RAAC Assessment in Winnersh
Finding RAAC in a building in Winnersh is the start of a decision, not the end of one. The RAAC assessment is the engineering judgement that follows: a panel-by-panel classification by John Staves (CEng FIStructE, MIoD), a chartered structural engineer and one of the UK's leading specialists in RAAC, based on the survey and scanning carried out by Neil Smuts (MCIOB, MInstNDT, FRCSP), President of the UK Concrete Scanning Standard and a Fellow of the Register of Concrete Scanning Professionals, and a clear statement of what should happen next.
- Assessed by John Staves, CEng FIStructE MIoD, a chartered engineer who specialises in RAAC
- Built on survey and scanning evidence from Neil Smuts, MCIOB MInstNDT FRCSP
- Panel-by-panel: what can stay in use, what needs propping, what needs monitoring
- Strengthen-or-replace answered honestly, with the cost picture
Based in Finchampstead, Wokingham. Winnersh is local to us.
Inside the assessment
For a building in Winnersh, the assessment answers four questions in order. Is it RAAC? What condition is each panel in, and how does that sit against the Institution of Structural Engineers guidance? What needs to happen now, whether that is nothing, propping, restricted use or monitoring? And what is the long-term answer: manage, strengthen or replace? John Staves (CEng FIStructE, MIoD), a chartered structural engineer and one of the UK's leading specialists in RAAC, answers all four in writing, from the survey evidence gathered by Neil Smuts (MCIOB, MInstNDT, FRCSP), President of the UK Concrete Scanning Standard and a Fellow of the Register of Concrete Scanning Professionals.
Strengthen or replace: the question the assessment must answer
An assessment that only says "replace" has not done its job. Some panels are beyond saving and the assessment will say so, but many roofs can be strengthened in place with carbon fibre reinforced polymer designed to the exact capacity required, and the building kept open while it is done. Across the RAAC tenders we cost, a bespoke CFRP scheme engineered for that exact roof frequently comes in at well below 15 per cent of the cost of full replacement. On one tender, a roof costed at around £40 million to replace was priced for strengthening at under £4 million.
The assessment for your building in Winnersh sets out which route applies and why, so that you can take a costed decision rather than a default one.
RAAC structural inspection and engineering inspection in Winnersh
An engineering inspection is the evidence-gathering half of the assessment: scanning for reinforcement and bearing length, measured deflection, cracking, moisture and previous repairs, panel by panel. The structural assessment is the judgement built on it: each panel placed in a risk category against the Institution of Structural Engineers guidance, the immediate actions, the monitoring position, and the strengthen-or-replace recommendation. For schools, academies, NHS estates and councils in Winnersh, the two are delivered together and signed by a Fellow of the Institution of Structural Engineers. A full engineering inspection of a large or complex building is priced per building; a visual survey, where that is all that is needed, starts from £395.
The buildings in Winnersh this applies to
Winnersh sits in the Wokingham Borough Council area, close to Wokingham, Earley and Woodley. It is Winnersh Triangle business park and the station on the Reading to Waterloo line, and it holds post-war housing with the schools and community buildings that came with it. Frimley Park Hospital, which serves this part of Berkshire, is a publicly identified RAAC hospital and is being replaced under the New Hospital Programme, which has put RAAC on the agenda for every estates team in the area. That is the building stock the RAAC assessment question applies to: anything with a flat or shallow roof from the 1950s to the mid 1990s, whether school, clinic, hall, leisure centre or office.
Prioritising buildings in Winnersh
Not every building in Winnersh needs a RAAC assessment, and we would rather tell you that than sell you one. The ones that do are flat-roofed, date from the 1950s to the mid 1990s, and have never had RAAC confirmed or excluded by scanning. Under Wokingham Borough Council that generally means post-war housing with the schools and community buildings that came with it. Ranked by occupancy and by the consequence of a failure, that list usually puts schools, health buildings and places of assembly first, then offices and industrial units.
What you receive
You get one document you can act on and put in front of a board, a trust, a governing body or an insurer: the classification of every panel, what must happen now, what should be monitored, and whether the roof is a candidate for strengthening in place. It is signed by John Staves (CEng FIStructE, MIoD), a chartered structural engineer and one of the UK's leading specialists in RAAC. If your building has not yet been surveyed, start with our RAAC survey in Winnersh; the assessment follows from it.
Practicalities
We can usually be on site in Berkshire within one to two days, and the report follows within five working days of the site visit, depending on the size of the survey and the level of detail required. Evening, weekend and holiday visits are no problem, which matters for occupied buildings in Winnersh. Professional indemnity insurance is held to a maximum of £10 million, with public and employers' liability arranged on a per-site basis, and every assessment is signed by a Fellow of the Institution of Structural Engineers, which is what trusts, NHS estates, insurers and funders look for.
Two named specialists, one team
Neil Smuts, MCIOB MInstNDT FRCSP
Survey, scanning and monitoring. President, UK Concrete Scanning StandardNeil leads the survey, scanning and monitoring side of every Structured Carbon project. He is President of the UK Concrete Scanning Standard, a member of the Chartered Institute of Building and the Institute of NDT, and a Fellow of the Register of Concrete Scanning Professionals. LinkedIn
John Staves, CEng FIStructE MIoD
Structural assessment and CFRP designJohn is a chartered structural engineer and one of the UK's leading specialists in RAAC. He carries out the structural assessment and designs every strengthening scheme. John received both the Regional and the National Innovation Award at the HSBC Commercial Banking and Federation of Small Businesses Small Business Growth Awards for his work on RAAC repair. LinkedIn
Thank you, we have your enquiry
One of the team will come back to you within one working day. If it is urgent, call +44 118 430 8430.
RAAC assessment FAQs
What is the RAACSafe Protocol?
Our five-stage process for RAAC: Assess, Design, Manufacture, Install and Monitor. The assessment is stage one. If strengthening is the answer, the same team carries the building through the other four. Together they ensure safe, quality-controlled delivery throughout. Our instrumented monitoring devices are in active service on RAAC roofs today.
How quickly can you assess a building in Winnersh?
We are based in Finchampstead, Wokingham, so we can usually be on site in Berkshire within one to two days, and the report follows within five working days of the site visit, depending on the size of the survey and the level of detail required.
Will my trust, insurer or funder accept the assessment?
Every assessment is signed by a Fellow of the Institution of Structural Engineers, which is what trusts, NHS estates, insurers and funders look for. Professional indemnity insurance is held to a maximum of £10 million, with public and employers' liability arranged on a per-site basis.
What are the RAAC risk categories?
The Institution of Structural Engineers guidance places each RAAC panel in a risk category based on its condition, bearing, deflection, cracking and exposure to water, from panels needing no immediate action to panels needing action now. The assessment states the category for every panel in the building and what each category requires.
What does a RAAC structural inspection cost?
It is priced per building, because size, access and the level of detail required vary enormously; a large hospital estate and a village hall are not the same job. As a guide, a visual RAAC survey starts from £395. A full engineering inspection of a large or complex building, a hospital for example, is priced per building once we know its size, access and the level of detail required.
Who carries out the RAAC assessment?
John Staves (CEng FIStructE, MIoD), a chartered structural engineer and one of the UK's leading specialists in RAAC. He carries out all of the structural calculations and assessments for Structured Carbon.
Do I need a survey before an assessment?
Yes. The assessment is an engineering judgement on evidence, and the evidence comes from the survey. If your building in Winnersh has not been surveyed, we do that first, led by Neil Smuts, and deliver the two together.
Also in Winnersh
RAAC survey in Winnersh
RAAC survey in Winnersh, Berkshire, by Neil Smuts MCIOB MInstNDT FRCSP, President of the UK Concrete Scanning Standard.
RAAC survey in WinnershRAAC scanning in Winnersh
RAAC scanning in Winnersh, Berkshire: non-destructive identification of RAAC planks and their reinforcement by Neil Smuts, President of the UK Concrete Scanning Standard.
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Related: RAAC strengthening, RAAC remediation in Berkshire, RAAC confirmed buildings register, RAAC in schools.