Knowledge

Commercial property landlords have a duty to maintain, repair and keep in good working order the common parts of the premises. The cost of meeting this obligation is recovered by the landlord through the collection of service charge payments made by the buildings' occupiers.

Our guest, Alison Oakes of Landmark Chambers, defines Right to Light and explains how it is acquired through deeds and (more commonly) via the 1832 Prescription Act.

The New Engineering Contract is a modern family of standard form construction contracts that truly embraces the concept of partnership – encouraging clients, designers and contractors to work together in construction projects. Originally introduced in 1993, the NEC has become increasingly popular, with the third edition of the contract published in 2005.

This programme explores Peter Eisenman’s architectural and theoretical works, as well exploring his opinions on the state of architecture today. Eisenman’s new book, Ten Canonical Buildings: 1950-2000, is explained in the context of his built structures, while his theory of coding and its application in his ongoing project for the City of Culture of Galicia is outlined.

This programme investigates the anticipated new Approved Document G on Sanitation, hot water efficiency and water efficiency, as well as the Water Efficiency Calculator, both of which are devised to monitor the amount of water used in a typical dwelling house.

The London Development Agency (LDA) and the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) have launched a new, mapped database of London's brownfield land called The London Brownfield Sites Database (LBSD).

Whether the ground floor of a house is suspended or filled, it will include either a solid slab or an oversite layer of concrete laid on compacted hardcore directly on the ground. Both hardcore and soil are potential sources of sulfates and other chemicals harmful to concrete. This programme investigates the hardcore components and soil conditions likely to contain sulfates, explains how concrete is affected by sulfate attack and looks at methods used to prevent such damage.

In this programme we discuss the tell-tale signs of a wood-boring insect infestation and describe how to tell the difference between the four main types of wood-boring beetle common to the UK.

Timber has long been a staple construction material for domestic scale properties, although it is increasingly being used in high-profile structures such as the Weald & Downland Gridshell. However, exposure to the elements can result in changes to the chemical and physical properties of wood, affecting its aesthetics, structure and longevity.

RICS damp expert Stephen Boniface defines the commonly accepted definition of rising damp before both he and fellow guest, Jeff Howell, claim ‘true’ rising damp doesn’t exist.

This programme takes a look at 'Health and wellbeing' – Category 7 in the Code for Sustainable Homes. This category is formed of four parts – daylighting, sound insulation, private space (gardens, patios, etc), and lifetime homes – all of which are explained in the context of Code for Sustainable Homes credits.

The replacement of the old British Standard BS 6651 with BS EN 62305 will have a significant impact on the design and installation of lightning protection structures. This programme explains why the new standard has been adopted and discusses its key points. The procedures associated with the new standard are examined, while Surge Protection Devices (SPDs) and Lightning Protection Zones (LPZs) are explored in detail.