SECTION 70.70. Responsibilities of the Registrants--Manufacturer's Design Package and REF Builder's Construction Documents

(a) Review and approval. The manufacturer's design package and the REF builder's construction documents must be reviewed and approved in accordance with the following.

(1) The manufacturer or REF builder shall select a council-approved design review agency (DRA) to perform all required review and evaluation of plans, designs, specifications, compliance control, and on-site construction documentation, etc. This selection shall be made in writing to the executive director and will state the name, address, and registration number of the design review agency selected.

(2) An approved DRA shall review all designs, plans, specifications, calculations, compliance control programs, on-site construction documentation or specifications, and other documents as necessary to assure compliance with the mandatory building codes in accordance with the interpretations, instructions, and determinations of the council.

(A) The reviews are to be performed or directly supervised by the DRA's certified plans reviewers for the discipline (electrical, plumbing, mechanical, structural, building planning, or fire safety) as listed and approved in the agency's organizational chart. A DRA's plans reviewers must be certified pursuant to the criteria established by the council as set forth in §70.22.

(B) The DRA will obtain from the manufacturer or REF builder all information necessary to assure that the manufacturer's designs and procedures are in compliance with the mandatory building codes and the sections in this chapter.

(3) All documents shall have pages numbered and arranged in accordance with a table of contents. The floor plans shall have no scale smaller than 1/8th inch equals one foot. All documents shall be identified to indicate the manufacturer's or REF builder's name and registered physical address.

(4) The DRA will signify approval of a drawing, specification, calculation, or any other document, including revisions and additions, in the manufacturer's design package and in the REF builder's construction documents by applying the council's stamp to each page.

(A) An alternate council stamp as approved by the council may be used on all designs, plans, specifications, calculations, and other documentation with the exception of the first or cover page and the table of contents or index pages of the design package.

(B) The original council stamp with original signature will be required on the first or cover page and the table of contents or index pages of the design package.

(C) The signature on the original council stamp must be the signature of the manager or chief executive officer of the DRA. The manager or chief executive officer of the DRA must be licensed in the State of Texas as a professional engineer or architect in accordance with the criteria for approval of DRA's established by the council.

(D) The stamp shall not be placed on any designs, plans, or specifications that do not meet the requirements of the applicable mandatory building codes or the requirements of these sections.

(E) The DRA shall forward a copy of all approved documents to the department within 5 days of approval and shall forward one approved copy to the manufacturer or the REF builder.

(F) The DRA shall keep copies of all approved documents for a minimum of 5 years from the date that these documents are superseded by adoption of later editions of the mandatory building codes and make a copy of these documents available to the department upon request.

(G) The manufacturer shall keep a copy of all approved documents for a minimum of ten years from the date the last unit constructed from the documents is shipped and make a copy of these documents available to the department upon request.

(H) The REF builder shall keep a copy of all approved construction documents for a minimum of 10 years from the date of completion of the units covered by the documents and make a copy of these documents available to the department upon request.

(I) The manufacturer or the REF builder shall make a copy of all approved documents available to the person performing inspections.

(5) Manufacturers and REF builders will be notified of the change in code editions 180 days before the effective date of the change. Manufacturers or REF builders who wish to continue building to previously approved documents must resubmit these documents to their DRA for review and approval to the new code editions. Only documents that meet the new code editions may be approved. Approval of these documents will be evidenced by application of a new approval date and the council's stamp of approval to each document.

(A) All construction begun on or after effective date of adoption of the new code editions must comply with the new code editions and be constructed in accordance with design packages approved to the new code editions.

(B) Construction to plans approved to the old code editions begun prior to effective date of adoption of the new code editions, or prior to the manufacturer's effective transition date, must be completed, inspected by a Texas approved inspector, and labeled (TX decal must be attached to the unit) within 180 days of the adoption of the new code editions, or the unit shall not be eligible for a Texas decal.

(C) A manufacturer may transition from the current code edition to the new code edition as follows.

(i) The approval date on all documents in the manufacturer's design package will be on or after the effective date of adoption of the new edition of the codes in §70.100. Approvals dated before the effective date of adoption of the codes in §70.100 will no longer be valid for new construction by the manufacturer.

(ii) The manufacturer may transition approval of documents in his design package any time within the 180 days prior to the effective date of the adoption of the new editions of the codes. The manufacturer must notify the department in writing of the effective date of transition. All documents approved on or after that date shall be to the new editions of the codes. All previously approved supporting documentation, such as compliance control manuals, system calculations, etc., must be resubmitted to the DRA for review and approval to the new code editions and must be approved as of the effective date of transition specified by the manufacturer. Approvals dated before the transition date of adoption of the codes in §70.100 will no longer be valid for new construction by the manufacturer.

(6) A DRA may withdraw the approval of any document whenever the approval is later found to be in violation of code requirements or the rules and regulations in this chapter. Notice of the withdrawal of the approval shall be in writing and shall set forth the reasons for the withdrawal. Any withdrawal of approval shall have prospective effect only, except for life safety items.

(7) A DRA may not revise or correct documents submitted for review and approval by the manufacturer or REF builder except as provided in this subsection. DRAs may make red ink corrections to documents provided the corrections meet all of the following criteria:

(A) limited to corrections of minor deviations;

(B) the corrected items can be verified by reference to prescriptive code requirements;

(C) the change does not involve any change of design or require design;

(D) the red ink correction is valid for 10 working days and may not be extended; and

(E) the corrections must be numbered and initialed by the DRA and the statement, "As noted with (number) corrections" shall appear near the stamp of the council with the number of corrections entered.

(b) In-plant documentation for manufacturers and construction documents for REF builders. The manufacturer and REF builder shall provide the DRA the documentation necessary to demonstrate compliance with the mandatory building codes in §70.100 and §70.101. At a minimum the documentation shall include the following:

(1) specifications or detail drawings for all materials, devices, appliances, equipment, and fasteners used in construction, including listings and evaluation reports for materials or methods of construction where required by the mandatory building code or to demonstrate compliance of an approved alternate material or method of construction in accordance with §70.103;

(2) detailed drawings of all assemblies and components (with cross-sections as necessary to identify major building components);

(3) floor plans for all models and options;

(4) electrical schematics for all models and options;

(5) water system and drain-waste-vent system drawings for all models and options;

(6) gas piping system drawings for all models and options;

(7) mechanical system drawings for all models and options;

(8) fire protection, fire safety, and exit details;

(9) energy compliance details, including any local amendments or alternative compliance paths to which the structure will be constructed under Occupations Code, Section 1202.1536;

(10) heating, ventilation, and air conditioning details;

(11) structural, thermal, and electrical load calculations;

(12) weather resistance details;

(13) condensation protection details;

(14) decay protection details;

(15) insect and vermin protection details;

(16) fastening schedule;

(17) assembly and connection instructions for all components, materials, devices, equipment, and appliances;

(18) together on either the floor plan or the cover or title sheet for each model or project in a title block format:

(A) name and date of applicable codes;

(B) identification of permissible type of gas for appliances;

(C) maximum snow load (roof)(psf);

(D) maximum wind speed (mph) and exposure;

(E) seismic design criteria;

(F) occupancy/use group type;

(G) construction type;

(H) special conditions and/or limitations;

(I) the location of the data plate on the building or dwelling unit; and

(J) the location of the decal or insignia on each module or modular component, or for REF builders, the location of the decal on the building;

(19) compliance control manual (reference subsection (c)); and

(20) on-site construction documentation (reference subsection (d)).

(c) Compliance control program for manufacturers. The utilization of mass production techniques and assembly line methods in the construction of industrialized housing, buildings, modules, and modular components along with the fact that a large part of such construction cannot be inspected at the ultimate building site, requires manufacturers to develop an adequate compliance control program to assure that these structures meet or exceed mandatory code requirements and are in compliance with the rules and regulations of this chapter. The compliance control program shall be documented in the form of a manual that must be approved by the design review agency. A 100% inspection of the construction of industrialized housing or buildings may be authorized in lieu of a compliance control program and certification of the manufacturer in accordance with §70.60. The manufacturer shall provide the design review agency a compliance control manual that must, at the minimum, contain the following:

(1) a table of contents;

(2) a chart indicating the manufacturer's organizational structure to assure compliance and to assure that the compliance control staff shall maintain independence from the production personnel;

(3) a statement that defines the obligation, responsibility, and authority for the manufacturer's compliance control program;

(4) identification of compliance control personnel, their accountability by position, responsibility for inspections, method of marking nonconformances observed, and system for assuring corrections are made;

(5) materials handling methods, including inspection checklists, for receiving materials and methods for marking and removing rejected materials both upon receipt and from the production line. The area for rejected materials must be clearly indicated to assure that such material is not used;

(6) a description of an identification system to mark each individual module, or modular component, at the first stage of production to assure appropriate inspection and rechecking of any deviation corrections;

(7) a diagram of the manufacturing sequence with the plant layout, including a description of the activities to be performed along with a listing of those that may be performed at one or more stations;

(8) an inspection checklist including:

(A) a list of inspections to be made at each production station; and

(B) accept/reject criteria (each significant dimension and component should be given tolerances);

(C) an energy compliance checklist that enumerates the energy code-compliance features of the module or modules and includes a signature space for the compliance control inspector or manager. A copy of this checklist shall be shipped with the module or modules.

(9) step-by-step test procedures, a description of the station at which each production test is performed, a description of required testing equipment, and procedures for periodic checking, recalibration, and readjustment of test equipment. Procedures shall be included for, but not limited to, electrical tests as specified in the National Electrical Code, Article 545.14 (as added by §70.101(j)(2)), gas supply pressure tests, water supply pressure tests, drain-waste-vent system tests, concrete slump tests, and concrete strength tests;

(10) storage procedures for completed structures at the plant and for any other locations prior to installation;

(11) a statement indicating the person who is responsible for compliance control at each manufacturing facility and who will assume responsibility for decals and insignia, application of the decals and insignia, and the reporting procedure;

(12) a procedure for maintaining reliable, retrievable records of the inspections performed, decal and insignia numbers assigned, the deficiencies and how they were corrected, and the site to which the modules or modular components were transported;

(13) procedures and information to demonstrate how the modules and modular components are to be transported to the building site so that damage will not occur or that compliance deviations will not result (actual transportation without damage or deviation is evidence sufficient to justify the method); and

(14) procedures that assure that the compliance control procedures are complied with on all regulated structures. As a minimum, regulated structures must be identified prior to commencing construction.

(d) On-site construction specifications or documentation for manufacturers. All work to be performed on the building site shall be specifically identified and distinguished from construction to be performed in the manufacturing facility, e.g., assembly and connection of all modules, modular components, systems, equipment, and appliances and attachment to the foundation system. The work to be performed on-site shall be described in detail in documents (architectural sheets, specifications, instructions, etc.) which shall be made available to the builder for use at the site and provided as required for review and inspection to the agency having local authority. The manufacturer shall provide the design review agency on-site construction documentation which must, at the minimum, contain the following:

(1) critical load points for attachment of the house or building or component to the foundation;

(2) details for module to module or modular component assembly and connection;

(3) minimum requirements for connection and attachment of all modules and modular components to the foundation system;

(4) firestopping and draftstopping details;

(5) details for fire exits, balconies, walkways, and other site-built attachments;

(6) exterior weatherproofing details;

(7) details for thermal, condensation, decay, corrosion, and insect protection;

(8) electrical, mechanical, heating, cooling, and plumbing system completion details;

(9) electrical, mechanical, heating, cooling, and plumbing system test procedures;

(10) fire safety provisions; and

(11) specifications and instructions for cooling equipment, and complete information necessary to calculate sensible heat gain along with information on the sizing of the air distribution system, if applicable, and the R values of insulation in the ceiling, walls, and floors.

(e) Other construction documentation for REF builders. Construction documentation for the foundation and site specific elements, such as ramps and stairs, of the site-built REFs shall be reviewed and approved by the DRA, the local building official, or, in areas where the building site is outside a municipality or within a municipality with no building department or agency, by the school district. At a minimum the documentation shall include all construction documentation necessary to complete the building at the first commercial site including a foundation system design meeting the requirements of §70.73(h). The use of ground anchors shall comply with §70.73(i).

(f) Non-site specific buildings. Whenever the manufacturer does not know, at the time of construction, where the building is to be placed, in lieu of providing the site specific construction details or typical site construction details as required in subsection (d), the manufacturer may provide special conditions and/or limitations on the placement of the building. These special conditions and/or limitations will serve to alert the local building official of items, such as handicapped accessibility and placement of the building on the property, which the local building official may need to verify for conformance to the mandatory building codes. Certain site-related details, such as module to module connections, must still be provided by the manufacturer. It is the responsibility of the DRA to verify that such site-related details are included in the manufacturer's approved design package.

Source Note: The provisions of this §70.70 adopted to be effective April 13, 1990, 15 TexReg 1787; amended to be effective July 13, 1990, 15 TexReg 3741; amended to be effective August 8, 1991, 16 TexReg 4074; amended to be effective January 1, 1992, 16 TexReg 7476; amended to be effective November 16, 1993, 18 TexReg 7925; amended to be effective August 1, 1996, 21 TexReg 6619; amended to be effective March 16, 1998, 23 TexReg 1305; amended to be effective December 20, 2000, 25 TexReg 12385; amended to be effective March 28, 2002, 27 TexReg 2223; amended to be effective August14, 2002, 27 TexReg 7103; amended to be effective December 1, 2003, 28 TexReg 10458; amended to be effective October 3, 2004, 29 TexReg 9182; amended to be effective May 1, 2005, 30 TexReg 2504; amended to be effective June 1, 2006, 31 TexReg 4420; amended to be effective January 1, 2010, 34 TexReg 9409; amended to be effective May 1, 2014, 39 TexReg 3412; amended to be effective November 1, 2015, 40 TexReg 5146; amended to be effective March 15, 2020, 45 TexReg 1674