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Page 18 — Property Management Quarterly — April 2017
Maintenance
C onstruction cranes fill the
Denver skyline, seemingly
permanent fixtures included
in all portraits, paintings and
postcards that have the Mile
High City on display. With the high
demand for new construction, fueled
by thousands of people moving to
Colorado each month, these cranes
are here to stay for the foreseeable
future. Unfortunately, the lack of
quality labor makes it a challenge
to meet the increased demands,
both in commercial and residential
construction. To keep pace with
demand, structures often are built
quickly. But what impact does this
have on the quality of construction?
Poor construction quality is the rea-
son construction defects exist.
• Codes, standards and installation.
Construction defects occur when
builders fail to follow building code,
manufacturer installation instruc-
tions or industry standards. Building
codes specify the standards for con-
struction detailed by the applicable
municipality. Building codes exist
to ensure that construction meets
certain safety and quality standards.
Consequently, failing to build to code
often results in defects.
All construction projects are
built using materials that contain
their own manufacturers’ instal-
lation instructions. These are not
mere guidelines or suggestions, but
instead specific details for how each
material should be installed and
maintained.
Deviations from the manufactur-
ers’ installation instructions often
result in defects and, equally con-
cerning, likely will void any product
warranty to the
detriment of the
ultimate owner or
occupant.
Industry stan-
dards are the con-
struction means
and methods that
those within the
building industry
generally expect to
be utilized when
any builder con-
structs a building.
Industry standards
include (and often exceed) building
code and manufacturer installa-
tion requirements. For example, to
meet industry standards, builders
are required to comply with the rec-
ommendations, reports, plans and
specifications made by the profes-
sionals the builder hired to design
the project, such as architects, civil,
mechanical and geotechnical profes-
sionals. Failing to build a structure in
compliance with design professional
details may result in defects.
• Maintenance or construction
repair? Maintenance is the perfor-
mance of routine care to ensure
building systems operate efficiently
and the building components meet
their life expectancy. This must be
an ongoing or regularly scheduled
process to sustain the life of the
building and its mechanisms. Main-
tenance can include painting or
coating siding and stucco, replacing
sealants, servicing mechanical sys-
tems, maintaining landscape materi-
als, and performance of upkeep on
roofs, parking garages, pools and all
other common elements.
Repairs, on the other hand, may
stem from poor construction. For
example, concrete repairs could be
caused by bad drainage or incorrect
installation. If a community finds
itself repairing something frequent-
ly, it is time to rethink the repair
because the community may be suf-
fering from construction issues that
are the responsibility of the builder,
not the owners.
Simply stated, performing routine
maintenance is not the same as
performing repairs to a construction
defect. Unfortunately, it can be diffi-
cult at times to distinguish between
the two and mistaking the two can
have significant implications.
Take windows leaks as an exam-
ple. If a building is experiencing win-
dow leaks, it is possible that routine
maintenance is needed to replace
the caulking around the window. On
the other hand, it is possible that the
windows were originally installed
in a defective manner necessitating
more costly repairs that, in an ideal
world, should be paid for by the
builders, not the owners.
• Deferred maintenance. Deferred
Shane Fleener
Partner and
lawyer, Hearn &
Fleener, Denver
Hearn & Fleener
Cracks in concrete can be caused by bad drainage or incorrect installation.