Pan W, T R (2013) Defects of new-build dwellings constructed to building regulations and to the 'code for sustainable homes'. In: Smith, S D and Ahiaga-Dagbui, D D (eds.) Proceedings of 29th Annual ARCOM Conference, 2-4 September 2013, Reading, UK.
Abstract
Defect is an important aspect to address for enhancing quality of homes. However, there is little research into defects of new-build homes in the UK constructed to the 'Code for Sustainable Homes' which has been introduced to the UK building industry since 2007 as an environmental assessment tool. The aim of this paper is to contribute to knowledge of the defect profile of new homes regarding the defect number, type, location, severity and responsible trades. The research was carried out through analysing defect records for 327 homes in the UK constructed to the Code in comparison with to Building Regulations. In total 3209 defects were identified, with the mean average of 9.8 defects per home. Despite some extreme cases 91.4% of the dwellings studied were reported of 20 or less defects each. It is concluded that the defect profile of UK new-build homes since 2007 has improved in number, diversity and severity of defects. Nevertheless, kitchens and bathrooms remained as two most defective areas, with plumbers and painters/decorators being most often tasked for rectifications. With the evidence presented no clear relationship was observed between the defect profile of the homes and their performance standards or build methods adopted.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | building standard; defect; quality; sustainable home |
| Index terms: | building regulation, building industry, evidence, plumber, environmental assessment |
| Subjects: | practitioner, environmental impact, evaluation and assessment methods, regulatory law, industry analysis |
| Topics: | Legal Issues, Sustainability, Roles and Professions, Research Practice |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here