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The Buildings Department began a comprehensive review of the Buildings. Ordinance and its regulations in 2000. As a result of the review and subsequent legislative exercise, the Buildings (Amendment) Ordinance 2004 was enacted in July 2004 to strengthen safety requirements, facilitate law enforcement, and improve service to the public. The new provisions included the issue of warning notices. against UBWs, mandatory provision of emergency vehicular access in new buildings, statutory registration of geotechnical engineers and increase in fines for serious offences under the Buildings Ordinance. In addition, the Buildings Department was consulting the industry in formulating a simplified control regime for the carrying out of minor building works without the need for approval of plans.
To update building design standards, the Buildings Department issued a new code of practice for foundations, and revised codes of practice for structural use of concrete, wind effects on buildings and demolition of buildings.
The Public Sector
The Architectural Services Department acts as the Government's architect in providing full professional, technical and financial management services for the development and maintenance of public buildings (other than public housing) in three main areas:
(i) technical advice and monitoring services to all bureaux and departments on their projects subject to government subvention and on government projects entrusted to or in joint ventures with the private sector. About 1 000 projects, valued at $43 billion, were monitored during the year;
(ii) professional and technical services for project management, design and supervision of the construction of building projects in the Public Works Programme and those of the Hospital Authority (HA). During the year, the department's rolling programme covered 342 projects at a total value of $48.6 billion; and
(iii) building maintenance services, including general maintenance for all public buildings and facilities as well as those of the HA, covering a floor area of approximately 27.5 million square metres. The department also undertakes conservation and restoration of listed buildings and gazetted monuments, and emergency and major repairs to all subvented schools outside public housing estates.
The department has enhanced its strategic roles as the building authority for and steward of government buildings, and as the Government's corporate professional adviser on architectural policies, building planning and maintenance matters.
In 2004, the actual expenditure on building projects undertaken or monitored by the department and on routine maintenance and minor alteration works were $12.99 billion and $2.42 billion respectively. The building projects undertaken by the department were in the following categories: