Violations of Professional Technical Standards: Causes and Lessons Learned

Abstract

This study was based on a database of 195 regulatory violations (N=592) of established rules of construction from 1996 to 2019 in Taiwan, and it sought to explore the potential causality of regulatory violations of professional technical standards and lessons learned. It also used data mining analysis to explore the reasons and distribution of violations of established rules of construction in the construction industry in Taiwan. First, the investigation on the occurrence rules for violating an established rule of construction in erecting (VERC) in the construction industry shows that in cases of demolition, construction, or completion of construction, the occurrence of natural disasters and earthquakes is a key factor in violations of established rules of construction. The study found that the main reasons for personnel being held responsible for VERC liabilities in accordance with laws included (1) failure of professional technical personnel to provide services with licenses, which lead to failure to implement safety evaluation for the overall structure in the construction process and failure to take any preventive measures or enhancements in the process; (2) risks to legal rights of professional technical personnel for VERC if the court adopts simplified judgment procedures; and (3) construction of illegal building structures could easily result in VERC liabilities. This study recommends the clarification of the VERC provision in Article 193 of the Taiwanese Criminal Code, namely, the construction contractor or overseer, proprietor, and design supervisor should be included to meet the current state of building construction practices, meet the principle of a legally prescribed punishment for a specified crime, and prevent disputes in the application of interpretation. Thus, regardless of whether the actor is an entity or an individual, the establishment of the VERC offense would remain unaffected in the process from development and design to construction management. Therefore, the study also provides an explanatory framework for the amendment of laws and supervision for the execution of building management by competent authorities for creating an engineering environment conducive to sustainable development.