Building in Use - Economical Aspects

Investment costs

It is desirable to optimise total lifecycle costs yet it is inconsistent to consider individual costs in isolation. In terms of initial capital outlay, one building construction may cost more than another, but analysed in terms of the respective lifecycles – taking maintenance and repairs into account – the result changes significantly.

A good example of this is the clay brick cavity wall, which – at least in some countries – requires greater capital outlay than, for example, a solid wall with external polystyrene insulation. But the cavity wall has a very long lifespan (at least 100 years) without incurring significant repair costs. In contrast, external polystyrene insulation has a limited lifespan (around 30 years) with additional costs involved on several occasions to renew the insulation. Lifecycle-costs are therefore lower for the clay brick cavity wall.

Investment costs in clay roofing tiles are to be amortized on their one-hundred years lifespan.

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