Minnesota Dept. of Labor and Industry Newsletter Highlights

September 24, 2018

One item covered in the newsletter is the adoption process for the 2018 I-Codes and the administrative requirements of the State Building Code. The Construction Codes Advisory Council (CCAC) met June 21, 2018, to review a report from Technical Advisory Groups about seven of the 2018 I-Codes and the administrative requirements of the State Building Code. With the exception of the model residential energy code, the CCAC recommended DLI move forward with the adoption of the 2018 I-Codes with amendments and revisions to the administrative requirements of the State Building Code. The CCAC will review the model residential energy code at a later meeting following the U.S. Department of Energy’s determination regarding energy efficiency of the 2018 Residential Energy Code. DLI recently began the formal rule-making process to adopt the I-Codes by publishing a Request for Comments in the State Register. The newsletter provides a link to follow the rule-making process and directions to submit comments about the code and rules.

Another important item to note is the development of a new website that is citizen focused, mobile friendly and presented in a consistent format. The design and layout of the new site was based on the types of users who visit the site most frequently and was customized to ensure search engines can find the content much more easily. The goal of this website rebuild was to help the agency’s visitors find what they seek and successfully complete a transaction. A link to the new website can be found in the newsletter.

The requirements for used container boxes re-purposed as buildings is covered in the newsletter, units of this type are considered closed construction and must have IIBC approval and be labeled. Any shipping container used as a building or other structure regulated by the code must comply with all requirements of the MSBC. The article specifies when containers have an AC462 report, the report is for the steel only that was used in making the container and does not include the design for live and dead loads or for openings cut into the units. The design must include, at a minimum: occupancy classification, construction type, live loads, dead loads, roof-floor loads, thermal transmittance values, footing-foundation, including anchorage/attachment and the applicable name and date of the building codes used.

Other items of interest are hat are thresholds for accessibility in R-2 apartment type dwelling units on a single property and frequently asked questions and answers on the plumbing code. Visit the newsletter in the link provided below for the full publication.

Full CCLD Newsletter