January 22: The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the "National Building Standard Design System for Urban Utility Tunnels" and the "National Building Standard Design System for Sponge City Construction"

The "National Building Standard Design System for Urban Utility Tunnels" provides a reference for improving the design level of urban utility tunnels in China, the degree of standardization in construction, ensuring construction quality, and promoting the sustainable and healthy development of urban utility tunnel construction. The "National Building Standard Design System for Sponge City Construction" is constructed based on the current development status of sponge cities across China, the existing standard system, the "Technical Guide for Sponge City Construction" and related standards and specifications, and with reference to advanced foreign development experience. It will play a positive role in improving the design level and work efficiency of sponge city construction in China and ensuring construction quality.

February 6: The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council issued the "Several Opinions on Further Strengthening the Management of Urban Planning and Construction"

This is a supporting document of the Central Urban Work Conference, which was restarted after 37 years, and it outlines the "roadmap" for China's urban development during the "13th Five-Year Plan" period and beyond. The "Several Opinions on Further Strengthening the Management of Urban Planning and Construction" put forward the architectural policy of "applicability, economy, greenness, and aesthetics," pointing out the direction for urban planning and construction management at present and in the future. Key tasks such as shaping distinctive urban features, improving the level of urban architecture, and protecting historical and cultural features, as well as actions such as new urbanization, smart cities, sponge cities, urban underground utility tunnels, urban design, and urban renewal, have brought many market opportunities to the survey and design industry.

May 20: The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the "Several Opinions on Further Promoting the Development of Engineering General Contracting"

The "Several Opinions on Further Promoting the Development of Engineering General Contracting" require deepening the reform of the organization and implementation methods of construction projects, promoting the engineering general contracting system, improving the quality and efficiency of engineering construction, enhancing the supply capacity of engineering general contracting, and promoting the transformation and upgrading of the construction industry. At the same time, it is clarified that engineering general contracting enterprises should have engineering design qualifications or construction qualifications appropriate to the scale of the project. Engineering general contracting enterprises may implement design and construction themselves within the scope of engineering projects permitted by their qualification certificates, or may, according to contract provisions or with the consent of the construction unit, directly subcontract the design or construction business of the engineering project to enterprises with corresponding qualifications on a selective basis. When an enterprise with only design qualifications undertakes an engineering general contracting project, it shall subcontract the construction business in the engineering general contracting project to an enterprise with corresponding construction qualifications in accordance with the law. When an enterprise with only construction qualifications undertakes an engineering general contracting project, it shall subcontract the design business in the engineering general contracting project to an enterprise with corresponding design qualifications in accordance with the law.

May 25: The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the "13th Five-Year Plan for the Development and Utilization of Urban Underground Space"

The "13th Five-Year Plan for the Development and Utilization of Urban Underground Space" takes promoting the scientific and rational development and utilization of urban underground space as the overall goal, and clarifies the main tasks and safeguard measures for China's underground space development and utilization during the "13th Five-Year Plan" period. At the same time, it requires research and formulation of planning standards and guidelines for underground space horizontal and vertical planning, underground utility tunnel design, underground traffic engineering design, underground parking lot design, underground pedestrian street design, etc. Strengthen the construction of professional teams for design and construction and clarify job requirements.

August 23: The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the "Outline for the Development of Informatization in the Construction Industry 2016-2020"

The "Outline for the Development of Informatization in the Construction Industry 2016-2020" is a guiding document leading the development of informatization in China's construction industry in the next five years. It puts forward three requirements for the informatization development of survey and design enterprises: First, deeply integrate information technologies such as BIM, big data, and intelligence, realize the integrated application of BIM and enterprise management information systems, and promote the improvement of enterprise design level and management level. Second, accelerate the popularization and application of BIM, promote BIM-based collaborative design, carry out data sharing and collaboration among multiple disciplines, optimize design processes, improve design quality and efficiency, and realize the upgrading of survey and design technology. Third, research and improve the acquisition and expression methods of survey and design information resources, explore knowledge management and development models, establish survey and design knowledge management information systems, and support the construction of smart enterprises.

September 27: The General Office of the State Council issued the "Guiding Opinions on Vigorously Developing Prefabricated Buildings"

The "Guiding Opinions on Vigorously Developing Prefabricated Buildings" propose the development goal of "striving to achieve a proportion of 30% of new building area accounted for by prefabricated buildings in about 10 years," and put forward specific requirements for innovative prefabricated building design. First, coordinate building structures, mechanical and electrical equipment, components and parts, assembly construction, and decoration, and promote integrated design of prefabricated buildings. Second, promote universal, modular, and standardized design methods, actively apply building information modeling technology, improve the collaborative design ability of various disciplines in the building field, and strengthen guidance and services for the entire process of prefabricated building construction. Third, encourage design units to jointly develop prefabricated building design technologies and general design software with research institutes, universities, etc.

November 17: The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the "Regulations on the Depth of Compilation of Building Engineering Design Documents (2016 Edition)"

The "Regulations on the Depth of Compilation of Building Engineering Design Documents (2016 Edition)" are the basic requirements for the depth of compilation of building engineering design documents and are also normative documents that must be implemented. They are conducive to ensuring the quality of building engineering design, standardizing contract performance, and safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of construction units, design units, and other participating entities.

November 24: The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the "Notice on Matters Concerning Promoting the Development of Building Engineering Design Firms"

In order to create better conditions for the development of building engineering design firms, stimulate the vitality of design personnel, and promote the development of building engineering design firms, the notice clarifies that starting from March 1, 2017, the qualification standard indicators for building engineering design firms in the "Engineering Design Qualification Standards" (Jian Shi [2007] No. 86) will be simplified, including: reducing the number of registered personnel such as architects, relaxing the age limit for registered personnel, and canceling the assessment of indicators such as technical equipment and standard systems.

December 15: The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the "Key Points for Technical Review of Construction Drawing Design Documents for Prefabricated Concrete Structure Building Engineering"

The "Key Points for Technical Review of Construction Drawing Design Documents for Prefabricated Concrete Structure Building Engineering" are used to guide and standardize the review of construction drawing design documents for prefabricated concrete structure building engineering, and help improve the design level and construction quality of prefabricated concrete structure building engineering in China.

December 21: The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the "National Building Design Cycle Quota (2016 Edition)"

A reasonable design cycle is a necessary condition for meeting design quality and design depth. In order to improve the management level of building design and enhance the quality of building design, the "National Building Design Cycle Quota (2016 Edition)" clarifies that construction units and design units shall not arbitrarily compress the design cycle. The "National Building Design Cycle Quota (2016 Edition)" is the basis for construction units and design units to sign construction project design contracts and determine reasonable design cycles, and can also serve as a reference basis for preparing bidding documents for conceptual design.