BUILDING CODES

“Building codes are a series of ordinances enacted by a state or local governmental entity, establishing
minimum requirements that must be met in the construction and maintenance of buildings”.
The government establishes requirements and standards to protect people from unsafe living and working
conditions.
Purposes Of Building codes
 Ensure public health and safety throughout a building.
 Most have come into play “after-the-fact” as a learning experience from a major tragedy.
 They are primarily concerned with Construction requirements
 Hazardous materials or equipment used in the building
 75% of all codes and standards deal with fire
 Energy conservation
 Accessibility
 The codes includes various aspect for regulation on design & construction viz;
 For Planning Building/Development work
 For Structural Design
 For Constructional aspects
 For Building Services (HVAC, electrical, Acoustics, lifts etc.)
 Plumbing Services (Water supply, Sewerage, Drainage, waste management)
 Landscaping, signs and outdoor display structures
 The purpose of all these building codes is to ensure public safety, health & welfare as affected by
building construction.
This purpose includes:
 Structural strength
 Sanitary equipment
 Light & ventilation
 Fire safety
National Building Code
The Code mainly contains administrative regulations, development control rules and general building
requirements; fire safety requirements; stipulations regarding materials, structural design and construction
(including safety); and building and plumbing services.
Background OF NNBC
After the Earthquake of 1988 A.D ( 2045 BS) the need for Nepal National Building Code was Conceived
• Government of Nepal with the financial support from UNDP/UNCHS ( habitat) Started the work of
preparation of Nepal National Building Code in 1993 and the Building Code was prepared through
International Consultant in 1994
• The First edition of Building Code had 20 different code and in 2003 three codes ( Architectural Code,
Sanitary Code and Electrical Code) were added
• Building Code was Approved by Cabinet of Minister in July ,2003
• Building code was implemented in ( 58 Muncipalities, 28 District Headquater Which were VDC and 76
Emerging Town which were VDCs) after it was published in Nepal Gazzette in February,2006
Types of NNBC
1. (International State of Art) NBC 000 - Code adopted with provision from various international code and
practices
2. (Professionally Engineered Buildings)
NBC 101 NBC 107 NBC 113 NBC 102 NBC 108 NBC 114 NBC 103 NBC 109 NBC 206 NBC 104 NBC
110 NBC 207 NBC 105 NBC 111 NBC 208 NBC 106 NBC 112
• Building with more than 1000 sq.ft plinth area
• Building with more than 3 storey
• Structural Span more than 4.5m
3. (Mandatory Rules of Thumb) NBC 201, NBC 202, NBC 205
• Sub- engineer and other Junior Engineer can use these codes
• Building with less than 1000 sq.ft plinth area
• Building with less than 3 storey
• Structural Span less than 4.5m
4.Guidelines for Remote Rural Buildings (Low Strength Masonry / Earthen Buildings) NBC 203, NBC
204
• For Rural houses which are low strength and Earthen Building
Revision of NNBC
NNBC 202: 2015 Guideline for Load bearing Masonry, NNBC 203:2015
Guideline for Earthquake Resistant Building Construction: Low Strength
Masonry, NNBC 204:2015, Guideline for Earth quake Resistant Building
Construction, NNBC 206:2014 Architectural code is revised and is approved by
Minister level decision ( As per Building Act 1998 Clause 9) and is in the stage
of being published in Nepal Gazzette for Public notice
• NNBC 205: 1994 Mandatory Rule of Thumbs for Low Rise RCC Building
update in last stage and we be called as NNBC 205:2016 Ready to Use Detailing
for Low Rise RCC Building
• NNBC 105:1994 – Scope and ToR is approved for revision & Hiring of
Consultant for revision of NNBC 105 is in the process
Required Minimum Floor Area And Standards

Apartment Type Area(sq.m)

studio 37
One Bedroom 45
Two Bedroom(3 Person) 63
Two Bedroom(4 Person) 73
Two Bedroom 90

Minimum Aggregate floor areas and min width for living/dining/kitchen rooms

Apartment Type Width of living/dining Floor area of living/dining

studio 4m 30 sq.m
One Bedroom 3.3m 23 sq.m
Two Bedroom(3 Person) 3.6m 28 sq.m
Two Bedroom(4 Person) 3.6m 30 sq.m
Two Bedroom 3.8m 34 sq.m
General Area Regulations

Per Occupant Minimum occupant per

(sq.m) 100 sq.m
General Residence 11.5 9
Residence with limited commercial use 9 12
Residential Apartments 18 6

Exit Regulations
Number of Occupants per 500mm width

Building Type Stairways Doorways / Passages

(occupants) (occupants)
Residence/Apartment 25 75
Roofing
 Roof shapes and Construnction must Provide Reliable Protection From Weather.
 Roofing Materials (tiles & Metal Sheeting) to be light coloured.
 Fascia And Rain Water goods generally must have a colour-bond finish or equivalent in terms of
compliance durability.
 Provide passive vents to roof.

Plinth
Min plinth ht=450mm above existing road lvl

Height
Min ht of room=2.4m
Min Headroom under beam or any structure=2.1m
Min ht of bathroom=2m
Boundary Walls
 Generally 1.2m Boundary wall with 0.6m net.
 If more than 0.6m of net needed structural design is necessary.
 Columns should be construncted at least 1m from boundary wall
 If retaining wall provided ,weep holes must be provided at 0.2m height and building wall should be 1.2m

Parking
 Minimum ht clearance for indoor parking not less than 2.2m.
 No parking upto dwelling unit of area less than 25 Sq.m
 One two wheeler parking for dwelling unit of area (25-50) sq.m
 2 two wheeler & 1 car for dwelling unit of area (50-75) sq.m
 Min 1 car &additional for dwelling unit of area more than 75 sq.m
Staircase and Ramps
The minimum clear width (unobstructed by projections or handrails)
1000 mm (Within each multilevel unit) Internal 800 mm
Buildings more than 4 stories high 1250 mm
 Minimum ramp gradient= 1:12
 Level platforms shall be provided at max. 1800 mm flight.
 Level plateforms shall also be provided at tops and changes of direction.

 The minimum widths of wheelchair accessible ramps shall be

900 mm for apartments and residential uses.
 Handrails are required when the total rise exceeds 600 mm.
 The areas accessible by wheelchair shall have a flush threshold and openings
with minimum clear width of 775mm.
 If double leaf entrance doors are provided, the single leaf opening shall meet
the above clear width.
 minimum tread= 250 mm excluding nosing
 the maximum riser 175 mm for all buildings except for internal
staircases of Apartments, which can be permitted up to 190 mm.
 Handrails shall be provided in all open staircases
 The maximum number of risers shall be limited to 15 per flight.
 The minimum headroom ht. under a staircase= 1000 mm
 height of balustrade must be min 1m
Lighting and Ventilation
 All habitable rooms shall have admission of light through external wall
openings not less than 1/10th the floor area of the room.

 The admission of light is permitted through internal courtyards having

minimum dimension of 3000 mm x 3000 mm.
 No portion of the room shall be considered naturally lighted if it is more
than 7500 mm from the opening assumed for lighting that portion.
 For natural ventilation, openable exterior openings not less than 1/20th
of the floor area shall be provided.
 For ventilating spaces for water closets and bathrooms, the minimum
size of the ventilation shaft shall be 1 sq. m.
 Where natural lighting and ventilation requirements are not met, the
same shall be assured through artificial lighting and mechanical
ventilation.
Elevators
 Provision of Lifts shall be made for all buildings more than 15000 mm in height.
 Shafts for lifts will have to be enclosed by walls having fire resistance of two hours
 Lift wells that extend for more than two floors shall be ventilated to outside air through
opening of not less than 3.5 % of the area of the shaft.
 Lift wells shall not be vented directly through the machine room and provision of
enclosed ventilation ducts or pipes should be provided through the machine room in such
cases.
 The electric supply for the lift shall be on a separate supply line from the supply mains.
 In case of failure of normal electric supply, it shall automatically trip over to an alternate
power source.
 A clear path of travel from the lift to all apartments served by the lifts must be provided.
 Controls in the lift car must be suitably located at most 1200mm ht
 Min internal dim of lift car are 1200mm*1400mm(nominal) with opening min 800mm
Glazing in Hazardous locations
The following areas are considered specific hazardous locations subject to human impact:
Glazing in unframed ingress and egress doors
Glazing in shower, bathtub doors and enclosures
Glazing in balustrade railings The glass for such areas shall be one of the following types*:
a) Single fully tempered glass
b) Laminated fully tempered glass
c) Laminated heat strengthened glass
b) *For section 6.1, a minimum of 12 mm regular glass may be used instead of the above special glass.

Parapet Heights
All accessible roof terraces and balconies shall have parapet walls and handrails that are not less than
1000 mm in height.
FIRECODE
Types of Construction and Appliances
Fire Places
 All buildings having a kitchen should be provided
with a fireplace and a chimney in order to reduce
the possibilities of the occurrence of accidental fire.
 Timber construction should not be placed near the
fire place, nor should it remain exposed in the
vicinity of fire.
 Such surfaces should remain encased by plaster, whether of mud or other binders, suitable for the
purpose.
The road which abuts a High rise building to be constructed shall be more then width. The road should be
hard surfaced to carry a minimum weight of 18,000 Kgs, the maximum weight of a Fire Engine.

ENTRANCE WIDTH & HEIGHT CLEARANCE

Every High rise building should have at least 2 means of access,
one remote to the other, of minimum width 4.5m. with height clearance
of 5m.
This minimum width is essential to facilitate free movement of fire units.

SETBACK OR OPEN SPACES

Sufficient open space (setbacks) around residential buildings, is essential to facilitate free movement and
operation of Fire Service vehicles.
Fire Extinguishers
Occupants are encouraged to install appropriate portable fire extinguishers in their building. sufficient water
should be stored in containers for emergency use in case of fire.
Fire Zones
In urban areas, the demarcation of fire zones should be carried out in consultation with the relevant municipal authority as
and when deemed necessary.
These shall conform to the requirements specified by the DUDBC or any other agency responsible for developing and
demarcating such fire zones.
General Requirements
1.Provision of a Proper Access
Every building should have an access as defined by Architectural Design Requirements (NBC 206) and should be wide
enough to enable the fireman to easily approach to the building site.
2. Provision of Wide Doors
The entry door shall be as defined by Architectural Design Requirements (NBC 206) and should be sufficiently wide and
tall so that easy access in available to the fire man.
3.Provision of Fire Escape Ways
All buildings should have sufficient ways as defined by Architectural Design Requirements (NBC 206) so as to allow the
rapid evacuation of all occupants in the event of fire, if any.
In addition to the main entrance, the side and/or rear entrance shall be incorporated in the design.
The set back and/ or open space shall conform to the planning and building by-laws adopted by the concerned and
authorized territorial authority.
4. Provision of Open Space
The front entrance should have enough open space as defined by Architectural Design Requirements (NBC 206) so that a
number of people can gather and contribute in extinguishing the fire, if any.
Exit Requirements
1 General Requirements
An exit normally shall consist of either a doorway, corridor or passageway to an internal staircase, to an external
staircase, to a verandah leading to the street, to the roof of a building, or to the street. The exit may also lead to
another building in the neighbourhood.
The exit should :
a) be able to allow the evacuation of all the occupants in a relatively short time;
b) meet the minimum requirements as to size;
c) be free of any obstructions and shall not provide any resistance to movement;
d) be clearly visible, preferably with proper signs;
e) be continuous and shall not intrude into private space.
Number of Exit
Stairs
The number of stairs in any building, especially when it exceeds 500 square metres in plinth area, shall be a minimum
of two, one internal and the other an external fire escape.
Additional stairs shall be provided in proportion to any increase in the plinth area.
In the case of residential buildings, the minimum width of the stairs shall be 90 cm.
For other buildings, the minimum width shall be 1.5 m.
The distance from any point in a passageway to a staircase in a building shall not exceed 20 metres.
a) Every high rise building Have minimum 2 number of Staircases.
b) Width of staircases varies from 1 m. to 2 m.
C) For residential building width of staircases should be 1 mtr.
d) Out of 2 staircases, 1 can be used as a fire escape staircase.
e) Width of fire escape should be minimum 0.75 meter.
f) Number of staircases shall be given as per the travel distances.
g) Staircase shall not be extended to basement to prevent smoke , heat & gases. From the basement smoke,
heat 7 gases can be travel to upper floors.
h) Access to the basement from the ground should be through a separate staircase, which is not connected
to main staircase (i.e. It should be remote to each other.)
i) Staircase shall be of enclosed type to prevent entry of smoke & fire to the staircase & vice versa.
j) Spiral staircase shall be provided up to 9 mtr. Height.
k) External staircase normally shall not be allowed.
Lifts
a) Minimum 1 lift capable of carrying minimum 8 persons weighing 545 kgs. Shall be provided for every high
rise building.
b) Landing doors of lifts shall open to ventilated lobby & shall have a fire resistance of 1 hour.
c) 1 lift shall be designed as a “Fire Lift”
d) “Fireman Switch” shall be provided for each lift.
e) Lifts shall not be used as means of evacuation.
f) Collapsible gates shall not be provided for the lift.
g) If more than 1 lifts are installed the partition wall should be of minimum
2 hours fire resistance.

THE REFUGE AREA

shall be provided on the periphery of the floor & open to air at least on one side
protected with suitable railing.
a) For floors above 24m & up to 39m one refuge area on the floor immediately
above 24m.
 b) For floors above 39m one refuge area on
the floor immediately above 39m &
so on after 15m refuge area shall be provided

SERVICE DUCTS
 all the services ducts, if provided, should have to be enclosed by walls of at least 2 hour fire resistance
& should have to be sealed at every alternate floor with non-combustible materials having at least 2
hour fire resistance.
 The sealing at floor level is to prevent travel of smoke & fire to the upper floors through the ducts

Access to a Building
It shall comply with all applicable zoning requirements and by-laws of the local planning and building
authority.
The access leading to a building should preferably be by a road at least 4m wide, and no such road should
lead to a dead end.
The road should not have such sharp or restricted turns that the passage of a fire engine is made difficult in
the event of fire.
Lightning Arresters/Conductors
There have been many incidents in Nepal when lightning strikes have resulted in fire in buildings and a consequential
loss of life and property.
The need to install lightning arresters/conductors is therefore important.
A lightning arrester shall be located in the highest part of every building and it shall be connected by a conductor to
an earth rod buried in the earth.

Fire Alarm System

Manually operated Electrical fire alarm system
Automatic Fire Alarm System
Depending on the occupancy, M.O.E.F.A. system or automatic operated system
shall be provided in the building.
Every building more than 15m in height shall provide both I.e. M.O.E.F.A &
A.F.A.
Residential & office buildings between 15m & 24m in height may be exempted
from installation of automatic fire alarm system if local fire brigade is well
equipped to face the emergency up to 24m.
One has to manually operate the glass in M.O.E.F.A.S. M.O.E.F.A.S. requires a special person or separate person to
operate
Site Investigation Requirements
 Site exploration shall be carried out by digging test pits, two as a minimum, and more if
the subsurface soil condition shows a significant variation in soil type.
 Generally, the minimum depth of exploration for a building covered by this MRT shall be
2 m.
 In hilly areas, exploration up to the depth of sound bed-rock, if it lies shallower than 2 m,
should suffice.
 No exploration shall be required if the site is located on rock or on fluvial terraces (Tar)
with boulder beds.
The Building Structure
b) A shall be not greater than 3 B nor less than B/3.
(c) Neither H/A nor H/B shall exceed 3.
(d) The area of a slab panel shall not be more than 13.5 square metres.
(e) The maximum height of the structure is 11 m or 3 storeys, whichever is less, from the level of lateral
restraint. Within an 11 m height, there may be an additional storey of smaller plan area. The area of this
shall not exceed 25 % of the area of a typical floor, as given in Figure 4.1. If this limit is exceeded, it
shall be considered as an additional storey and not permitted.
(f) The length of wings on the structure shall be restricted such that K1 and K2 shall be less than the
lesser of 0.25 A or 0.25 B. The width of the wings shall be restricted as shown in Figure 4.2. The plan
shape of the building excluding wings shall be rectangular.
(g) All columns resisting lateral load shall be vertical and shall continue on the same centreline down to
foundation level. The top storey may, however, be smaller or have a different geometry subject to the
provisions of subparagraph (e) above.
(h) No walls except a parapet wall shall be built on a cantilevered
slab. Such walls shall be constructed only if the cantilevered slab
is framed with beams.
(i) The foundation shall be at a uniform level.
Reinforcing Non-load Bearing Walls
Between Framing Columns
Solid Walls
To prevent walls from falling out, these shall be provided with horizontal reinforced concrete (RC)
bands through the wall at about one-third and two-thirds of their height above the floor in each storey.
The width of the band should be equal to the wall thickness and its thickness equal to that of the
masonry unit, or 75 mm, whichever is larger. Reinforcement details shall be as given in Figure 8.1.
Reinforcement :
(a) Longitudinal - two bars 8 mm φ (Fe415) anchored fully in the RC column abutting the wall.
(b) Transverse - links 6 mm φ (Fe250) stirrups at every 150 mm.
Walls with Openings
Provide an horizontal RC band through the wall at the lintel level of doors and windows and at window
sill level in each storey as given in Clause 1. Details of the arrangement are given in Figure 8.2
Outside Framing Columns
A horizontal RC band shall be
provided through all walls - one
at window-sill level and the other
at lintel-level.
The reinforcement of bands shall
be taken through the cross-walls
into the RC columns as detailed in
Figure.

Figure 8.1 : Tie-Band Detail of Solid Walls

Figure : Tie Up and Detail of Non-Structural Wall
Parapets
minimum Parapets ht=1m
they should either be constructed in reinforced concrete or be reinforced with vertical RC elements
spaced not more than 1.5 m apart.
The section of the vertical RC post may be kept to b x 75 mm, where b is the thickness of the parapet.
Such RC elements should be reinforced with two vertical bars of 8 mm diameter steel (grade Fe415)
with transverse links 6 mm φ diameter steel (grade Fe250) @ 150 mm centres. The vertical
reinforcement shall be tied in the steel of the slab or beam below with a minimum embedment of 300
mm. Also, a handrail should be provided at the top with a section size and reinforcing as explained in
Clause 8.1.1. For details, refer to Figure 9.1.

Figure : Parapet Wall Tie-Up Details

Consideration of Potential Landslides and Slope Instability
refrences
https://www.dudbc.gov.np
http://learningfromearthquakes.org/2015-04-25-nepal/11-resources/78-nepal-national-building-
code-nbc-an-overview
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Building_code
file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/NBC203.PDF
THANK YOU