Durability Assessments and Concrete Condition Surveys
Birmingham City Laboratories has gained extensive knowledge investigating and surveying a wide range of structures; these include bridges, tunnels, coastal defences, historic buildings, multi-storey car parks, high rise buildings, system built dwellings, swimming pools, industrial facilities and office buildings.
Understanding the design, material characteristics and deterioration processes affecting a particular building or structure is essential in diagnosing the causation and extent of defects affecting that structure. This enables a durable and cost effective repair to be instigated and decisions made with regard to life-costing.
At BCL we provide in depth reports detailing our findings and also provide advice on the most appropriate repair strategies and systems.
Undertaking a sufficient and appropriate survey is a requirement of BS EN 1504, products and systems for the protection and repair of concrete structures.
Detailed below are some of our key services:-
Investigation of deterioration related to reinforcement corrosion
- visual inspection and defect survey
- delamination survey [tapping survey]
- covermeter survey
- carbonation depth
- chloride determinations and profiling
- half-cell potential survey
- resistivity survey
- reinforcment condition and detail [inspection/ferroscan]
Concrete quality and deterioration
- fire damage investigation
- alkali silica reaction assessment
- investigation of sulphate attack
- chemical, abrasion and impact damage
- construction defects and poor workmanship
- core sampling
- petrographic examination
- compressive strength testing
- cement content and cement type determination
- chemical analysis