Materials and damage arising in building processes

In recent years, not only is the number of legal disputes related to building damage on the increase but procedures are also becoming more and more complex. These are annoying and cause extra work, which the consumer ultimately has to pay for in the form of rising construction costs, rental charges or reduced returns on investment. Avoiding damage right from the start or identifying it quickly and clearly when it happens saves costs and helps to optimize building processes. However, effective research into the causes of building damage calls for adapted assessment procedures and analysis methods in various disciplines. Fraunhofer IBP is in a better position than almost any other institution to do this. Although normed test procedures under standardized general constraints are useful to compare quality, they are invariably of little help when it comes to identifying specific damage. Fraunhofer IBP is unique with its interdisciplinary expertise in natural sciences and engineering, such as classical physics, building physics, acoustics, mathematics, computer science, chemistry, biology, etc. Teams of experts made up of engineers, physicists, geologists, mineralogists, chemists, process engineers, biologists, mathematicians, architects and IT scientists, are available as competent partners to discuss technical matters at eye level. Cases can be dealt with in the laboratory, in the field or with the aid of simulations.