The remedial sector of the building industry is an area that appears to be growing, at least most obviously in the Sydney region.
This is probably due to the increasing number of strata title buildings requiring repairs. Many repairs such as concrete cancer are simply becoming necessary as buildings from the first wave of strata schemes during the 1960s, reach 40 and 50 years old. With housing pressures across our cities, strata schemes and high rise developments are becoming even more common with new high rises constantly springing up in our suburbs.
Unfortunately, new does not mean free of defects. A newspaper article in the Sydney Morning Herald revealed 85% of new strata schemes are defective. The greater portion of these defects are waterproofing problems. A friend of ours has recently bought into a Meriton apartment complex in Surry Hills where the Owners Corporation is about to spend $1.6 million on waterproofing repairs and they will endure the sweet sound of jack-hammers for the next 12 months. The building is only around 15 years old and has sustained these defects from day one.
Remedial builders do have the unique advantage of pulling buildings apart. They are the detectives of the building industry who are able to observe failures and apply better methods on how to design against problems. Efflock is fast becoming recognised as a preferred versatile solution for this industry.
Above: BD Remedial Builders repairing efflorescence and waterproofing failures at a complex in Cronulla.