Up Close and Personal

Here I look at some of the most common ways surveyors access even the tallest and more awkwardly shaped residential buildings. 

Scaffold

Scaffolding is expensive; it takes time to erect and causes inconvenience to the residents (light, noise, privacy). Scaffold costs can be greater than the diagnosis of the problem and repair combined. It does allow safe and tactile access to problem areas, and for major works projects as such programmes of exterior façade and roof works, scaffold is inevitable and necessary, but for smaller investigatory jobs, scaffold is over the top. Scaffold towers, however, can reduce the cost and speed things up, as the tower can be erected, dismantled, and moved to access other parts of the building. 

MEWPs

Mobile elevating work platforms or ‘cherry pickers’ can be invaluable in accessing areas of your building at height and carrying our inspections directly from the ‘basket’. Assuming there is space to park the vehicle in the first place and there are no weight restrictions, the surveyor will hire the MEWP complete with the operator who will manoeuvre the platform to get as close as possible to the problem area and capture the necessary images which can be live-streamed to the surveyor on the ground. There are several hazards associated with MEWPs, hence plenty of planning is required in advance and on the day.

Aerial Drones

Drone use is now a recognised and recommended method for surveyors to get close to your buildings, viewing elevated and high-risk areas. They’re safer, more cost-effective and have quicker lead times than traditional methods of access. Carrying out surveys and inspections with drones enables buildings to be captured in high-definition stills or video, which can then be reviewed and analysed off-site. Drones are incredibly manoeuvrable and impressive to watch in action when operated by suitably qualified and professionally trained operators, so if you get the chance to see one in action at one of your sites, take it! 

Abseil

An underrated form of access for inspection and survey is abseil, otherwise known as

rope access. This has been my area of expertise over the last 20 years and I remain passionate about

it because rope access surveys and inspections are quick, cost-effective and invaluable in

accessing elevated and difficult to reach areas of your property such as roofs and lightwells. Most buildings are suitable for abseil, not least because we carry our own mobile attachment

points if the structure of the building is unsuitable to attach to. 

When we are up there at height, we will make the most of our time, identifying hazards and defects, and mansafes that have not been tested annually. 

Proactive Budgeting

All of these methods permit and encourage proactive maintenance, and our advice to property managers is to build into your annual service charge budgets proactive assessments of your buildings. Spotting problems developing in advance can pay dividends in ensuring structurally sound and water-tight properties across your portfolio. 

Safety First

Whatever the chosen access method, your surveyor knows that safety comes first. All the necessary training, qualifications, accreditation, planning and detailed execution will all come into play to ensure diagnosis has been determined safely. 

Jason Clohessy, Director, EK Rope Access Surveys