Building Practice

2.72  General -The aim of this Section is to ensure that completed developments are constructed in accordance with good practice.  Materials and components chosen should be durable and cost efficient to maintain in use.

2.73  Durability/Performance - ‘Durability’ is defined in the British Standard as the ability of a building and its parts to perform its required function over a period of time.  ‘Performance’ is the building’s behaviour related to use.  The quality of the materials, components and workmanship in a building should, be appropriate for the required service life of the building and the conditions in which it will be used.

2.74  Consistency in the Approach - to predicting durability and building life the assessment techniques and definitions is contained within BS 7543 2003, and should form the basis of assessing the suitability of materials and components.  The designated ‘Building Life’ for new housing normally has a minimum period of 60 years and the design life for components or assemblies within the building will fall into the following categories:

2.75  The Selection of Materials and Components - should be based on the required service life during which no excessive expenditure is required on operation, maintenance or repair of the component or construction.  For most social housing this will be approximately 35 years.  There is a need to assess the predicted service life and BS 7543: 2003 provides guidelines.  Publications such as the HAPM Component Life Manual, published by E & FN Spon, provide valuable information on the predicted lifespan of components and identify minimum maintenance requirements.  Selection of materials in social housing will be of particular importance in the replaceable and maintainable design life categories where there are on-going costs to the Housing Association.

2.76  Ease and Cost of Maintenance - of a building should be an integral part of the design process in which due consideration is given to the life long effects of material/component selections, construction detailing and overall building design.  In establishing the principles with regard to the selection of materials and components for durability/performance it is possible to more accurately assess the level of maintenance which will be required over the service life of a building – see Durability/Performance above.  This will enable the Landlord to consider the effect of decisions taken at the development stage in a project, e.g. short-term/low cost options -v- their long-term maintenance costs.

2.77  Informed Decisions - on the service life and maintenance requirements of components and materials will permit a more systematic approach to maintenance.  BS 8210: 1986 identifies the following levels of maintenance:

2.78  Length of the Maintenance Cycle – should be agreed at the initial stages of the design development as this may affect the selection of components/materials, and an audit of the technical design aspects of the specification documents may be necessary to ensure that components will achieve their predicted lives.  To facilitate planned maintenance programmes information related to specified materials and components should be contained within the maintenance manuals/Health & Safety File.

2.79  Life Cycle Costing – is essentially the balance between the initial cost of a component and its lifetime performance.  In the selection of components it is therefore necessary to consider maintenance, repair and replacement costs as part of an overall strategy in the design and specification of new developments.  In social housing the Landlord will have to ensure that maintenance costs associated with their building stock are minimised over its lifetime.  Due to limited capital funding, a balance is required between procurement costs and long term running costs.  It is necessary to consider components in respect of their design life and required service life (as identified in ‘Durability/Performance’) and relate this to the following:

Information Reference – BMI Life Expectancy of Building Components (ISBN: 9781904829393)

2.80  A Practical Approach – is taken to specification and life cycle costing in ‘Standards in Quality and Development’ published by the National Housing Federation (NHF).  The NHF have identified those areas where the ‘suitability and durability’ are particularly important in respect of future maintenance costs and has assessed costs for these items on the basis of capital maintenance and replacement costs to obtain a comparative ‘present value’ of similar components and they have incorporated these into a tabular form using HAPM Component Life Manual information.  This approach will allow flexibility within design and specification e.g. where aesthetic or other considerations apply, and permit the Landlord to anticipate future maintenance requirements.

2.81  Quality of Workmanship on Site/Site Inspection – the objective of site inspections is to check that the Contractor is properly executing the works and meeting the construction and quality specified.  Monitoring the quality of workmanship on site is an essential part of the construction process as deficiencies in the completed building can negate many aspects of the design process.  Routine site inspections should be carried out by the employer’s agent, supervising officer or appointed consultants on a regular basis.  A Clerk of Works should conduct more frequent inspections or be resident on site, depending on the size of the scheme.  

For more information see Procurement Guide

2.82  Components – the selection and specification of components should ensure that they meet all statutory requirements, comply with requirements listed in this Guide and be installed to be fit and appropriate for their intended use.  The selection and specification can be defined in terms of: -

For further details see the Procurement Guide or  www.hseni.gov.uk