Annual Report 2007-08 - Plumbing Industry Commission

Delivering information to
industry
The Commission provides technical
information to plumbing practitioners
to help them comply with regulatory
requirements. Technical assistance includes
technical solutions, modifications to
plumbing regulations and information on
standards and accredited plumbing products.
The Commission developed five technical
solutions in 2007–08. Technical sheets
included the ‘Recycled water or greywater’
and ‘Natural Gas Type A installation’.
Technical sheets are issued in InPipe
magazine and are available on the
Commission’s website.
2008–09 outlook
In 2008–09, the Commission plans to
achieve regulatory excellence by:
• implementing the proposed Plumbing
Regulations 2008, which are due to
sunset in November 2008, through
training, communications and systems
enhancement
• continuing to collaborate with the
Department of Sustainability and
Environment, Department of Planning
and Community Development,
Sustainability Victoria, Environment
Protection Authority and Melbourne
Water on the development of the next
stage of the 5 Star standard.
Industry gives Commission top
marks for communication
The majority of Registered and Licensed Plumbing Practitioners say
the Commission is doing a great job on communicating regulatory
changes, according to a survey conducted in December 2007.
At least 75 per cent of respondents rated the Commission’s
publications, including its website, as above average or of high
quality. Meanwhile, less than two per cent of respondents rated
publications as being of low quality.
InPipe magazine was the top performer, with almost 87 per cent
of readers responding positively to the publication. The majority of
readers were also happy with the balance between human interest
stories and technical information in the magazine, with 93 per cent
saying they were satisfied with the distribution of content.
The Commission’s website was a close second, with 78 per cent
of users rating it as high quality or above average. None of the
respondents rated the website as being of low quality, indicating
that the site is consistently fulfilling the needs of users.
Despite the strong performance of the website, most respondents
said they would rather receive information from the Commission
through e-bulletins (33 per cent) or InPipe magazine (29 per cent),
rather than through the website (seven per cent).
When rating the Commission’s overall service delivery, respondents
were also very positive. More than 77 per cent said the Commission
offered above average or high-quality customer service. Around
75 per cent also rated the Commission’s performance at keeping
up-to-date with regulatory change as above average or high.
The positive survey results highlighted the importance of the
Commission’s e-bulletin and InPipe magazine as the preferred
means of communication. The results will be used to direct the
Commission’s communications strategy and to further improve
communications to practitioners in the coming year. To subscribe
to InPipe or the Commission’s e-bulletin, send an email to
publicrelations@pic.vic.gov.au
Regulatory Excellence 17