Building – Kingsleigh Court, Stockport
Nature – Residential block of flats
Client – Dempster Management Services
Project Value – £60k
Project Management & Contract Administration – Read more…
Following a condition survey undertaken by Torside building surveyors, failings with original concrete Finlock gutters was noted. Years of re-lining had reduced the gutter depths down, with the waterproofing extensively failing again.
Only two viable solutions were available, either scrape out the layers of bitumen and re-line with a modern solution or alter the concrete and install modern components. The latter was preferred to modernise and futureproof the rainwater goods.
Torside Building Consultants involvement included the following:
Building Condition Survey & Report
Building surveyors at Torside attended site and inspected all external and internal communal areas, taking just under 1,000 photos and noting visual issues present to the five residential blocks making up Kingsleigh Court.
Issues noted included suspected rising damp, instances of defective render cladding and severe failings to Finlock concrete gutters. Internal areas were also accessed to aid in diagnosing areas and severity of failed elements.
We produced the report and issued to the client with recommendations for repairing and maintaining the properties.
Design Work for Redevelopment Project
Torside advised on undertaking some minor intrusive inspections to determine the make-up and construction form of the gutters, particularly to see if the roofs rafters were supported by the gutter blocks.
Fortunately, only the inner wall leaf was supporting rafters meaning we could cut the face of the concrete with minimal disruption to structural elements. We also noted eaves protection trays were missing from the bottom row of tiles.
Gathering as much information as possible was key to determining the most appropriate solution to the defective elements. With the decision to alter the Finlock concrete gutters to allow for installation of modern uPVC components, our building surveyors created tender drawings and a schedule of works for contractors to price, complete with technical detail of the clients requirements.
Contract Administration Duties
The project went to selective tender. With working on Finlock concrete gutters being a specialist undertaking, our surveyors diligently sourced several contractors seemingly capable and willing to undertake the works. Contractors priced the works and the successful tenderer was selected due to their lowest competitive price and their experience with working with Finlock gutters.
Torside was instructed to oversee the construction phase of the project which included issuing and administering the construction contract on behalf of the client and administered client requirements.
Contract Documents issued included:
Project Management
Through arranging and attending regular site meetings, we were able to assess progress and quality of works to ensure the project was running according to programme and working towards completion.
Included within our role, Torside typically oversee relevant planning consent, requirements for building regulation approval and liaise with other technical professionals as required, including structural engineers, M&E designers and drainage consultants. Fortunately, this project did not require any of these, but consideration should always be given.
The Building Surveyors at Torside Building Consultants are experienced in managing construction projects of all natures and sizes.
