POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES

LOPEZ QUEZON BRANCH

BS Architecture Program

ARCH 30283
Professional Practice 1 -
Laws Affecting the Practice
of Architectiure
(Output No.3)

BSARCH-3

Submitted by:

Vargas, Prince Gerald J.

2019-00453-LQ-0

Submitted to:

Arch. Riza Rizalina A. Quincina

Professor
 POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
LOPEZ QUEZON BRANCH
BS Architecture Program

The "National Building Code of the Philippines," referred to as the "Code" in the first
chapter of this decree, controls construction in the Philippines. It is declared that the State's
policy is to protect life, health, property, and the public welfare in accordance with sound
environmental management and control principles, and it is declared that the purpose of this
Code is to provide a framework of minimum standards and requirements for all buildings and
structures to regulate and control their location, site, design, quality of materials, construction,
use, occupancy, and maintenance.

Buildings and/or structures constructed before to the adoption of this Code are
unaffected, unless they are undergoing changes, additions, conversions, or repairs, in which case
this Code will only apply to the sections that are being changed, added, converted, or repaired.
Except for traditional indigenous family houses as described herein, the requirements of this
Code apply to the design, location, siting, construction, alteration, repair, conversion, use,
occupancy, maintenance, relocation, destruction, and addition of public and private buildings and
structures.

All buildings or structures, as well as their associated facilities, must adhere to the
principles of safe construction in every way and be appropriate for the purpose for which they
were built. Buildings or structures that are intended to be utilized in the manufacture and/or
production of any type of article or product must comply with environmental regulations.
Buildings and structures, as well as all parts and amenities inside them, must be kept in a safe,
hygienic, and functional state.

According to the code, the ground or site on which any building or structure, or any
auxiliary or auxillary facility thereto, will be developed must be sanitary, hygienic, or safe. Sites
or buildings intended for human habitation or abode must be located at a safe distance, as
determined by competent authorities, from polluted streams or bodies of water, polluted sources
of air, a volcano or volcanic site, and/or any other building considered a potential source of fire
or explosion. The words, concepts, and phrases included in Annex "A" hereof shall have the
meaning or definition indicated therein as used in the Code.
 POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
LOPEZ QUEZON BRANCH
BS Architecture Program

The secretary is hereby authorized to constitute and provide in his Department a

professional staff composed of highly qualified architects, engineers, and technicians with
diversified and professional experience in the field of building design and construction,
according to the second chapter of the code. The Secretary is hereby empowered to appoint and
staff a professional staff in his Department comprised of highly trained architects, engineers, and
technicians with extensive experience in the field of building design and construction.

The Secretary shall exert creating policies, plans, standards, and recommendations on
building design, construction, use, occupancy, and maintenance in accordance with this Code for
the purposes of carrying out the provisions of this Code. To implement the requirements of this
Code and assure conformity with policies, plans, standards, and guidelines, issue and promulgate
rules and regulations. run evaluations, review, approve, and/or take final action on existing
Referral Code revisions and/or amendments, as well as the adoption of other referral codes that
are not yet specifically formed part of this Code. Providing prescriptions and determining the
amount of fees and other charges that the Building Official will collect in conjunction with
regulatory tasks. The Secretary, with the assistance of his or her technical staff, shall provide
such proficient, specialized, systematic, and other services, including testing laboratories and
facilities, as may be required to carry out the provisions of this Code; provided, however, that the
Secretary may obtain such services from other agencies of the National Government and may
make arrangements for compensation. He may also hire and pay for the services of as many
consultants, experts, and advisers as he needs, on a full or part-time basis, from the government
or private enterprises, corporations, or associations, to carry out the requirements of this Code,
within the appropriations available.

According to the code, the building Official is responsible for carrying out the
requirements of this Code in the field, as well as the execution of orders and judgments issued in
accordance with them. Due to the nature of the job, the Secretary may appoint existing Public
Works District Engineers, City Engineers, and Municipal Engineers to serve as Building
Officials in their respective jurisdictions. The Secretary's designation under this Section must
remain until formal posts of Building Official are supplied, or until sooner terminated for reasons
specified by law or order.

The Building Official is primarily responsible for enforcing the requirements of this Code
as well as the accompanying rules and regulations. He is the officer in charge of issuing building
permits. A Building Official may enter any construction or its premises in the course of his
responsibilities to examine and assess conformity with the provisions of this Code and the terms
and conditions of the building permit as issued. When any building work is discovered to be in
violation of the requirements of this Code, the Building Official may order the work to be halted
 POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
LOPEZ QUEZON BRANCH
BS Architecture Program

and prescribe the terms and/or circumstances under which the construction may be resumed.
Similarly, the Building Official has the authority to order the cessation of occupancy or use of
any building or structure or component thereof that is determined to be inhabited or utilized in
violation of the requirements of this Code.

The code states building permit fees are waived for public structures and traditional
indigenous family houses. The phrase "traditional indigenous family residence" as used in this
Code refers to a dwelling designed for the sole use and occupancy of the owner's family and
made of native materials such as bamboo, nipa, logs, or timber, the total cost of which does not
exceed fifteen thousand pesos. Regardless of any other provision of law, the Secretary is hereby
authorized to prescribe the procedures for the use of all net income realized by the Building
Official's office from the collection of fees and charges, not to exceed twenty percent thereof. In
order to carry out the requirements of this Code, the Secretary must develop required rules and
regulations, as well as design and construction standards and criteria for buildings and other
structures. Such standards, rules, and regulations shall take effect three weeks after they are
published once a week in a broad circulation newspaper. The Secretary is thus entitled to
prescribe and impose fines not exceeding ten thousand pesos for violations of any of the
provisions of this Code or any of the rules or regulations issued thereunder.

Dangerous buildings are those that have been declared as such or that are structurally
unsafe or do not have safe egress, or that are a fire hazard or are otherwise dangerous to human
life, or that, in relation to existing use, pose a hazard to safety, health, or public welfare due to
inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence, or abandonment; or that contribute to the
pollution of the site or the community to an intolerable degree. The rights, actions, and remedies
set forth in this Code shall be in addition to any and all other rights, actions, and remedies
granted by existing laws.

The third chapter of the Philippines' national building code states unequivocally that no
person, firm, or corporation, including any government agency or instrumentality, shall erect,
construct, alter, repair, move, convert, or demolish any building or structure or cause the same to
be done without first obtaining a building permit from the Building Official assigned in the
location where the subject building is located or the building work is to be done.

The Building Official and his technical team of competent specialists shall have ultimate
administrative control and oversight over the processing of building permits. When processing a
building permit application, the Building Official must ensure that the applicant satisfies and
conforms to approved standard requirements for zoning and land use, lines and grades, structural
 POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
LOPEZ QUEZON BRANCH
BS Architecture Program

design, sanitary and sewerage, environmental health, electrical and mechanical safety, and other
rules and regulations promulgated in accordance with the provisions of this Code. When the
Building Official is satisfied that the work described in an application for a building permit, as
well as the plans and specifications submitted with it, conform to the requirements of this Code
and other applicable rules and regulations, the Building Official shall issue the building permit
requested within fifteen days of the applicant's payment of the required fees. When the drawings
and specifications given with the application do not cover the full building or structure, the
Building Official may issue a permit for the construction of only a component or portion of a
building or structure. Approved plans and specifications may not be amended, modified, or
altered without the Building Official's approval, and work must be completed strictly in line with
them. The issuing of a building permit shall not be regarded as the permittee's consent or
authority to disregard or violate any of the requirements of this Code.

All structures proposed for construction must be classed or recognized into distinct
categories, according to Chapter 4. Type one buildings must be made of wood. Any of the
materials authorized by this Code may be used as structural components. Permanent non-bearing
partitions may employ fire-retardant treated wood inside the frame assembly. Type two buildings
should be of wood construction with protective fire-resistant materials and one-hour fire-resistive
throughout. Buildings of type three must be made of masonry and wood. Structural elements
may be made of any of the materials allowed by this Code, as long as the structure is fire-
resistant for one hour. The outside walls must be made of noncombustible fire-resistant
materials. Type four structures must be made of steel, iron, concrete, or masonry. Except for
permanent

non-bearing partitions of one-hour fire-resistive construction, which may include fire-retardant

treated wood within the frame assembly, all walls, ceilings, and permanent partitions should be
of incombustible fire-resistive construction. Type five structures must be fire-resistant. Steel,
iron, concrete, or masonry construction shall be used for the structural elements. Incombustible
fire-resistant construction should be used for walls, ceilings, and permanent partitions.

According to the decree's fifth chapter, fire zones are places where only specific types of
buildings are authorized to be built depending on their use or occupancy, construction type, and
fire resistance. When more than one-third of a building's total floor area is placed in one fire zone
and the remainder in another, the building or structure is regarded to be in the more severely
restrictive fire zone. Any building or structure relocated inside or into a fire zone must meet all
of the standards for that fire zone's structures. Temporary structures, such as reviewing stands
and other miscellaneous structures that meet the requirements of this Code, as well as sheds,
canopies, and fences used to protect the public around and in conjunction with construction
 POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
LOPEZ QUEZON BRANCH
BS Architecture Program

work, may be erected in fire zones with a special permit from the Building Official for a limited
time, and such buildings or structures must be completely removed when the time limit stated in
such permits expires. The center line of an adjoining street or alley may be deemed an adjacent
property line for the purposes of this Chapter. Measurements must be taken at a right angle to the
street or alley. For each sort of Fire Zone, the Secretary will issue particular restrictions. Local,
physical, and geographical framework plans presented by city or municipal planning and/or
development organizations should be used to split cities and municipalities into such Fire Zones.

The degree to which a material can survive fire as determined by universally known and
approved testing techniques, all of which are included in Chapter 6 of the code. The amount of
time a material can survive being burned is determined by its fire-resistive time period rating,
which can be one hour, two hours, three hours, four hours, and so on. All building materials,
assemblies, and combinations of them must be categorized according to their fire-retardant or
flame-spread ratings, as established by commonly recognized testing procedures and/or the
Secretary.

The Secretary shall establish standards and promulgate rules and regulations concerning
the testing of construction materials for flame-spread characteristics, fire damage tests, fire tests
of building construction and materials, door assemblies and tinclad fire doors and window
assemblies, the installation of fire doors and windows, smoke and fire detectors for fire
protective signaling systems, controlled interior finish, and fire-resistive protection.
 POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
LOPEZ QUEZON BRANCH
BS Architecture Program

Bibliography
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%20purpose,private%20or%20a%20government%20building.
FOZ, V. B. (2018). THE NATIONAL BUILDING CODE OT THE PHILIPPINES . QUEZON
CITY: PHILIPPINE LAW GAZETTE.
Fulgar, I. (2021, JANUARY 05). National Building Code Of The Philippines – Its
History, Current State, and Future. Retrieved from Architect in the
Philippines For New Design Ideas & Land Ventures:
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philippines-its-history-current-state-and-future/
George, E. (2016). "National Building Code of the Philippines". Retrieved from
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Samplius. (2019, DECEMBER 03). Building Codes And Their Everyday Importance.
Retrieved from Samplius:
 POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
LOPEZ QUEZON BRANCH
BS Architecture Program

https://samplius.com/free-essay-examples/building-codes-and-their-
everyday-importance/
StudyMoose. (2022). National building code. Retrieved from StudyMoose.com.