The Building Survey Process Explained

First, what is a Building Survey?

In Architecture, Engineering, and Construction, a building survey is a quantitative examination of a building's condition, structure, or overall integrity. Building Surveys are carried out by qualified and experienced professionals, such as a chartered surveyor or structural engineer.

The purpose of a building survey is to qualitatively assess the physical condition of a property. This includes its structural elements, foundations, walls, roof, floors, plumbing, electrical systems, and more.

The surveyor examines the property thoroughly to identify any defects, damage, or areas requiring maintenance or repair. The result of a building survey is a comprehensive report for the property owner, potential buyer, and/or their AEC or Real Estate team to work off of.

Types of Building Surveys

There are different types of building surveys, ranging from more basic visual inspections to more detailed and comprehensive assessments. The choice of survey type often depends on the property's age, complexity, and the specific needs and concerns of the client.

In Residential Construction, the term Building Survey is usually synonymous with the term Structural Inspection. This type of survey is typically a visual inspection of accessible parts of a building. That usually includes walls, floors, windows & doors, roofs, chimneys, cellars, garages and other buildings included with the property.

In the commercial space you may hear terms such as Architectural Survey or Existing Conditions Survey. Regardless of the type of property or complexity of your project, all building surveys follow roughly the same process:

Step 1: Before you ever step foot on site to survey a building, understand the purpose of your deliverable.

Before going on site, an AEC professional must understand the purpose of the final deliverable. The deliverable is dictated by the project's scope.

Here are some common reasons why a property owner may request a building survey:

1. Documenting the property's condition, highlighting areas that need renovation or could use improvement.
2. To determine the reasons behind structural decay, rot, or other physical issues.
3. Present conservation or maintenance recommendations.
4. Routine inspections or checks as required by safety regulations, a local AHJ, or other ordinance.
5. For capital planning purposes to understand and make the best decisions between portfolio properties.
6. To include in the maintenance and operations (MRO) budget.

Building Surveys Beyond Design

Sometimes your clients may turn to your expertise for an application beyond construction. Some of the most common include:

Litigation

Building surveys can be valuable in legal and financial contexts. They may inform property transactions, negotiations, insurance claims, and legal disputes related to property conditions. In these cases, you typically focus your deliverable on your neutral and informed observations from the site.

Real estate transactions

For property buyers, understanding a space's true condition allows them to make the most informed decision they can. *For instance when you purchase a home you may request a homebuyer report.

Once the surveyor understands the purpose, the survey can be designed. They will create a list questions to answer about each room. Question types may be yes/no such as "does the carpet need replacement?" or more

Sometimes an building owner will supply an existing 3D Model or Floor Plan(s) to work off of. Other times you may be starting with an a spreadsheet.

Step 2: Design the Survey.

Typically surveys are conducted one of three ways:

1. Pen & Paper
2. Laptop
3. A Mobile App linked to Revit

Before designing your survey, you will need a list of areas that you will survey. This may be as simple as a list of rooms, or include many existing buildings and structures. Then you will design questions for the survey based on what the data will be used for.

Step 3: Ask the right questions!

To ensure high quality data, try to design questions that can result in the answers that can be parsed. For instance, you should use a multiple choice option instead of free text for a question such as "floor condition."

The questions you Common information collected during a building survey may include:

Evaluation of Condition

Common areas to review include:

1. Door, window, wall, and flooring condition

   Are the above in good condition and free of wear and tear, in need of replacement, or somewhere in between. It's important to match your survey conditions against your scope. For instance, it may make sense to only have 3 options:
   1. Like New
   2. Satisfactory
   3. Needs Replacement
      
      

2. Identification of Structural or Facade Issues 

   Are there structural areas to review? Depending on your scope you may be asked to assess the integrity of structures along with their functionality. 
   
   When designing your survey consider ways to document your findings. If you are conducting your survey with pen and paper add a reminder to take photos in order to document cracks, subsidence, settlement, or other issues that may affect the stability and safety of the building.
   
   

3. Defects and Discrepancies 

   Building surveys pinpoint specific defects, discrepancies, or potential life safety hazards, including dampness, rot, mold, insulation problems, and the presence of asbestos or other hazardous materials.
   
   

4. Recommendations 

   You may be requested to provide recommendations for addressing any issues identified during the survey. These recommendations may include necessary repairs, maintenance, or further investigations.
   
   

5. Cost Estimates 

   The survey report may include cost estimates for repairs or improvements. These estimates can assist owners or buyers in preparing for future expenses.

Step 4: Get ready to go on site.

Once the questions are ready, it's time to schedule the site visit(s). This may be an informal visit where you can just show up and capture observations. For large projects, you may more restrictions and it might be necessary to schedule the site visit in advance. 

Here are some things you should double check: 

1. What PPE do you need to bring?
   This includes steel toe boots, a high vis vest, hard hat, and safety glasses for most active construction sites. For industrial facilities you may need more specialized equipment such as fire retardant clothing or fall protection.
2. Will you need any permits, ID, or certifications to access the site? 
   Many sites require at minimum a valid government issued photo ID to gain access. Specialized sites may require safety school cards, or certifications to access dangerous or hard to reach areas.
3. Do you need to bring specialized equipment?
   Camera phones have made amazing strides in recent years. Many phones also now include a lidar scanner. However there is no substitute for specialized instrumentation.
   You may be required to follow specialized procedures to operate survey equipment in industrial or construction sites. Always ask your client's designated point of contact if there are any special requirements to operate any of the following on site: 
   1. Laser Scanners 
   2. Drone
   3. Cameras / Photogrammetry Equipment

Once you have all the data, it's time to make it useful.

If you conducted your survey with pen & paper, it's time to organize your notes. You can use a spreadsheet with links to a file folder to organize all your photos and categorize your observations.

If you conducted the survey in Layer, congrats, that's it! Simply print the documents you pre-formatted before going on site, export them to PDF, and send them to your client!

Want to see Layer in Action? Watch this 4 minute video on conducting a Building Survey in Layer.