Bathurst Regional Council is attempting to reduce the amount of paper documents and plans that are required to be lodged by applicants when submitting an application for:

• a development consent
• a complying development certificate
• a construction certificate

Beginning on 1 July 2007, applicants for the abovementioned approvals need only submit one (1) hardcopy of all documents, specifications, reports and plans. A second copy is to be submitted as a digital file on a CD or DVD.

Council has had discussions with local designers, drafts people and architects to inform them of these requirements. Council will be able to scan most paper plans and documents if the applicant does not have access to a computer, subject to a fee.

Digital File Format

In order to preserve the integrity of documentation across multiple platforms, files must be supplied in Portable Document Format (PDF). Ideally, documents should be exported directly from the source software (CAD, word processing, spreadsheet etc) software directly to PDF. This method is most likely to preserve the visual quality of your submission. See the “Guide for Creating PDFs” for more information.

File Sizes

Each plan must be supplied as a .pdf file no larger than 1mb in size and optimised for publishing to the web (72dpi). All accompanying documentation must also be supplied as a PDF (a separate .pdf for each document), formatted to print on an A4 page and optimised for publishing to the web (72dpi).

File Naming

Files are to be supplied using descriptive file names and should include the file type extension (.pdf ). One pdf file for each plan sheet should be provided. File names must include, in order: P

• Plan Description (eg. elevation, site plan, floor plan)
• Plan Number (including version)
•  Date Drawn (preferably in DDMMYYYY format).

For example:

• Elevation South v4 24112005.pdf or
• Site Plan 24112005.pdf

One file for each document/specification should also be provided. The file name must include, in order:-

Document Name (eg. Statement of Environmental Effects, Heritage Impact Statement)
Date of the Document.

For example:

• Statement of Environmental Effects v12 24112005.pdf
• Noise-Impact-Statement 24112005.pdf

Accuracy Requirements

The documents must be exact reproductions of the original source documents, as far as the pdf conversion process will allow.

For More Information

For enquiries regarding the digital lodgement of applications (plans & specifications), please contact Bathurst Regional Council's Environmental, Planning and Building Service Department on (02) 6333 6277.