Appointment of members of the Northern Ireland Building Regulations Advisory Committee

Finance Minister Sammy Wilson has announced appointments to the Northern Ireland Building Regulations Advisory Committee (NIBRAC).

The appointments are for a three-year term and take effect from 18 February 2010.

In addition to the 17 appointments, Mr Kenneth Hunter is being appointed Chairman of NIBRAC, replacing Mr Trevor Martin in the post. Four of the 17 members have already served a term on the committee: Mr Joseph Birt, Mr Michael McGlennon, Mr Patrick Waterfield and Mr Adrian Biggar.

The new members are:

Mr David Crowe, Director of Ian Black Consulting Ltd.
Mr Lawrence Power, Partner of Knox & Clayton Architects.
Mr Raymond Irvine, a lecturer in Architecture in the University of Ulster.
Mr David Little, Regional Director for Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man for National House Building Council.
Mr Patrick O’Hagan, Principal of Lyons Architects.
Mr Alan Beggs, Associate Director with Michael Slattery & Associates.
Ms Joan McCoy, Director of White Ink Architects.
Mr Michael Dorrian, a Chartered Surveyor and Estate Agent.
Mr Donal Rogan, Manager of Belfast Building Control.
Mr David Blevings, a Chartered Valuation and Energy Surveyor with his own energy consultancy firm.
Ms Aisling Irvine, an Access Officer with Disability Action.
Mr Alan Macklin, Technical Manager with Kingspan Insulation Ltd.
Mr Jonathan Hayes, Building Control Manager with Armagh City & District Council.

Paying tribute to the seven members of the committee who will be standing down the Minister said: “I would like to thank them for their service and dedication to the development of appropriate building standards for Northern Ireland and wish them all well for the future.”

The Minister also thanked the outgoing Chairman, Mr Trevor Martin, for his contribution to the work of NIBRAC over recent years.

These appointments have been made in accordance with the Commissioner for Public Appointments for Northern Ireland’s Code of Practice.

Notes to editors:

1. The board of NIBRAC comprises a non-executive Chair and 17 non-executive members. No remuneration is paid to either the chair or to the members of the committee.

2. NIBRAC’s function is to advise the Department of Finance and Personnel (DFP) on the amendment of building regulations and any matter arising out of or connected with the amendment or operation of building regulations which the Department may refer to it.

3. The appointments were made in accordance with the Commissioner for Public Appointments for Northern Ireland’s Code of Practice. A selection panel, which included an independent panel member, as required under the Commissioner’s Code, considered the suitability of all candidates. The final decision on the appointment rested with the Minister.

4. All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, the Commissioner for Public Appointments for Northern Ireland requires the political activity of appointees to be published.

5. Appointments

• Mr Kenneth Hunter (Chairman)
  Mr Hunter has been Deputy Group Chief Building Control Officer for Southern Group Building Control since 2000. Before this he worked in the construction industry in site management, both at home and abroad. This is Ken’s first term as chairman of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Joseph Birt
  Mr Birt has worked in Building Control since 1991 and has been a Specialist Support Officer for the South Eastern Group Building Control since 2004. He currently sits on the Building Control Northern Ireland Communications and Marketing Panel and is Chairman of the Northern Ireland Fire Safety Panel. This is Joseph’s second term as a NIBRAC member. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Michael McGlennon
  Mr McGlennon worked in Building Control from 1998-2006, serving the last four years as the Principal Building Control Officer for North Down District Council. From 2006 to date, Mr McGlennon has been employed by WYG, a multi-disciplinary consultancy, as an associate director, providing fire engineering and building regulations advice throughout the UK and Ireland. This is Michael’s second term as a NIBRAC member. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Dr Patrick Waterfield
  Dr Waterfield is a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Energy Institute. He has been operating as an energy consultant in Northern Ireland for 15 years. He is editor of an international research journal, and had his first book published recently. This is Patrick’s second term as a member of NIBRAC.He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Adrian Biggar
  Mr Biggar is a Group Technical Advisor at CRH Insulation Group Europe, a building materials manufacturer. He is a qualified Domestic Energy Assessor and SAP Assessor. This is Adrian’s second term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Alan Macklin
  Mr Macklin is currently employed as Technical Manager at Kingspan Insulation, coming from a background in various sectors within the construction industry including Architectural and Timber Frame Design to Environmental and Civil Engineering consultancy. This is Alan’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr David Crowe
  Mr Crowe worked in several of Northern Ireland’s Structural and Civil Engineering Consultancies before becoming a director in Ian Black Consulting Ltd. in 2003. This is David’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr David Little
  Mr Little has worked with National House Building Council (NHBC) since 1999, initially managing their Inspection Service in the eastern half of Northern Ireland, and was appointed as Regional Director for NI and Isle of Man in 2007. This is David’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Raymond Irvine
  Mr Irvine has been lecturing at the University of Ulster since 1982 and has continued to practice as an architect through the University Consultancy Centre. He has been involved in the development of many architectural and building courses. He was also involved in the design of a house for a sufferer of Total Allergy Syndrome. This is Raymond’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Ms Aisling Irvine
  Ms Irvine is an Access Officer with Disability Action in Northern Ireland. As part of the Access Team in Disability Action, she assists disabled people, service providers and professionals on pan-disability issues. She is an architect and member of the National Register of Access Consultants. This is Aisling’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. She has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Donal Rogan
  Mr Rogan is Building Control Manager in Belfast City Council. Before taking up this position he was employed by Lisburn City Council as Business Development Manager. He is also Chairman of the NI Building Control Executive. This is Donal’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Michael Dorrian
  Mr Dorrian took up his first job following graduation from UUJ as an engineer on the Euro Disney Project. Following this he joined a local authority Building Control office in 1995 before going into private practice in 2000 as a Chartered Surveyor and estate agent. This is Michael’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Ms Joan McCoy
  Ms McCoy is an architect. She co-founded and is currently a director of White Ink Architects. Prior to this, Joan was an associate at Consarc Design Group and their lead architect for the Odyssey Project. Joan has a particular interest in sustainable architecture and her work has been shortlisted for both the RSPB/RTPNI Sustainable Planning Awards 2008 and the NIHE Home Energy Awards in 2009. This is Joan’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. She has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Jonathan Hayes
  Mr Hayes first joined Building Control in 1997, he is now Building Control Manager for Armagh City and District Council. In 2009, Jonathan co-wrote a paper for the Institute of Fire Engineers, and is also vice-chair of the NI Fire Safety Panel. This is Jonathan’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Alan Beggs
  Mr Beggs is an Associate Director with Michael Slattery & Associated (Fire Engineering Consultants). He has provided significant fire engineering input into deriving fire safety strategies for a varied range of large and complex projects. This is Alan’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr David Blevings
  Mr Blevings is a Chartered Valuation and Energy Surveyor with over 20 years experience. He established his own energy consultancy at the end of 2004 and now provides a PR and lobbying role to a number of energy and trade associations throughout Ireland. His current role includes working for Oil Firing Technical Association (OFTEC) in Ireland and representing the interests of the NI Oil Federation an Irish Petrol Retailers Association. This is David’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Patrick O’Hagan
  Mr O’Hagan is the Principal of Lyons Architects, which he has owned since 1986. The practice is involved with work in both the public and private sectors carrying out general architectural services and interior design work across a broad range of building types. During the past decade, the practice has been developed to provide Project Management services. This is Patrick’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.
• Mr Lawrence Power
  Mr Power is an architect with extensive design and project administration experience in educational schemes. His approach towards architecture lends itself to ecological, responsive and sustainable design that caters for all aspects of design. He has a keen interest in accessibility issues. This is Lawrence’s first term as a member of NIBRAC. He has not carried out any political activity in the last five years.

Outgoing members

Dr Brian Gough
Dr Raymond Gilfillan
Mr Colin Maxwell
Mr Billy Gillespie
Mr Sam Thompson
Mr Ian Cross
Mr Stephen McAuley

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