Introduction
China is the most populous countries in the world today, which has created a high demand for housing; thus, paving the way for a significant evolution of the country’s building code to meet the demands in the market. The continued growth in China’s population has created a situation where the country finds itself in a situation where it is consuming a lot of energy as part of its building projects. One of the critical areas that the country's building code has focused on has been on promoting energy efficiency in ensuring that the buildings adhere to the set-out building standards. The main focus for this report is to come to engage in an in-depth evaluation of changes that have been enacted within China's building code as a way of ensuring that it conforms to international standards.
Before Foundations, Buildings Start with Codes
In the 1980s, China implemented its first building energy codes and standards as part of its commitment towards ensuring that it would reduce the overall rate of energy consumption as well as reducing carbon dioxide emissions. The adoption of the new building codes was considered as key towards creating new standards for companies or entities intending to engage in projects that involve the construction of buildings to match the rising demands in the country. Guo-xing (2003) takes note of the fact that the development of China’s building code was considered as being successful in comparison to codes in other countries, as China did not only seek to create a code that would change the construction landscape but also sought to improve on safety standards. The Chinese government took note of the fact that the adoption of the building code would be of great value towards minimizing the risks that are likely to arise as a result of construction projects.
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One of the main strengths associated with China’s building code can be seen from the high compliance rate. Compliance has been driven by collaboration between private and third-party inspectors, who are involved in overseeing the construction projects routinely, and the Chinese government, which is included in managing these projects. The code seeks to create a provision through which the government would be able to oversee all construction projects while ensuring that they meet the best possible standards. The ultimate result is that this enhances the overall capacity for the contractors, involved in the construction projects, to come up with the necessary approaches allowing them to advance their safety standards. Investors are coming into the Chinese construction market often view the collaboration between the private entities and the government as a critical advantage of improving the success margins associated with the projects (Li & Colombier, 2009).
In December 2012, the Chinese government was able to make amendments to the country's building code with the focus being on agricultural buildings by installing a voluntary code. One of the critical factors that contributed to the need for the Chinese government to focus on rural buildings is that most of the buildings in the rural areas did not meet the country's set out building standards. Most of the agricultural buildings lack proper insulation, air-tightness, energy-efficient methods of cooking that would reduce emissions. For the government, this meant that the adoption of the voluntary code would seek to create a leeway through which to ensure that the rural buildings would be advanced to the standards set in other parts of the country to improve on issues of safety.
The adoption of the voluntary code sought to create a new structure of performance for contractors involved in a wide array of construction projects in China with the aim being towards ensuring that they would work towards ensuring that the buildings would meet the energy needs. Additionally, this also meant that the construction of buildings in rural areas within China would focus on an improved standard through which to ensure that the quality of materials that would be used meets the set standards. Guo-xing (2003) argues that the shift, created by the voluntary code, was expected to create a new rule through which ensure that China would experience the expected growth levels when compared to some of the other developed countries including the United States.
Modeling Buildings by the Millions
China, with a population of over 1 billion people, finds itself facing a dilemma touching on the fact that construction of low-capacity buildings may result in a significant deficit in terms of housing. That created the need for having to introduce modeling buildings as part of the building code adopted in the country, which would pave the way for structured designs on how contractors would be able to design the buildings to accommodate as many people as possible. One of the critical standards associated with the building code in China has been working towards ensuring that the building models would be able to accommodate as many people as possible. Bo, Zhai, Liu, & SUN (2004) take note of the fact that the building code in China was created the sole expectation being towards creating a shift within the construction industry that would seek to bridge the demand for housing among others.
The development of the building policy was sought to reflect on both the building technologies adopted and climate policy for China. The growth in population within China and the demand for efficiency in building standards have created the need for advancements in building technologies used as part of the construction projects. The changes put in place within the building code were expected to develop efficiency in streamlining the building technologies to match usual standards in the construction industry. The models adopted as part of the building code are supposed to cater to a change in China's population to its peak in 2035 without having to create a deficit in terms of housing demands. The technologies have been of great value towards defining the efficiencies in some of the building models to match prospective outcomes in terms of setting out success margins.
Energy Efficiency Codes
The fast evolution of China's building code has put into context the need for having to create an energy efficiency code that would seek to define an overall change in the way the country's construction industry operates. One of the key aspects to note is that this has been noted as one of the critical outcomes that can be associated with changes in climatic conditions, which has had a significant impact on the construction industry. The development of the energy efficiency codes has been considered as one of the critical factors that seek to ensure that indeed the building code would be in a position allowing it to deliver on the best possible building standards.
Yang & Kohler (2008) point to the fact that the Chinese government has been on the forefront towards cutting down on building energy demands within the urban setting s by 13%, which has had a significant impact towards defining the overall change in the construction of new buildings. The cut in building energy demands has created a structured approach through which China can regulate the number of new construction projects undertaken within urban settings. The outcome is that this paves the way for a more accessible platform through which to ensure that the government can take into account its role in overseeing some of these projects. For the rural areas, the Chinese government has cut down on the building energy demands by 9%, which works as one of the ways through which to ensure that the builds meet the country’s standards (Li, 2008). That reflects on the overall possibility that China is not an exception in providing that its building code would be adapted to meet the necessary international standards.
Conclusion
China's building code had evolved significantly since the 1980s, when it was first implemented, attributed to high demand for housing. The country has experienced a significant growth in its population, which has been seen as one of the critical determinants of the need to put in place an energy-efficient building code. One of the main strengths associated with China’s building code can be seen from the high compliance rate. The adoption of the voluntary code sought to create a new structure of performance for contractors involved in a wide array of construction projects in China. The development of the building policy was sought to reflect on both the building technologies adopted and climate policy for China.
References
Bo, J. S., Zhai, Q. S., Liu, H. S., & SUN, C. (2004). Site classification and its evolution in Chinese code for seismic design of buildings. Journal of Natural Disasters , 13 (3), 44-49.
Guo-xing, C. (2003). The Evolution and Prospect of the Code for Seismic Design of Buildings in China [J]. Journal of Seismology , 1 .
Li, J. (2008). Towards a low-carbon future in China's building sector—A review of energy and climate models forecast. Energy Policy , 36 (5), 1736-1747.
Li, J., & Colombier, M. (2009). Managing carbon emissions in China through building energy efficiency. Journal of environmental management , 90 (8), 2436-2447.
Yang, W., & Kohler, N. (2008). Simulation of the evolution of the Chinese building and infrastructure stock. Building Research & Information , 36 (1), 1-19.
