Developers, This Technology Will Fast Track Your DA

Property start-up Archistar has unveiled the latest feature for its ground-breaking development platform.

ArchiComply offers a digitised and streamlined pre-DA compliance approval process.

Catering for the entire industry, it allows platform users to make vital compliance checks quickly. Better yet, they can make them prior to submitting their development approval applications.

The new module tackles an age-old problem in property development – the need to consult council guidelines.

Historically, this has been a cumbersome process. Developers had to manually tackle documents that vary significantly in format and content.

A great source of inefficiency for the industry, this process also made it much easier to make compliance-related mistakes.

With ArchiComply, you can now digitise the process and remove much of the manual work.

The module allows developers to access a deep database of council rules. This database is fully-interactive and allows for easy visualisation in a central location.

It also allows for immediate checking of building designs against relevant compliance regulations.

Tackling an industry-wide problem

ArchiStar conducted a survey of over 100 property professionals. The goal was to discover the biggest issues that each had with the current pre-DA process.

The answers reveal problems that span the entire industry across multiple professions.

Time was the key issue that many survey respondents pointed to. Many said that long delays in the DA process lead to projects starting later than expected, which creates further cost.

Slow responses from planners, coupled with too much reworking, add to this burden. More delays in rework come due to slow responses from planners and the need to request more information.

Respondents also pointed to the archaic manual process as being behind the times. Having to do manual research and then deal with a manual submission process only adds to the time burden.

Difficulty working with planners was another source of frustration for many in the industry. A lack of senior planners is one of the main issues, as many feel that working with junior planners slows the process.

This leads to an overall lack of confidence in the planner’s ability to make key decisions. Couple that with the lack of urgency that surrounds the process and you add to the frustration.

Finally, those in the industry point to a lack of transparency and consistency in the DA process. According to many, state and local rules have a tendency to contradict one another.

This results in further confusion that makes compliance more difficult than it has to be. This lack of certainty manifests in the need to rework, with changing requirements only adding to the issue.

Simply put, developers, agents, and architects feel the goalposts get moved too often.

The DA process has failed to keep up with the evolution of the industry.

That’s where ArchiComply comes in.

• 
  A deep database of local planning controls that span the entire nation. The database offers fast access to accurate information.

• The ability to upload your own designs or use the designs that Archistar creates via its generative design technology.

• Visualisation tools that allow you to view zoning envelopes in full 3D.

• An instant compliance checking tool that compares developments against government regulations.

• Financial modelling tools that help with feasibility studies.

Most importantly, the module deals with the key issues that those in the industry point to.

It allows for early engagement with town planners at the pre-DA stage. This positions the planner as a stakeholder for open and transparent communication. Developers can standardise requirements through these discussions, creating a smoother DA process.

The technology also facilitates design reviews, allowing for better coordination between government bodies, internal council teams and developers.

This improved communication and transparency aims to bring consistency to the DA process.

Automated compliance to drive efficiency

Archistar’s modus operandi has always been to drive efficiency using automation. That applies with ArchiComply. The new module is able to automatically determine the likelihood of approval for a current development.

The module also checks uploaded models against current Code Compliance. In doing so, it’s able to highlight issues in the pre-DA phase.

Several local government councils and state government departments have indicated the technology will support reduced approval times.

Enhanced visualisation aids this process. ArchiComply provides 3D models of the chosen location. This allows developers and planners to see designs in the context of the wider neighbourhood.

These tools also offer automatically generated building designs for sites. This means less time wasted on preparing and assessing designs only to see that they don’t suit the site.

The visualisation tools allow planners to auto-analyse projects. With compliance checks already in place, this creates a simpler process. Planners also don’t need to go to sites to physically conduct checks themselves.

It brings the DA process into the digital age. And in doing so, it creates a faster and more accurate approval process for the whole industry.

The DA process is crucial to the shape and evolution of our cities. An expensive, slow DA process ultimately denies people the ability to live close to services and job opportunities.

A streamlined and effective regulatory framework pushes investment in new houses and jobs.

With more than 1.4 million employed in the property industry — representing more than 8 per cent of Australia’s GDP, Archistar's advancements in this space will have big payoffs for all of us.

For more information and to arrange a demonstration, visit the Archistar website .

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