What is RAAC concrete?

What is RAAC concrete?

Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete is a form of lightweight concrete used within construction of many buildings constructed between the 1950s and 1990s.

Is is largely aerated with subsequent material properties differences to the usual, conventional concrete. Used often within roofs, sometimes floors and walls.

What is the problem with RAAC concrete?

In the 1990s, structural engineers began to realise the concrete wasn’t lasting its supposed lifetime, seeing weakening of the material due to its ease of moisture absorption. The steel reinforcements within also began to corrode with this test of time due to the build up of moisture.

Now due to recent report of a roof collapse in a UK primary school, the UK Government property agency declared “RAAC is now life-expired and liable to collapse”.

What does RAAC mean for schools?

Schools that were constructed within the 1950s and 1990s are those at higher risk and there is a more likely chance of RAAC being present within their structures.

At least 214 schools across the UK have been affected in some way by RAAC. Many schools having to shut completely or partially close facilities affected by RAAC. Delays in term start dates have also caused disruptions, leading a lot of schools and their management to find sufficient solutions to this disruption.