award rates & salaries - australia
apesma - the australian union to which architects belong. APESMA has recently removed all trace of award rate information from public view at their website. Refer Wagenet below. [07/05]
aia - U.S. 1999 average salary survey. Read only if already in a lousy mood.[11/03]
graduate careers council - it's probably best not to go near this 2002 survey, in which architectural graduate salaries are ranked below everyone else at uni except for artists and pharmicists.[11/03]
Wagenet - the current name for the australian government's wages and salaries website. You can find rates for architects and students for free this search page. [07/05]

australian code of conduct
raia code of conduct - revised May 2000 - available as a small PDF download.

competency standards
aaca - Architect's accreditation council of Australia - the general information booklet is available online, the other booklets are described. Competency standards were revised in January 2002.

workplace safety
workcover - the Victorian government's safety website,

the architect's act (australia)
architects act 1991 (Victoria) - a necessary read from time to time.
architects regulations 1993 (Victoria) - ditto.
productivity commission - a sub-site of the commission devoted to the architecture inquiry. Contains reports and transcripts. Final report.
architect's registration board of victoria - response to the productivity commission's draft report of May 2000. [link fixed 01/02]
raia / aca draft response to productivity commission report - advocating a national registration body, and separation of registration and regulation bodies. The final report is due in July 2001.

migration to australia
detya - information for architects intending to migrate to Australia - provided by the commonwealth department of education, training and youth affairs. [LINK FIXED 11/02]
apec questionaire - just about everything about the regulatory side of being an architect in australia, on one page.

moral rights law (australia)
RAIA press release - it is now illegal for someone to demolish a building without making an effort to notify the architect... and it's also illegal for a newspaper to publish a work without crediting the architect. (!)

professional indemnity insurance
raia insurance brokers - the institute's insurance arm - all the nuts and bolts information on an indemnity policy.
when do you need insurance? - an apesma article outlining risks to salaried and self-employed architects.

product libraries

australian and new zealand
australian manufacturers - Australian index of manufacturers and suppliers.
buildata - Australian index.
building australia directory - another basic sponsored directory - not many links under the categories I tested.
butterpaper - this library is now in a private password-protected area. The traffic and correspondence relating to this part of the site was becoming a money and time drain when it was on the public web. Email me from a university or design practice address and I will give you access for the year.
dbm - Australian site aimed at contractors - thorough but with a lot of bad links.
designIT-online.com - a new subscriber-only site - so I can't tell you much about it except that it costs $300 to $500 to join, depending on your level of impoverishment. Run by the people that bring you Inside and Architecture Review Australia. [01/02]
info-link - NZ/south pacific - requires free registration.
infolink - a snappy and thorough yellow pages of Australian construction.
selector - supported by the RAIA - a smart and up to date site that gathers information onto the site rather than sending you off to the suppliers' sites.
spec-net - building index  - looks good but not checked. [09/03]
strategic data - New Zealand product site - requires free registration. A good and growing site that brings the information straight to you. CAD details available on site.
surrounds - a new australian product library. [10/03]

elsewhere
arcat - U.S. site with extensive links to construction details.
bricsnet - large euro site with links to products, forums, and AIA CAD details.
buildfind - huge U.S. site.
building online - another huge U.S. site. 
building trades directory - yet another huge U.S. site. 
pierpoint - medium-sized producted catalogue by the AIA (US).
productsasia - asia wide index intended but so far just Thailand and Singapore.
sweets - gargantuan U.S. site - if you can't find it it might well be here - CAD files and specs available.
visual library - large american site owned by bricsnet - good access to catalogs, CAD (dwf) details, specifications and photos often not available at company websites.

project delivery
The AEC Dilemma: Exploring the Barriers to Change - U.S. article examining why the construction industry gets less efficient while all other non-farm industries gain in efficiency. "...Why has so little progress been achieved other than to compress schedules by further overlapping activities causing even more waste, less margin for error, and greater inefficiencies?" [DESIGN INTELLIGENCE]

quality of documentation and communication
Talkitecture: Running a Successful Architectural Practice - american article asking why we so often get client communication wrong. "Part of the problem is rooted in the training that most aspiring architects must endure-the jury system. By its very nature, the jury system promotes an "attack and defend" mentality that creates more resentment than enlightenment and teaches students to be combative rather than apologetic." [DESIGN INTELLIGENCE]

registration boards
aaca - australian accreditation board.
bepcon - how registration works in the ACT.
boarch - New South Wales board of architects..
arbv - victorian board of registration. Newsletter available in PDF format.
nzrab - the new NZ registration board (11/06).

magazines
design intelligence - american e-zine with a variety of free articles about the back end of the architectural profession. [11/03]