Founding membership
Be one of the first.
Help build Australia's body for the leak-detection discipline: water and gas. The Leak Detection Institute of Australia is forming now. We're establishing the first dedicated national standard for leak detection, in a market split across eight state and territory regimes. Founding members are the technicians and businesses who help shape that standard before it's set, and who stand behind it once it is.
We have no members yet. That's the point of this page. If you locate leaks for a living, this is the ground floor.
Why founding members matter
A standard is only as credible as the people who help write it. Founding members do three things no later member can.
Shape the standard
The competency requirements, the code of conduct and the scope-of-practice policy are being drafted now. Founding members will help shape them, through consultation as the Institute forms, rather than inheriting them finished. This is your discipline; you should have a hand in how it's defined.
Foundational credibility
Being among the first to hold LDIA accreditation says something a later membership can't: that you backed a national standard before it was the safe or obvious choice. Founding status is recorded as part of your standing with the Institute.
First in the directory
LDIA will maintain a public register of accredited technicians and businesses so that consumers, insurers, strata managers and builders can find verified people. When that directory opens, founding members are first in line to be listed.
What you get
The Institute is still forming, so this is what founding membership is built to deliver, not a fixed package with a price on it. Fees, tiers and inclusions are being worked out now, and founding members will help shape them. Register your interest and we'll keep you informed as each piece is confirmed.
A voice in the standard
Direct input into the competency framework, code of conduct and scope-of-practice policy as they're drafted.
A path to accreditation
First access to the Accredited Leak Detection Technician and Accredited Business pathways as they open.
A listing in the public register
A verified profile in the LDIA directory once it goes live: findable by state, by water or gas or both, and by the methods you use.
Recognition of founding status
Your standing as one of the technicians and businesses who helped establish the body.
Kept in the loop
Clear updates as the Institute is incorporated, the standard is set and the directory opens. No spam, just the milestones that affect you.
What's expected
Founding membership is a standard to uphold, not a badge to buy. As the requirements are finalised, accreditation will be conditional on meeting them, and on operating within the scope that keeps this discipline credible and safe.
Uphold the code of conduct
Accredited members work to LDIA's code of conduct: honest reporting, competent method, respect for the customer and for the trades you work alongside.
Work within scope: the bright line
Members locate. Licensed trades repair.
This locate-versus-repair split is LDIA accreditation policy and best practice — a condition of membership — not legal advice about what any licence does or doesn't allow.
Gas safety
Hand gas off, every time
All gas pressure and leak testing and all make-safe work is carried out by a licensed gasfitter, in accordance with AS/NZS 5601.1. Non-invasive location may find a problem; a licensed gasfitter confirms it, tests it and makes it safe. Gas always hands off.
Note: Licensing and scope-of-practice rules differ by state and territory and change over time. This is general information about the discipline, not legal advice — verify requirements with the relevant regulator in your jurisdiction.
Where we're up to
We'd rather be straight with you than oversell. The Leak Detection Institute of Australia is forming. It is not yet incorporated, it has no members yet, and the standard, the fees and the directory are still being built. This page is an honest invitation to help build them, not a finished scheme asking for your money.
Here's the plain roadmap, in order. Not on fixed dates, because we won't promise timing we can't yet hold.
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Now
Forming
Establishing the Institute, drafting the competency framework and code of conduct, and gathering founding members. You're reading this at this stage.
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Next
Incorporating
Establishing LDIA as an incorporated association in its home state of Western Australia, with a national scope, designed to grow into a national structure as membership spreads across states.
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Then
Accrediting
Opening the Accredited Leak Detection Technician and Accredited Business pathways and accrediting our founding members against the agreed standard.
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Then
The directory
Launching the public register so consumers, insurers and referrers can find accredited people. Founding members listed first.
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Ongoing
Advocating
Engaging with plumbing and locating bodies, Standards Australia and regulators to have non-invasive detection recognised as a distinct discipline and the state regimes harmonised. We advocate; we don't claim recognition we don't yet have.
Common questions
Straight answers to what technicians ask before they put their name down.
What does it cost to become a founding member?
Registering your interest costs nothing and commits you to nothing. LDIA is still forming, so fees, tiers and inclusions are being finalised now, and founding members help shape them. We'll tell you the numbers before anything is asked of you.
Do I need to be a licensed plumber or gasfitter to join?
No. LDIA accredits the leak-detection discipline itself: the non-invasive work of locating and diagnosing a leak. Members locate; licensed trades repair. Whether you come from plumbing, gasfitting, utility locating or detection work, if you locate water or gas leaks for a living, founding membership is for you.
Is LDIA accreditation a licence? Does it let me carry out gas work?
No. Accreditation is a standard of competence and conduct, not a licence to trade, and it does not change what any licence permits. All gas pressure and leak testing and all make-safe work is carried out by a licensed gasfitter, in accordance with AS/NZS 5601.1. That hand-off is a condition of accreditation, not legal advice about your obligations.
When will accreditation open?
We won't promise timing we can't yet hold. The Institute is forming, then incorporating, then opening the accreditation pathways, then launching the public register. Founding members are kept informed at each real milestone, with no fixed dates until they're certain.
What do I actually get by registering now?
A voice in the competency standard and code of conduct while they are still being drafted, first access to the accreditation pathways as they open, first listing in the public register, and recognition of your founding status. Registering is how you get in before the standard is set.
Register your interest
If you locate water or gas leaks in Australia, put your name down. Registering your interest doesn't commit you to anything or cost anything. It tells us who's out there, helps shape how the standard is built, and puts you first in line for accreditation and a directory listing when they open.
The Institute is forming, so we can't yet give you fees, dates or a login. We can give you a straight answer to every question and updates at each real milestone.
Note: If you select Gas or Both, remember LDIA accreditation covers non-invasive location only. All gas testing and make-safe work is carried out by a licensed gasfitter under AS/NZS 5601.1. Gas always hands off.