MAINTENANCE PLANNING

MAINTENANCE PLANNING

01

MAINTENANCE PLANNING

 

“By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established…”

Proverbs 24:3

Protecting and preserving buildings are some of the most demanding tasks for engineers. The special requirements for the expert planner for concrete and reinforced concrete construction, for example, are set out in the repair and maintenance guidelines. Regulations such as the guidelines of the Wissenschaftlich-Technische Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Bauwerkserhaltung und Denkmalpflege e.V. (WTA) e.V. also provide information and ideas.

The existing damage mechanisms depend in particular on the materials used and their environmental conditions. Only when we know the damage mechanisms and the building materials in detail can we conclude on the cause and thus find the best possible renovation solution. The type of renovation can vary greatly depending on the client. This makes it possible to carry out cost-efficient renovations for the remaining service life of a building or to use high-end and high-tech solutions that offer the greatest possible reliability in terms of durability. This means for us, that we not only need to know the building but also you, our customer.

Damage to wood, caused by fungi or insects, as well as water in liquid or gaseous form, can permanently destroy components. A 100-year-old truss can be weakened by a single broken roof tile until it collapses if the damage is not noticed and properly repaired. You find more information regarding the detection of such dangers on our subpage “Building Inspection”.

The most common damage mechanisms in concrete and reinforced concrete construction are:

  • Carbonation, which describes the diffusion of carbon dioxide from the air into the concrete. This causes the concrete to lose its protective effect for the reinforcing steel, which may begin to corrode.
  • The ingress of chlorides from de-icing salt, which can cause local corrosion on contact with the reinforcement.
  • The penetration of water into cracks and flaws in the concrete structure, which can lead to spalling at low temperatures.
  • In addition, there are other damage mechanisms, which in most cases can be attributed to the properties of the cement or the aggregate.

As in concrete and timber construction, there are also specific damage mechanisms in steel construction due to materials and environmental conditions.

We are happy to offer you our expert planning services. Through continuing education we are always technically up to date and know the right product for the task at hand. Modern building materials in particular, such as carbon reinforcements, offer special properties, but also new pitfalls. We are happy to support you in the preservation of your buildings and thus help you to protect your assets.

No matter whether bridge, underground car park, residential or non-residential building: we have also gained extensive project experience in the field of listed buildings. Please ask us for an offer. A very special reference here is the package handling hall, as the most widely braced reinforced concrete construction made of precast reinforced concrete elements. In this case, all registers had to be pulled out under the requirements of the preservation of historical monuments in order to restore the durability.