Punching shear and flexural design issues in existing reinforced concrete building

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England, United Kingdom

A 20-year-old tall residential building comprising hundreds of apartments, was found to have structural design deficiencies in its concrete flat slabs, some of which raising safety-critical concerns. This led to a dispute between the developer, the contractor and the structural engineer.

Halley Forensics was engaged to investigate the adequacy of the original structural design, assess responsibility for the deficiencies, and review the viability and reasonableness of proposed remedial works. Issues included the flexural performance of the flat slabs, the design of transfer slabs, and punching shear issues across multiple levels of the development.

The findings of this investigation were reported to the solicitors acting for the developer, to inform their client's position in relation to claims against the original structural designer and/or the contractor.