Renovation design can respect the existing structure or fight it. The cost and outcome of each approach.
Renovation projects divide into those that accept the existing building's logic and those that impose a new one. Both are legitimate, and the difference in cost and difficulty between them is substantial enough to make it a deliberate decision.
Work with the existing structure at a glance
Retaining the structural arrangement and adapting the layout within it, changing finishes, services and non-structural elements.
Impose a new arrangement at a glance
Removing or modifying structure to achieve a layout the existing arrangement does not permit.
Cost
Work with the existing structure: Substantially lower, and considerably more predictable.
Impose a new arrangement: Higher, with structural work, temporary support and the discovery risk that accompanies opening a building.
Programme
Work with the existing structure: Shorter, with fewer stages that can halt while an issue is assessed.
Impose a new arrangement: Longer, with structural work and the approvals it may require.
Risk
Work with the existing structure: Lower. Fewer unknowns are disturbed.
Impose a new arrangement: Higher. Opening structure reveals conditions nobody priced.
Outcome quality
Work with the existing structure: Constrained by the existing arrangement, which may limit how well the result serves you.
Impose a new arrangement: Potentially much better, since the layout can respond to actual requirements.
Approvals
Work with the existing structure: Usually simpler where structure is unaffected.
Impose a new arrangement: May require approval depending on the extent of the work.
When work with the existing structure wins
- The existing arrangement is broadly workable.
- Budget is constrained and certainty matters.
- The programme is short and disruption should be limited.
- The structure is sound and its logic is not the problem.
When impose a new arrangement wins
- The existing layout fundamentally does not work for the intended use.
- The structural modification is feasible and has been assessed.
- The budget can absorb the cost and the risk of discovery.
- The resulting improvement justifies the intervention.
How to decide
Work with the structure unless the existing arrangement genuinely prevents the building serving its purpose. Where intervention is necessary, assess it structurally before committing, and carry a contingency appropriate to renovation rather than to new construction.
Before deciding, commission a structural assessment that identifies what can be modified and at what cost. Renovation decisions made without that assessment are made on assumptions that the first week of demolition usually corrects expensively.
If you are starting a design, Domira can help you write the brief, review the drawings and keep the design aligned with the budget before it reaches a contractor.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if a wall can be removed?
Only a structural engineer can determine this reliably, since load paths are not always visible and a wall that appears non-structural may carry load. The assessment is inexpensive relative to the consequences of guessing.
What contingency is appropriate for renovation?
Considerably more than for new construction, because existing buildings conceal their condition. The appropriate figure depends on the age of the building and how much will be opened up, and it should be established before the work rather than found during it.
Is it ever better to demolish and rebuild?
Frequently, where the structure is compromised, the layout is fundamentally wrong and services are at the end of their life. At that point renovation costs approach new construction while inheriting the old building's constraints.
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