Structural Survey

Purpose – This paper aims to provide insight into the use of a standard for condition assessment.

Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on a literature review, an analysis of the development, content and practical use of the Dutch Standard for Condition Assessment of Buildings, and the findings of several research projects about condition assessment and maintenance planning by Dutch housing associations.

Findings – By using the standard for condition assessment, building inspectors can provide property managers with objective data about the condition status of building components. Aggregated condition data could be used for setting condition targets for built assets and for benchmarking. It is anticipated that as a result of the standardisation, condition surveys will become more reliable and as a consequence more popular among large-scale property owners.

Research limitations/implications – The standard has been introduced recently. At present there is little experience of the use of (aggregated) condition data for maintenance planning and benchmarking built assets.

Practical implications – The standard is a tool to assess the technical status of the properties to underpin the long-term maintenance expectations. Condition assessment is not meant for preparing the annual maintenance budget and planning of the work. Supplementary information is needed in the phase of preparing for the execution of remedial work.

Originality/value – This paper provides practical tools for condition assessment and maintenance planning.