal energy** (which is fantastic if you live somewhere with tectonic activity close to the surface, like Iceland or parts of New Zealand), as well as tidal power.

The obvious upside here is that the sun and the wind are entirely free. The downside? Reliability. If the sun doesn’t shine or the wind doesn’t blow, the system stops generating.

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# # The Catch: There is No Free Lunch

Here is the crux of the matter that often gets lost in the noise: **with the exception of solar panels, almost all of these systems do the exact same thing.**

Whether it is coal, gas, nuclear, or wind, they all generate electricity by spinning a giant turbine. That turbine spins massive magnets past incredible amounts of copper to create an electromagnetic field, which is then fed into the grid. We are constantly trying to convert one form of energy (heat, steam, or wind) into another (movement), just to get electricity.

And let’s be honest: **our privilege to have a world powered by electricity comes at an incredibly high cost.** No system is perfect, and over the long term, none of them are truly cheap.

* **Traditional fuels** require a non-renewable, resource-heavy supply chain and complex, expensive engineering to keep running.
* **Wind turbines** require massive amounts of space, access roads, and concrete. Because they endure insane structural stress, their lifespans are comparatively short. After 25 to 30 years, the concrete footings have shifted enough that you can't just slap a new turbine on top of them.
* **Solar panels** are incredibly clever because they convert sunlight directly into electrical energy without moving parts. However, they create Direct Current (DC), while our homes and industries run on Alternating Current (AC). So, yet again, we have to introduce expensive equipment (inverters) just to make another conversion.

All of these systems utilise incredible amounts of resources, maintenance, and monitoring to ensure the lights stay on.

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# # The Best Source of Electricity is the Power We *Don’t* Use

Every path has its pros and cons. But there is a source of electricity that is better than all of those combined: **energy efficiency.**

Energy efficiency is simply about reducing the amount of electricity you need to produce the same result. As a species, we are actually incredibly good at this when we try. If you look at vehicles, trains, or appliances from 50 or 60 years ago, what was deemed "efficient" then would be considered horrifically wasteful today.

This is where my world comes in. As a building designer, I don’t just draw lines on a page to create a house; I design energy-efficient systems. The National Construction Code in Australia mandates that we design homes to hit higher efficiency standards. The goal is simple: use less energy, so we have to generate less energy.

When we design a structure to perform optimally, we drastically reduce your running costs over time. We do this through several key strategies:

* **Passive Solar Design:** Orienting the building so it naturally utilises the sun to heat the home in winter and shield it in summer.
* **High-Quality Insulation:** Slowing down the transfer of heat and cold from the outside to the inside.
* **Smart Integration:** Selecting energy-efficient appliances and designing the home to seamlessly integrate solar panels, batteries, and EV charging points to maximize free, localized energy.

# # The Bottom Line

At the end of the day, our world demands power. But at **RD Building Design**, our focus is delivering the highest level of energy efficiency possible within our clients' briefs and budgets.

The cleanest, cheapest watt of electricity is the one you never have to pay for in the first place.

*We will dive deeper into exactly how we deliver these passive and mechanical efficiencies in a future post, but for this one, I just wanted to share these thoughts. Thanks for reading!*

20/04/2026

It is with much pride to announce that our updated website has gone live!

A complete rewrite and rebuild, courtesy of HappyPath Digital Marketing.

For those seeing this, you can help by doing searches for Building Design services in West Melbourne, or searching for RD Building Design.

We probably won't betop ranking, but each search helps notify the engines that we are here!

My thanks to Jared and Justine at for all of the great work.

13/03/2026

Introducing the floor plans for Tango 688.

This is an expansion of the Tango 526 whilst maintaining similar design ethos.

688sqm for both houses, up to 4 bedrooms, 3 living/lounge spaces, generous outdoor spaces, expansive kitchen with Walk-In-Pantry.

Perfect for lots approximately 15m wide and 40m deep (total lot size of 600sqm) .

10/03/2026

3D Render of our Tango 688 townhouse.

This is an expansion of the Tango 526 whilst maintaining similar design ethos.

688sqm for both houses, up to 4 bedrooms, 3 living/lounge spaces, generous outdoor spaces, expansive kitchen with Walk-In-Pantry.

Perfect for lots approximately 15m wide and 40m deep (total lot size of 600sqm) .

03/03/2026

An article from realestate.com.au has just highlighted the perils of building without appropriate permits, and not taking due diligence when purchasing property.

I'm not taking sides, but the Victorian Building Regulations have a dedicated section (Schedule 3) that lists all types of building work that is exempt from the regulations.

If it's not listed in this schedule, then the regulations apply (which generally means a building permit).

Granny flats and pools are not in Schedule 3 so require building permits.

So ... how does he lay person know when permits are required?

There are a couple of options.

1. Talk to a Registered Building Surveyor (council or private).
2. Talk to an experienced Registered Building Designer.

At RDBD we assist our clients by researching the Building Regulations and local planning requirements to look for triggers that enforce the need for permits.

We also assist clients purchasing property to check if there are any illegally built structures on a purchase site. Once you buy a property, you buy any issues with it and can be asked to rectify illegal works that you inherited.

Be vigilant, and always check with a professional before doing any building work.

https://www.realestate.com.au/news/retired-couple-ordered-to-demolish-25yearold-granny-flat-in-sixfigure-dispute/

A quarter-century after building over their pool, retirees discover their unpermitted granny flat could cost them their family home.

13/02/2026

Bunnings are now selling modular 'Quick Built' structures.

At RD Building Design, we are in favour of suppliers joining the market to offer cost-effective housing solutions.

However, here are some important things to note for these units (which includes any other 'off-the-shelf' design solution.

The main thing to note is that the price listed may not be the final cost. Exclusions may include (but not be limited to):

- Site Survey (Feature and Level, Title Re-establishment),
- Customised design to meet any particular needs,
- Planning Permit (if required),
- Design and Engineering for footings (slab and/or subfloor),
- Thermal assessment (for 7-star energy rating),
- Design for Bushfire Attack Areas (if applicable),
- Full permit documentation and details (e.g. adding bathrooms, kitchens, internal spaces etc).
- Variations to meet permit requirements (state and/or local council specific),
- Supply and connection to grid services (water, sewerage, stormwater, electricity, NBN etc),
- Builder construction fees,
- Domestic Building Contract and Insurance.

At RD Building Design, we can facilitate all of these services if you wish to buy 'off the shelf' to ensure that your project meets the relevant requirements for you and local requirements.

We can also design and supply full custom designs of similar buildings.

Remember, this situation is very similar to buying a home swimming pool 'off the shelf'. There are no restrictions on the purchase, but construction (and safety) must meet the Building Code to ensure the building meets relevant safety requirements.

Contact us if you wish to put an Additional Building (Compact) onto your property.

10/02/2026

This is a snippet from a Practice note from the Building and Plumbing Commission.

It lists the titles of the various regulations that we need to adhere to when designing Class 1 or Class 10 structures in Victoria.

There are 28 siting regulations. Granted, not all are referred to for every project, but it is comfortable to say that at least half are utilised for most related projects.

Where things can get interesting is when we (as designers) have to marry up the current regulations with the way an original dwelling was designed and built.

Another role for us as designers is to provide these connections whilst creating aesthetic and functional outcomes for our clients.

Sometimes these requirements create clashes and/or expense ... and we are part of the process to negotiate through or around these to ensure a positive outcome.