NBS Building

Up-to-date information

When you use NBS Building, the software will let you know if you are using the most up-to-date information. If updated material is available, it will prompt you to download it.

Pre-written clauses

NBS Building contains pre-written technical specification clauses and preliminaries for selection and editing to produce project specifications. Clauses are authored by our team of in-house architects and surveyors to be concise and robust and are arranged in accordance with the Common Arrangement of Work Sections.

As the clauses are pre-written, very little typing is involved. Some clauses require additional information which you can either type in or complete with the use of drop-down lists of suggested solutions. Clauses are provided for both prescriptive and performance specification.

Guidance

General guidance with information on materials and design, including workmanship advice and tips on how to avoid pitfalls is provided for each work section. Extensive technical guidance is also provided to help you complete individual clauses.

Guidance provides access to technical information resources including websites and The Construction Information Service*.

Building product specification

NBS Building contains building product information to help create accurate and detailed building specifications. Product specification clauses for manufacturers’ products are written for use in place of the generic NBS clauses and are approved by the manufacturer.

Office standards

If you regularly work on similar projects, there is a facility to create, manage and update your own office standard specifications.

Printing and issuing

Flexible formatting options mean that you can present your documents using your corporate style. They can then be printed or exported to PDF.

Collaboration across the design team

NBS Building now includes the NBS Tools feature. One of the key benefits of NBS Tools is the ability to annotate your CAD models, schedules and bills of quantities using clause references from NBS specifications or construction references from NBS schedules of work.

NBS Tools is also available as a free download for non NBS subscribers to allow collaboration between colleagues on a project team regardless of who has an NBS licence.

Intuitive user interface

NBS Building has been designed to be intuitive and simple to use. Specifications and NBS Libraries are organised on the left-hand side of the screen. The centre of the screen is used for editing work sections. The right-hand side of the screen displays Guidance, NBS Plus, Help, and links to other information resources.

* The Construction Information Service is a searchable database of full text documents from publishers such as BRE and BSI. It is available as an online subscription service from IHS, telephone 01344 404434, email marketing@ihsti.com or visit www.ihsti.com.

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NBS Building is a subscription service. As part of the subscription you will receive updates on CD-ROM three times a year. Additional updates can be downloaded from the NBS website when available.

NBS Building is offered in three levels of service:

Full Service:

1. Includes Standard, Intermediate and Minor Works libraries
2. For projects of any size. The Standard work sections include performance based clauses which are suitable for Design and Build contracts as well as traditional procurement. They are accompanied by extensive guidance notes.

Abridged Service:

1. Includes Intermediate and Minor Works libraries
2. For small or medium-sized projects. Scope is comprehensive but sections have been edited to suit the scale of work envisaged. There are few performance based clauses and guidance is less extensive.

Minor Works Service:

1. Includes Minor Works library only
2. For small scale works where brevity is important. There are fewer sections, and both clauses and guidance have been edited for small projects.

Also available: NBS Binders and Discs

NBS Building is also available in three levels of service as the NBS Building Binders and Discs service.

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NBS Libraries

Different NBS Building libraries provide preliminaries, work sections and guidance suited to certain types of work. The libraries are: Standard, Intermediate, and Minor Works, and are offered in the following combinations:

NBS Building Full Service: Standard, Intermediate and Minor Works

For projects of any size. The Standard work sections include performance based clauses, which are suitable for design and build contracts as well as traditional procurement. They are also accompanied by extensive guidance notes.

NBS Building Abridged Service: Intermediate and Minor Works

For more simple, medium sized projects. Scope is comprehensive but sections have been edited to suit the scale of work envisaged, and guidance is less extensive.

NBS Building Minor Works Service: Minor Works

For small scale works where brevity is important. There are fewer sections, which are edited for small jobs.

Scope and contents of NBS Building

The scope and contents of each NBS library follows. The content of each individual work section will vary from one library to another, depending on the projects for which the libraries are designed. The table below shows the contract groups included within the preliminaries of each service.

Current NBS Building scope and contents at November 2011
(NBS Update 2011-3)

S = Standard, I = Intermediate, M = Minor Works

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NBS Software Licensing

NBS software can be licensed for use on standalone PCs, or for use on a network. When running on a standalone PC the software will be licence locked for use only on that machine.

For network installations, the software will be licence locked to the server PC. Other PCs on the network may access the licence on the server for concurrent use, up to the number of licences subscribed to.

System requirements

For a full description of the system needed to run this software, please read the NBS system requirements.

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