Structural Survey: Volume 1 Issue 1

Commercial surveys — a comprehensive approach

Robert Headlam

It would perhaps be an exaggeration to suggest that carrying out a survey of commercial premises requires a completely different expertise to that for residential property, but…

Building Societies and surveyors: where now?

J.M. Hunter

The words ‘Building Society’ are synonymous with safety, security and freedom from risk, operating with a smooth, simple and almost magical efficiency. The Building Society…

Care in wording the surveyor's report

Bernard Holland

It is not my intention to write upon the complexities of the law of professional negligence but to use this article to start the reader thinking; I propose to do this from the…

Energy wastage in non‐residential buildings — basic principles

H.L. Dawson

The realisation that any edifice is both a static and also a continuously dynamic entity, should lead to the acceptance of the need to apply the skills of a number of disciplines…

Inspecting insulation in situ

S.J. Carroll

Whilst the overall need to conserve energy is generally accepted, the importance of undertaking a detailed survey before the start of any insulation work in existing buildings is…

Assessing fire damaged structures

D.M. Tucker, R.E.H. Read

Buildings, or portions of buildings, look a sorry sight after a fire: some may have collapsed and be only twisted ruins, others may have mainly suffered damage from smoke. Between…

Understanding cracks in houses

John F.S. Pryke

Before beginning a detailed technical discussion on cracks it is necessary to put the subject into perspective and ask what ‘cracking’ means to a house owner or prospective house…

Surveying buildings in London's docklands

A.J. Faulkner

The area loosely described as London's Docklands contains a great variety of building types which are, in general, poorly maintained. A large proportion of the commercial and…

Video — its uses and limitations

Gregory Angel

Video and its associated technology is becoming increasingly prominent in every aspect of commercial and domestic life. The proliferation of hardware is almost as bewildering as…

Basic facts about concrete — design and constituents

G.T. Williams BSc FICE FIStructE

Concrete is the most basic of building materials and yet, in the hands of the expert, is capable of providing strength, durability and even elegance far in excess of many of its…

Residential surveys of interwar semi‐detached properties

Malcolm FRICS Hollis BSc, AIAS ASVA, ACIArb

Between the first and second world wars there was an expansion of building within Britain, which is personified by the British suburban ‘semi’. With only minor variations in their…