Get in touch for expert advice
Speak to our team about your project and discover how our specialist services can support you.
Building deterioration involves multiple interacting factors. At Surv-A, we conduct building pathology surveys using established diagnostic methods. Informed by BRE guidance and building science principles, our assessments trace how environmental exposure, material characteristics, and structural behaviour cause deterioration.
Each survey is tailored to your building’s specific age, construction, and use. Our clients—architects, engineers, property managers, building owners, and surveyors—rely on our analysis when planning repairs, refurbishments, or addressing persistent defects.
Independence matters. We have no ties to manufacturers or contractors, so our advice is genuinely impartial, and you’ll get solutions designed around your project's requirements.
Effective solutions start with proper diagnosis. We develop bespoke designs based on site analysis, risk assessment, and compliance requirements—tailored to your building's conditions and usage.
We have over sixty years of combined industry experience – and we've never had a claim made against our designs. This track record comes from our uncompromising standards.
Our expertise includes thorough understanding of British Standards and building regulations, ensuring your project achieves compliance.
Speak to our team about your project and discover how our specialist services can support you.
As well as considering visible defects, we investigate the underlying building pathology as a whole. Our building pathology surveys examine three areas that determine how and why buildings deteriorate:
This holistic approach shows whether issues stem from design, material failures, poor workmanship, or environmental factors. With this information, we can then recommend solutions.
Our team has investigated hundreds of buildings across residential, commercial, and industrial sectors. This breadth of experience means we recognise deterioration patterns quickly, understand how different construction types fail, and know which diagnostic techniques reveal root causes.
We’ve assessed everything from historic masonry to below-ground waterproofing failures. This accumulated knowledge ensures our surveys deliver accurate diagnosis and appropriate recommendations—backed by professional indemnity insurance and an unblemished track record. Speak with our team today to discuss your project requirements and learn more about our building pathology surveys.
Here are answers to frequently asked questions about our services. If you have other questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch.
See all FAQsA building pathology survey investigates why buildings deteriorate. Unlike condition surveys that document what's visible, pathology surveys analyse the underlying causes—examining how environmental exposure, material properties, and construction methods interact to cause problems.
You need a pathology survey when buildings show signs of deterioration that require investigation—persistent damp, cracking, material degradation, or recurring defects. They're essential before specifying major repairs, during due diligence on property purchases, when standard surveys raise concerns, or when you need to understand why previous repairs have failed. If you're unsure what's causing problems, a pathology survey provides the analysis needed for informed decisions.
Our surveys include visual inspection internally and externally, moisture diagnostics and thermal imaging where appropriate, material condition assessment, analysis of environmental exposure patterns and review of building age and typology. You receive a detailed report explaining what's deteriorating, why it's happening, and what remedial approaches are appropriate.
We examine all accessible areas—roofs, external walls, foundations, internal spaces, basements, and attic voids. We assess how environmental exposure affects the building, examine material condition across all elements, evaluate construction details and interfaces, check drainage and ventilation provisions, and identify structural factors influencing deterioration.
Yes. Our building pathology reports are evidence-based, thoroughly documented, and referenced against BRE guidance and British Standards. They include photographic evidence, diagnostic test data, and clear conclusions about causation.
We also provide expert witness services where cases proceed to dispute or litigation, with reports prepared to comply with Part 35 requirements.
Problem Surv-A appointed to design, monitor and quality audit the below ground structural waterproofing for a prestigious building that was Fenwick dept. Store. The building...
Read more
Problem The basement was suffering from visible mould growth and dampness. Free water was also discovered entering via cracks in the structure. An intrusive and...
Read more
Problem Severe and widespread ground water ingress affected the double basement areas, with significant cracking of the structure. The hydrostatic pressures on the original structure...
Read more
This is another project through one of our best clients, blackburn (project consultants) we carried out a condition survey of an existing building just off...
Read more
This is a sensitive ongoing defect investigation. The house was extended significantly back in 2016 with the major change being below ground structures. The existing...
Read more