OUR SERVICES
Structural Audit and Analysis
A structural audit is a comprehensive check of building safety by analyzing and suggesting appropriate repairs and retrofitting measures required for the building to perform better in its service life.
Over time, there are many reasons that can weaken the structures, and the most common of them are structural deficiency, material deterioration, unexpected overloads, and physical damage due to accidents. A structural audit is an effective way of identifying defects and assessing the current condition of the structure. The general advice is to conduct structural audits every 5 years and every 3 years for structures older than 30 years. This includes not only building structures (such as public, commercial, residential, and industrial buildings), but also non-building structures (such as bridges, jettys, silo tanks, and retaining walls).
Our structural audit typically covers:
- Forensic or damage analysis through a visual check for any structural defects, damages, distress, deformation, and/or deterioration
- Plan and alignment between the as-built drawing and the existing condition
- Load conditions floor-to-floor
- Seismic evaluation
- Evaluation of the structure per current code requirements and/or at the time of construction
- Finite Element Analysis (FEA)
- Failure analysis
- Non-destructive testing, as needed (ultrasonic pulse velocity tests, hammer tests, rebar scanning tests, steel thickness measurements, corrosion measurements)
- Destructive testing, as needed, with assistance from third-party testing agencies (concrete strength through core sampling, steel strength, masonry strength, etc.)
- Identifying and recommending parts or sections of the structure that may be in need of immediate repair, renovation, and/or replacement
- Expert witness services, as needed
