STRUCTURAL ASSESSMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

STRUCTURAL ASSESSMENT - Essay Example This phase is important for the structural stability and to ensure the safe design implementation and this inspection will also affect the life of the structure because mistakes made at this stage can be corrected on spot but after the facility is complete then the retrofitting would be very difficult and expensive. Then the second phase is the post construction inspection which is done after some time that is 6 months, 1 year and 5 years normally the frequency of the inspection decides its extent, mostly the inspection made after 5 years is far more extensive and detailed than that of which is done after 6 months. This inspection is mostly done by visual monitoring of the facility by professional which inspect the vital areas that are vulnerable to failures and crack propagation. Both the inspection types are extensively vast and hence require a lot of discussion where as at the moment I will only focus on the Post Construction inspection. The key requirements of the inspection woul d be consisting of many aspects the first among them is property identification information which include the location and type of infrastructure facility. Then a detailed study and preliminary visual inspection of various structural systems employed in the building/structure and applicable non-structural components is done. Further progress in the assessment and its requirement includes critical analysis existing condition of the various structural systems, including foundations, bearing walls, framing, columns and beams, floor systems, roof systems, and their connection and construction details. During the assessment and inspection procedures one fact is also to be considered that the Engineers and/or construction specialists conducting the structural assessment should be knowledgeable of the construction methods, materials, load capacities, and design details of the infrastructure facility or structure type being analyzed, as modern structural design approaches will likely not be directly applicable due to the fact that these structures were made quite a long time before and employed primitive construction standards and design methodologies. William Hover (2008).In addition to requirements discuss above there are other as well and which are equally important, significant among these is analysis of the deficiencies, damage, and failures to determine/identify their evident, probable, or possible causes and after these are been highlighted then it is the responsibility that recommendations for corrective measures, design solutions for stabilization and/or repair and maintenance must be made. Then at the end a cost estimate must be made of the repair works and the cost engineering under different scenario must be made which include the recommendation of new construction or choices of retrofitting and localized repairs. Maintenance Management System Then comes the Maintenance Management System(MMS) for a large infrastructure organization, although the system is very extensive and encompasses many fields but the key focus in this discussion would be on infrastructure organizations and their requirements. MMS is a computerized database system which is made to maximize and increase the efficiency of deferred maintenance and capital improvement activities through the organization and its services using standardized procedures to document and prioritize field facility and equipment needs and to