Structural Surveys & Movement Monitoring
A structural survey establishes the condition of a building at a single point in time: what has cracked, what has moved, and what may need attention. It is the right starting point when you need a professional read on a property. What a survey cannot do, on its own, is tell you whether that movement is still happening.
SLABsense provides structural surveys alongside continuous monitoring, so you get both the snapshot and the trend. Where a survey raises questions about active movement, monitoring answers them with measured data, supporting proportionate decisions across residential and commercial buildings.
Structural repair FAQs
What is a structural survey?
A structural survey is a professional inspection of a building's condition, focused on cracking, movement and the integrity of the structure. It records what is visible at the time of inspection and identifies the areas that may need further investigation or repair.
A survey is a snapshot. It tells you the state of the building on the day it was carried out, which is valuable for purchase decisions, dispute resolution and establishing a baseline to measure future change against.
Do I need a structural survey or monitoring?
It depends on the question you are trying to answer. If you need to understand current condition, a survey is the right tool. If you need to know whether cracking or movement is ongoing, monitoring is what gives you the answer.
In practice the two work together: a survey identifies the concern, and monitoring confirms whether it is active, seasonal or historic before any repair is specified.
What is the difference between a survey and monitoring?
A survey measures the building once. Monitoring measures it continuously over weeks or months.
Movement is often slow, intermittent or seasonal, so a single inspection can miss it entirely or overstate it. Monitoring removes that uncertainty by recording how the structure behaves over time, producing a clear trend rather than a single reading.
When should I commission a structural survey?
A survey is sensible whenever you need a documented, professional assessment of condition. Common triggers include:
- New, widening or unexplained cracking
- Sticking doors and windows, or sloping floors
- Before or after a property purchase
- Ahead of building or extension works
- Supporting an insurance claim or boundary dispute
Where the survey suggests movement may be ongoing, the logical next step is a period of monitoring to establish whether it is.
Can a survey tell me if my building is still moving?
Not reliably. A survey can identify evidence of past movement and signs that suggest it may be continuing, but it cannot confirm whether movement is active without measurement over time.
This is the most common reason surveys lead to inconclusive outcomes. Monitoring resolves it by measuring movement directly, so repair decisions are based on evidence rather than interpretation of symptoms.
What happens after the survey?
You receive a clear assessment of condition and recommendations. Where active movement is suspected, we will typically recommend a monitoring period to confirm behaviour before any remedial works are designed.
This avoids two common and costly mistakes: repairing a building that has stopped moving, and repairing one that is still moving with a remedy that then fails.
What will I receive?
- A professional structural assessment of the property
- Clear identification of cracking, movement and areas of concern
- Recommendations and, where appropriate, a proposed monitoring strategy
- Reporting suitable for engineering, insurance and professional use
All findings are presented in a format suitable for technical review and professional use.
Speak to a Monitoring Specialist
If you require subsidence monitoring, slab movement monitoring or crack monitoring, our team can help define the most appropriate solution for your site.