How to assess quality of construction

Watching your dream home come up brick by brick is an exhilarating experience. At the same time, ensuring stellar quality in construction can be a stressful exercise and demands constant attention besides an eye for detail.

Controlling the quality of construction is absolutely critical to ensure that the finished project is structurally strong, aesthetically pleasing and adheres to the construction design and materials protocols established at the outset. Quality of construction is defined by the project client, regulatory agencies and environmental guidelines.

Construction quality can be broken down into two facets – quality control (QC) and quality assurance (QA). Quality assurance spells out the promise of quality management and delineates how it can be achieved. Quality control is the plan or knowhow to accomplish that assured quality. It is absolutely vital to be vigilant in quality management from start to finish of your dream home.

Here are some guidelines to ensure quality construction:

# Evaluate the soil quality: The type and quality of soil can differ from location to location. Since soil is a critical component that ensures strength of the foundation, it demands your total attention and careful scrutiny. Soil tends to shrink or swell as per the prevailing moisture levels. So, you would do well to ask your project contractor about the nature of the soil and seek a copy of the soil test report.

# Examine the structural design: It is advisable to engage an expert to evaluate the building’s structural strength and design, since you wouldn’t likely be familiar with these structural details. The expert can methodically assess elements like fire-fighting readiness, seismic load-bearing capacity, emergency exits, etc.

# Quality of concrete mix used: The strength of the concrete mix used in construction determines the load-bearing capacity of the building. A reputed and conscientious developer will use the best quality mix with the optimal concrete-sand ratio to ensure superior strength of the structure. If you can easily drive a nail through the wall, the concrete mix quality used could be poor.

# Thickness of walls: The thickness of the walls is supposed to be mentioned in the builder’s plan and you can cross-verify it to check its accuracy. Simply tap the wall with your knuckles to look for a hollow sound or if you can feel plywood used inside. Use of plywood inside walls is quite common to add strength to the structure. However, if the ply isn’t properly treated, there’s always a fear of termite infestation at a later date.

# Quality of paint used: Premium-quality paints can not only enhance the looks of your walls, but also boost their longevity. On the flip side, substandard paints, coupled with improper curing can cause the walls to wear down earlier than normal. So please ensure that good quality paint has been used and the walls have been properly cured.

# Bathroom fittings & sanitary wares: Top quality sanitary fittings and accessories would be very comfortable to use. The various components including washbasins, toilets, bidets and face cleaners should all meld into a user-friendly shape that enhances both comfort and aesthetics. Gently tap on the fittings to check for fractures and if you get a hoarse feedback, it could indicate cracks. The faucets and other parts should be easy to replace and the floor should have anti-skid tiles.

# The RERA shield: The Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) was set up as an apex watchdog body to regulate and support growth in the real estate sector without sacrificing quality. The RERA Act which was passed by Parliament in 2016 and came into effect on May 1, 2017, is designed to ensure transparency in sale and valuation of real estate projects, besides on-time completion and delivery. West Bengal, which earlier had its own regulatory instrument WBHIRA, has now adopted RERA as well. This provides a shield against poor construction quality, delays, defective land titles, etc.