By Kevin Hopkins, AIA, NCARB, CxA, LEED AP (DB+C), ECS Mid-Atlantic
A building’s facade protects the interior space and occupants from the negative effects of water intrusions, air infiltration, and energy loss. Facades deteriorate over time due to environmental weathering and physical damage. Deterioration leads to a range of issues including safety hazards (falling objects); water leakage and resulting mold or corrosion; compromised energy performance and occupant comfort. Due to failures and falling debris from facades, facade inspection ordinances have been enacted in multiple jurisdictions to require regular inspections by qualified providers to maintain a building’s certificate of occupancy and avoid significant fines. When not required by law, building owners and property managers can use facade assessments to locate deficiencies, develop maintenance plans, and mitigate hazards. Proper inspection and maintenance planning of the building facade enhances safety, durability, performance, and maintains the aesthetic benefit of the building over time. Well maintained facades will also extend the life of the building and ensure that building occupants, visitors, and public remain safe in and around the property.
ECS assisted a building manager client with a facade assessment of an asset to aide in decision making. The client was considering implementation of an improved maintenance plan and the possibility of a capital project to replace the existing building envelope. The building is a ten-story healthcare facility designed and constructed circa 1950 with multiple subsequent building envelope renovations, additions, and over-clad projects. The current building envelope cladding consists of mass masonry walls with aluminum-framed windows set into individual masonry openings with limestone surrounds. The renovations included the over-cladding portions of the facility with insulated metal panel and new ribbon windows at each floor. The ends of the building were reclad in architectural precast architectural concrete wall panels.
ECS reviewed the existing documentation and interviewed the facility engineering staff to understand the facility’s building envelope performance and challenges as reported by the owner and users. During the onsite assessment, ECS utilized swing stages to performance close range evaluations the various cladding and fenestration components at multiple representative locations. ECS developed an inspection plan to minimize disturbances to the occupants, maintain public safety and access, and review the building at a detailed level. The assessment included close range evaluations and destructive openings, where needed, to confirm the existing construction and understand the interaction of the various components and systems. Ground penetrating radar (GPR) was also utilized during the assessment to confirm the location of reinforcement within the mass masonry walls at areas of interests.
Gaining this type of access and knowledge of the facade through assessment by a qualified team identified potential repair efforts for the facility, prioritizing the challenges, and provided an informative data set for the ownership team to support informed decision making. While each facility will have common tasks with unique assessment plans, the assessment for this facility identified an immediate safety issue to be corrected. ECS was able to provide design assistance for the remediation, develop the implementation plan, and work with the facade restoration company to install the solution.
Kevin Hopkins is a senior associate on the ECS Mid-Atlantic Building Envelope Team.