The 9 Pillars of Efficient Building Restoration
Fire & Flood Technicians, Insurance Claims Technicians, Loss Adjusters and Building Restoration Contractors all have different (though overlapping) technical competences, understanding and experience of insurance restoration projects, however they all have a common purpose to do their part when faced with insurance claim repairs.
Working collectively, everyone in the insurance restoration process will need to play their part to ensure they: -
Improve communication
Reduce financial loss leakage
Reduce indemnity spend
Decrease claim lifecycle
Improve the customer experience
With this in mind, here is a Fire and Flood Restoration Masterclass on the Nine Pillars of Technical Competence
1) Water Damage
Understanding moisture meters and the conditions in which they are used is vital when carrying out a damp survey. Different types of damp meter will be deployed by the damp surveyor specialist and he/she will take into account the vagaries of different types of damp meters and materials under investigation. They may test with had held moisture meters or carry out gravimetric measuring with a deep understanding of the various readings provided. They will consider the readings in the context of relative humidity and the wood moisture content percentages against other materials such as brick, plasterboard, concrete, timber. The damp survey specialist will consider total moisture content, free moisture and bound moisture within the context of local humidity conditions.
2) Types of Equipment
Once the damp survey is completed, appropriate action needs to be taken to start the water damage repair. After the water leak detection process has found the leak and stemmed the flow, the drying process can start. There are a variety of dehumidifier systems available to the water damage restoration companies including: Refrigerant, desiccant and low grain dehumidifiers. Air movers and heat systems may be required, some of which are large and are trailer based systems.
3) Use of Equipment
Understanding what equipment is available to building restoration companies ensures fast and efficient drying. There may be a need to deploy ‘target drying’ to specific areas and to keep in mind the importance of temperature and humidity which can slow drying times. PAT testing of equipment needs to be up to date and health and safety regulations followed at all times.
4) Fire Damage
There are different types of fire damage that can be caused. The fire damage restoration may be needed due to relatively low energy fires that can give off toxic fumes more than flames and this can cause odour and smoke damage more so than fire damage itself. High energy fires can cause massive destruction and can burn building material entirely or change its inherent strength properties, even melting or warping metals like steel beams. Soda blasting is often an effective treatment for staining due to fire damage however you need to know where not to use soda blasting as well.
5) Asbestos Awareness
The importance of training in all aspects of Asbestos awareness cannot be stressed enough. Regulations around asbestos removal include Notifiable Non-Licensed Work (NNLW) relating to Health and Safety. Sampling may be required and special clothing and safety equipment employed. To be safe, it is prudent to always assume asbestos may be present when starting a building reinstatement project.
6) Trace & Access
For water leaks, you need to use modern trace and access equipment for there may be a combination of effects that have caused water damage. Water can cause damage when flowing but also where it lies by causing rising damp through capillary action. There are many new modern trace and access methods in use today to track down water leaks including infrared, ultrasound and other sophisticated systems.
7) Mould
There is often a great misunderstanding of mould found during a building restoration project. Also, there are many expensive treatments that could be on offer but may actually not be required. Usually though all that is required to treat mould is thorough cleaning, stain blocking and then painted over. Professional restoration companies will come across mould frequently and will provide additional treatment only of if it is required.
8) Building Terminology
As in any industry, the construction business has its “buzz words” and it can help if all parties have an understanding what is meant by phrases like: Floating floors, Stud partitions, Plaster on hard, Timber framed, Byson slabs etc.
Avoiding buzz words, or even better understanding them, makes for better communications in general.
9) Insurance Terminology
The insurance business also has its buzz words and their priorities lie around ensuring the insurance restoration claim is valid and that the building restoration costs are not overstated. So phrases like: Excess, Indemnity Spend. Loss Leakage, Betterment and many more will be at the forefront of the insurance companies priorities.
Paradigm Reinstatements is based in Scotland and is one of the UK’s leading building restoration companies. They have in their technical arsenal a wide a wide range of leak detection, damp testing tools as well as state of the art fire and flood damage cleaning systems to ensure that insurance claim repairs are carried out professionally. Find out about more about Paradigm Reinstatements' services.
As a result, Paradigm are one of the leading building reinstatement companies appointed by several of the UK’s leading insurance companies.
