RISKY BUSINESS - Keeping Heritage Alive

Risk Assessments… glazed eyes and dozing off tend to be common reactions to these words. Stick with me here! If you are passionate about heritage architecture (and don't want your project shutdown from unexpected disasters), risk assessments are your best friend, the unseen driving force behind a successful project and what you'll be glad to forget about at the end of a project.

By George McArdle

WHY DO WE NEED THEM?

Admittedly, heritage architecture isn't for everybody, the buildings already exist unlike the blank canvas in your revit/rhino model. Historic buildings are often plagued with surprises; hidden asbestos, instability and sometimes colonies of creatures (usually bats). This is where the risk assessment must enter. It isn't as simple as ticking boxes, it's about engaging with the whole team to ensure a project is safe, legal and most importantly…. standing.

Nobody wants to be the architect who didn't comply with the strict regulations that inevitably come with and protect heritage sites. A typical non-compliance here leads to severe project delays, fines and worst of all, a complete shutdown.

The fires that took place at The Glasgow School of Art is a well-known result of a poor risk assessment. 2014 Fire: Lack of Provisions.

The fire was thought to have been caused from “flammable gases from a tin of expanding foam came into contact with the surface of a hot projector”.

There was no utilisation of a modern sprinkler system in the building despite being a known fire risk due to the timber construction of the building and its old electrical wiring.

A legitimate risk assessment would have flagged the previously mentioned hazards. Strategies to mitigate the issues would have been in place and the fire would not have started.

2018 Fire:

Reconstruction efforts were underway from the 2014 fire yet the building caught fire again.

Lack of fire safety planning during restoration, strict safety and compliance measures could have prevented the fire. 

The building was destroyed, heritage features of the mackintosh building were lost and restoration costs were around £100 million pounds.

THE SECRET- MAKING RISK ASSESSMENTS WORK FOR US

1. KNOW THE RULES

Keeping well informed and up to date with codes, regulations and laws will allow you to remain ahead of the game(no nasty surprises here).

Our studio exhibition (albeit not a large scale project) involves a myriad of considerations such as environmental laws and how we can dispose of material through recycling and worker safety regulations that must comply with HSE.

2. DON'T STRESS!....ASSESS

Identify risks before they manifest. This future based mindset will ensure a robust basis for risk management. You will be ready for anything and everything. 

Communication with each team, allowed for complete future risk considerations. Just one example that was suggested by the marketing team was, Inaccurate Targeting, that may stem from advertisement, social media or improper marketing strategies. This easily forgettable risk came prior to developing a solid social media following with a direct target audience. This type of risk could lead to lack of funding from sponsors and partnerships due to a lack of confidence in our team. 

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3. PLAN, PLAN, PLAN!

Even the best play can go awry, having a multitude of mitigation strategies that account for potential risks ensure projects can remain on track and can be completed successfully.

FROM COMPLIANCE TO CREATIVITY

Risk assessments aren’t about saying ‘no’, they're about finding smarter ways of saying ‘yes’. Understanding risks will allow for better design solutions that are innovative while respecting the past. After all, heritage architecture and our ethos is all about “preserving the past, shaping the future”.