The article discusses inspection strategies and processes for assessing and diagnosing built heritage. It emphasises the importance of thorough inspection to identify structural and non-structural anomalies in buildings.
Survey and inspection are the first tasks in the assessment of a building’s condition, comprising the identification and registry of its main structural and non-structural anomalies. The inspection process is crucial for evaluating the condition of old buildings, understanding their structural behaviour, materials, value, and identity. Also, historical information about construction techniques is essential before diagnosing issues and assessing building safety.
The approach to be used in the inspection process should be pre-selected according to the building typology, the final goal of the project, the level of detail intended and the intervention scale. Particularly in the case of the ancient buildings, and due to the general lack of knowledge on traditional materials and building techniques, such inspection and survey actions are often inadequate and consequently compromise the reliability of the diagnosis and the subsequent efficiency of eventual rehabilitation and/or retrofitting actions.
The article establishes that the approach to inspection should be carefully selected, considering tasks such as photographic documentation, filling out inspection forms, geometric and structural surveys, and experimental tests. It also highlights the use of inspection datasheets as valuable tools for effective survey and diagnosis actions and stresses the need for collective efforts in urban rehabilitation, involving institutional structures to support operational processes and negotiate policies effectively.
